A couple of more meaningful comments (perhaps):

1) I think there is a big difference between (a) freedom in the macro/societal sense (e.g. the fundamentals of freedom of speech, equality of gender etc.) and (b) freedom of choice (in the consumer sense). Your taxi driver seemed to be talking about (a) and I’m sure he wouldn’t have carried that view if he was driving his cab in Zimbabwe rather than an oil rich tax haven.

2) Taking choice in the sense of (b) above which I think is more where Schwartz was coming from, I believe this to be true in so far as choice (so often cited as one of the key benefits of capitalism and associated government policies such as privatisation) in itself does not lead to happiness and can have quite the opposite effect (don’t you just hate it when restaurant menus extend beyond a page — all you need to know is what sauces they do for the steak right?!) It’s perhaps the quality of choice (rather than quantity) which derives satisfaction. And once you’ve made that choice should we then sit back and be content? I think not, we should start again and strive for the next thing (not in a selfish sense but in whatever we’re doing whether it be for ourselves, for others or for the greater good). This ‘discontent’ that drive us to the next thing may be an impediment to happiness (in the hedonistic sense) but I think it is also inherent in our motivation to improve and evolve.

3) Quite a bit of ‘interesting’ related theory on this across academic disciplines: economic theory on diminishing marginal utility (as quantity increases (more in terms of consumption than choice) your level of incremental satisfaction decreases…but then what do Economists know, they should get out and drink more! Perhaps of more relevance is the sociological theory of ‘Anomie’ a theory applied to a lot of areas (including Durkheim’s studies on crime and suicide — a very dull read!) but when applied to the impact of societal choice it might say something like this: The lure of choice for a lot of people can create an ‘expectation gap’, the difference between the expectation of owning/achieving something, and the reality (the actual or ‘normal’ level of what can be attained). This — it is often said — can cause dissatisfaction and distress, and therefore in this case, freedom of choice = unhappiness. Not sure I buy this one either personally — I’d rather aspire to being a Porsche owning philanthropist, than being ‘normal’.

A couple of more meaningful comments (perhaps):

1) I think there is a big difference between (a) freedom in the macro/societal sense (e.g. the fundamentals of freedom of speech, equality of gender etc.) and (b) freedom of choice (in the consumer sense). Your taxi driver seemed to be talking about (a) and I’m sure he wouldn’t have carried that view if he was driving his cab in Zimbabwe rather than an oil rich tax haven.

2) Taking choice in the sense of (b) above which I think is more where Schwartz was coming from, I believe this to be true in so far as choice (so often cited as one of the key benefits of capitalism and associated government policies such as privatisation) in itself does not lead to happiness and can have quite the opposite effect (don’t you just hate it when restaurant menus extend beyond a page — all you need to know is what sauces they do for the steak right?!) It’s perhaps the quality of choice (rather than quantity) which derives satisfaction. And once you’ve made that choice should we then sit back and be content? I think not, we should start again and strive for the next thing (not in a selfish sense but in whatever we’re doing whether it be for ourselves, for others or for the greater good). This ‘discontent’ that drive us to the next thing may be an impediment to happiness (in the hedonistic sense) but I think it is also inherent in our motivation to improve and evolve.

3) Quite a bit of ‘interesting’ related theory on this across academic disciplines: economic theory on diminishing marginal utility (as quantity increases (more in terms of consumption than choice) your level of incremental satisfaction decreases…but then what do Economists know, they should get out and drink more! Perhaps of more relevance is the sociological theory of ‘Anomie’ a theory applied to a lot of areas (including Durkheim’s studies on crime and suicide — a very dull read!) but when applied to the impact of societal choice it might say something like this: The lure of choice for a lot of people can create an ‘expectation gap’, the difference between the expectation of owning/achieving something, and the reality (the actual or ‘normal’ level of what can be attained). This — it is often said — can cause dissatisfaction and distress, and therefore in this case, freedom of choice = unhappiness. Not sure I buy this one either personally — I’d rather aspire to being a Porsche owning philanthropist, than being ‘normal’.