Energy Consumption, Electricity, and Lifestyle in Industrial Nations

Among the world’s nations, per capita energy and electricity consumption is highly correlated with diverse indicators of desirable lifestyle. This is often interpreted to mean that additional energy and electricity consumption causes improvements in quality of life. Prior analyses of cross-sectional data, and theoretical considerations, question this interpretation for industrial nations that already have high per capita energy consumption. The present analysis with longitudinal data shows that among industrial nations, increases in per capita energy and electricity consumption over the past three decades have not produced corresponding improvements in lifestyle.