Opinion Today: It may be in your head after all

Rethinking negative outlooks on the economy.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story April 3, 2024 By Suein Hwang Business, Economics and Technology Editor, Opinion What's wrong with a little positivity? Judged by many measures, America's economy right now is nothing short of a marvel. Unfortunately for President Biden, many American voters are not convinced, and they believe that economic conditions are far more dire. In a guest essay for Opinion, the economist Justin Wolfers considers this divergence in part by thinking through how he experiences the economy himself. "I, too, know that flash of resentment when grocery store prices feel like they don't make sense. I hate the fact that a small treat now feels less like an earned indulgence and more like financial folly. And I'm concerned about my kids now that house prices look like telephone numbers," he writes in the beginning of his guest essay. "But I breathe through it. And I remind myself of the useful perspective that my training as an economist should bring. Sometimes it helps, so I want to share it with you." Wolfers suggests that the animus so many of us feel is grounded in the fact we process prices and wages differently. When prices go up, we get mad at the economy. But when our own wages go up, which they will often do in parallel to higher prices — we tend to attribute the boost to improvements in our own performance and productivity. Which leads him to the somewhat unflattering conclusion that we too often give ourselves unearned credit for pay raises. So it's at least worth considering: Perhaps we should be pleased with the economy, and perhaps not quite as pleased with ourselves. Read the guest essay: Lenka Clayton Guest Essay I'm an Economist. Don't Worry. Be Happy. An economist explains why his lens makes him so much more optimistic about the state of our economy than the average American. 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