Buying time: using the gig economy can make you happier

Online shopping can make you happier, as long as you buy time, according to a paper from a group of American, Canadian and Dutch researchers. “People who hire a house cleaner or pay the kid next door to mow the lawn might feel like they’re being lazy,” said study lead author Ashley Whillans, assistant professor at Harvard Business School. “But our results suggest that buying time has similar benefits for happiness as having more money.”

Participants were handed $40 to spend, and told to either buy themselves something nice or spend it on outsourcing a task. Those who did the latter reported higher levels of satisfaction.

What does that mean for the internet? One way to use the internet and apps to boost your happiness could well be outsourcing your chores using gig economy platforms, hiring someone online to clean your home (Helpling), assemble your furniture (TaskRabbit), or do your laundry (Laundrapp).

“The growth of the sharing economy has made time-saving services increasingly accessible, but no empirical research has tested whether using such services enhances happiness,” the authors noted, in their explanation of why they examined the topic.

While such online platforms might well lift the buyer’s happiness, the so-called gig economy has been criticised for not paying a living wage – suggesting such platforms might not have the happiest, most fulfilled employees, despite their potential benefit to customers.