But a lack of pent-up demand coming out of the recession was also noticeable in other areas of household spending, especially consumer durables other than motor vehicles. In addition, the 2001 downturn was led by a collapse in business spending, especially for equipment and software.
1 Following the growing literature, I define “happiness” as a short-term state of awareness that depends on a person’s perceptions of one’s immediate reality, as well as on immediate external circumstances and outcomes. By “life satisfaction” I mean a longer-term state of contentment and well-being that results from a person’s experiences over time.