UBI is Not a Recipe for Long-Term Human Flourishing

For many years, the fear of upcoming mass unemployment due to artificial intelligence and automation has spurred conversations about the future of work and inspired advocacy for a universal basic income (UBI). After subsiding for a while and becoming just a talking point associated with Andrew Yang‘s presidential campaign, interest in UBI has revived amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

To UBI proponents, the high levels of unemployment and economic uncertainty associated with the pandemic demonstrate the need for the government to play a larger role in people’s lives. But while UBI may sound attractive to many during challenging times because it promises some level of financial security, it is important to consider ways that it fails to support—and could ultimately undermine—human flourishing. A universal basic income would make it harder for recipients to develop a sense of meaning in life and to accumulate forms of human capital that promote self-sufficiency and economic growth.

Most UBI analyses fixate on basic economic questions, such as how the policy might impact labor-force participation and how it would be paid for—and for good reason. The few discussions that do account for how UBI might influence psychological variables tend to narrowly consider emotional dimensions of wellbeing that make UBI appear to be purely beneficial. It should come as no surprise that receiving “free” money may boost positive emotions and at least temporarily reduce stress. But this is an overly hedonic and narrow view of wellbeing that neglects important psychological aspects of human flourishing.

Human flourishing requires developing a sense of meaning in life, which should be taken very seriously in UBI discussions. When people perceive their lives to be meaningful, they are less likely to suffer from mental-health problems and better able to recover if they experience mental-health challenges. Meaning also positively predicts physical health, longevity and economic success. This is because meaning has motivational power. It is a self-regulatory psychological resource that drives people to push forward when life gets difficult and to have a positive outlook on life.

Meaning inspires agency. When people believe their lives are meaningful, they view themselves as having a significant role to play in the world, energizing the types of goal-directed action that help families, communities and the broader society thrive. Work can be an important way to help people develop a sense of meaning—though not in the way that many assume.

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