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Cited by 853

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 73 of the 73 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Are We Consuming Too Much?

Open access
Arrow, Kenneth, Dasgupta, Partha, Goulder, Lawrence, Daily, Gretchen, Ehrlich, Paul, Heal, Geoffrey, Levin, Simon, Mäler, Karl-Göran, Schneider, Stephen, Starrett, David, Walker, Brian·2004·Journal of Economic Perspectives

Abstract

This paper articulates and applies frameworks for examining whether consumption is excessive. We consider two criteria for the possible excessiveness (or insufficiency) of current consumption. One is an intertemporal utility-maximization criterion: actual current consumption is deemed excessive if it is higher than the level of current consumption on the consumption path that maximizes the present discounted value of utility. The other is a sustainability criterion, which requires that current consumption be consistent with non-declining living standards over time. We extend previous theoretical approaches by offering a formula for the sustainability criterion that accounts for population growth and technological change. In applying this formula, we find that some poor regions of the world are failing to meet the sustainability criterion: in these regions, genuine wealth per capita is falling as investments in human and manufactured capital are not sufficient to offset the depletion of natural capital.

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Crossref · 10.1257/0895330042162377

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Metadata

Authors
Arrow, K., Dasgupta, P., Goulder, L., Daily, G., Ehrlich, P., Heal, G., Levin, S., Mäler, K.-G., Schneider, S., Starrett, D., & Walker, B.
Venue
Journal of Economic Perspectives
Published
2004-08-01
Volume
18
Issue
3
Pages
147-172
ISSN
0895-3309 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W1976128508
Cited by
853
References
73
FWCI
134.14
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
bronze

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Are We Consuming Too Much? https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1257/0895330042162377
The paper
Arrow, K., Dasgupta, P., Goulder, L., Daily, G., Ehrlich, P., Heal, G., Levin, S., Mäler, K.-G., Schneider, S., Starrett, D., & Walker, B. (2004). Are We Consuming Too Much? Journal of Economic Perspectives. https://doi.org/10.1257/0895330042162377

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