How much does a person really cost society over the course of a lifetime – and how much does that same person contribute?
Economic calculations are increasingly used in public debate to describe what different groups cost or contribute to society. Statistics Norway (SSB), for example, has calculated how much an average Norwegian costs the state over the course of a lifetime. The conclusion was striking: the vast majority receive far more from society than they pay in.
But how fair is it to draw up a balance sheet for a human life? What should really count as a contribution to society? And how far can economic models and spreadsheets go in describing the value of a person?
Lars Kolbeinstveit, philosopher at the Civita think tank, meets Kalle Moene, Professor of Economics at the University of Oslo, and Erling Holmøy, researcher at Statistics Norway, for a discussion about economic calculations, contributions to society and the value of a life.
