What is the Misery Index?

The misery index helps determine how the average citizen is doing economically and it is calculated by simply adding the Annual inflation rate to the Seasonally Adjusted unemployment rate. The chart below includes inflation, unemployment, misery index and who was President.

As inflation rises the cost of living increases and as unemployment rises more people cross the economic line into poverty. Therefore, this index is a quick and dirty metric to gauge the health of the economy since both high unemployment and high inflation are major factors to the average wage earner.

Unfortunately, although data for the annual inflation rate is available back to 1914 (the CPI index began in 1913) data for the misery index is only available back to 1948 due to the lack of unemployment numbers prior to 1948. The original Misery index was created by economist Arthur Okun during the Johnson administration in the 1960s, not by Robert Barro as some people mistakenly believe. Barro created the “Barro Misery Index” (BMI) in 1999, which also includes interest rates and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) trend into the mix.

Approximately ten years later Steve Hanke updated Barro’s work by applying it to other countries outside the United States. Hanke’s modified misery index uses unemployment, plus inflation as Okun did but then adds interest rates, and then subtracts the year-over-year percent change in per-capita GDP growth. Assuming that high-interest rates also add to the “Misery” but growth in GDP reduces the misery. Interestingly, when the original misery index was conceived by Okun the index was actually quite low by recent standards.

Surveying Happiness and Weighting the Misery Index

According to a paper in the American Economic Review called “Preferences over Inflation and Unemployment: Evidence from Surveys of Happiness unemployment causes 1.7 times as much misery as inflation and so the misery index should probably be calculated by multiplying unemployment by 1.7 and then adding it to inflation.

Current Commentary:

In this chart, we can see the peaks and valleys of the Misery index. As we can see most of the low points occur above 5% with only a couple in the 1940s and 1950s that are below 5%. Those were generally during times of war when unemployment was excessively low. Only twice in the current millennium has the misery index gotten close to 5%. Even in the boom of 2006, it was 5.71%.

In September 2019, the Misery index was near all-time lows at 5.21%.

By March 2020, it had climbed slightly to 5.94%. But in April, due to the COVID-19 shutdown and consequent high unemployment, the Misery Index shot up to 15.03% based on 14.7% unemployment and 0.33% inflation. In May both inflation 0.12% and Unemployment 13.30% fell, resulting in a Misery index of 13.42%. By July unemployment had fallen to 10.2% and inflation had risen slightly to 0.99% resulting in a Misery index of 11.19%. In August, unemployment had fallen to 8.4% as COVID shutdowns began winding down but inflation rose slightly to 1.31%.

Recent Misery Index:

In 2019, the peak was 5.79% in December and the Low was in September at 5.21%. Previous peaks were 6.87% in July 2018 and 7.44% in February 2017.

Note: During times of deflation (i.e. negative inflation) the misery index might not be truly representative of the actual misery of the general population. Although falling prices can help alleviate suffering, deflation does not necessarily guarantee “good times” if that were the case the “Great Depression” would have to be renamed “Happy Days” since prices fell 9% in 1931 and then another 10% in 1932.

For more information see: The Great Depression The Deflationary 1930′s– 1930-1939.

Even though the “Roaring 20’s” has the reputation of being a fun time combined with massive deflation, not everyone benefited. Those in the cities prospered but farmers suffered severely as the prices of their produce fell drastically in 1921 and 1922. This was made worse by the fact that a much larger portion of the population were farmers. In 1920, 27% of the workforce was dedicated to farming, but as time went by farming became much more mechanized so fewer farmers were needed. By 1990, farmers had dropped to only 2.6% of the population. See The “Roaring Twenties” Inflation and Deflation 1920-1929.

Another example of falling prices hurting the general population happened during the 2008-2009 crash where falling Real Estate and Stock prices increased suffering rather than alleviating it. The index bottomed at 5.06% in September 2015 but then began increasing again leading up to the election in 2016 and then began falling again immediately after the election.

Misery Index Chart

Click for Larger Image

Misery Index Table:

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2020 6.09% 5.83% 5.94% 15.03% 13.42% 11.75% 11.19% 8.71% 2019 5.55% 5.32% 5.66% 5.60% 5.39% 5.35% 5.51% 5.45% 5.21% 5.36% 5.55% 5.79% 2018 6.17% 6.31% 6.46% 6.36% 6.60% 6.87% 6.85% 6.60% 5.98% 6.22% 5.88% 5.81% 2017 7.30% 7.44% 6.88% 6.60% 6.17% 6.03% 6.03% 6.34% 6.43% 6.14% 6.30% 6.21% 2016 6.27% 5.92% 5.85% 6.13% 5.72% 5.91% 5.74% 5.96% 6.46% 6.54% 6.29% 6.77% 2015 5.61% 5.47% 5.43% 5.20% 5.46% 5.42% 5.47% 5.30% 5.06% 5.17% 5.50% 5.73% 2015 8.18% 7.83% 8.21% 8.25% 8.43% 8.17% 8.19% 7.80% 7.56% 7.46% 7.12% 6.36% 2014 9.49% 9.68% 9.07% 8.56% 8.96% 9.35% 9.36% 8.82% 8.38% 8.26% 8.24% 8.20%

The Misery Index and Politics

Historically, a high (or climbing) misery index has been a political football resulting in a change of Presidents while a low (or falling) misery index resulted in reelection. Eisenhower (R) was reelected in November 1956 with a misery index of 6.53%. Johnson (D) ended with a misery index of 8.13 in November of 1968 and Humphrey (the Democratic candidate replacing Johnson) lost to Nixon.

Early in the Nixon (R) administration, the misery index climbed to a high of 11.67% in December 1970. From there through the election in November 1972 the index was falling and Nixon was re-elected. As a matter of fact, according to Wikipedia, “Emphasizing a good economy and his successes in foreign affairs, such as ending American involvement in Vietnam and establishing relations with China, Nixon won the election in a landslide.” However, the Misery Index bottomed two months later at 8.55% and from there the misery index climbed drastically.

Finally, Nixon resigned when his misery index climbed to 17.01% in July of 1974. Although Watergate was the trigger, one has to wonder if the economy was doing well would Watergate have been such an issue?

Gerald Ford (R) took office in September 1974 with the index at 17.85%. It peaked at 19.9% a few months later and then fell steadily as his term progressed to 12.66% in December 1976 but he still lost. Perhaps if his term had been slightly longer (i.e. he had a full-term) he might have been reelected.

Jimmy Carter (D) quoted the misery index extensively during his 1976 Presidential campaign to unseat Ford, even though Ford actually presided over a declining Misery index. Carter, on the other hand, presided over an increasing misery index of his own, starting his term at 12.72% and increasing to levels well above Ford’s highs. Carter’s misery index peaked at 21.98% in June of 1980. His misery index was still above 20% come November 1980, so Reagan (R) was able to use Carter’s own words and the misery index against him in the following election and make Carter a rare one-term President.

Reagan took office in January 1981 with a misery index of 19.33%. By November of 1984, the misery index had fallen steadily to 11.25% and Reagan was reelected. By November 1988 the misery index was 9.55% and so the Republicans were able to elect Bush 1 (R) in the hopes of more prosperity to come. But four years later (November 1992) the misery index was higher at 10.45% and Clinton was elected.

In January the index stood at 10.56%. By November 1996 it had fallen to 8.66% and Clinton (D) was reelected. By November 2000, the misery index still stood at 7.35% and Bush 2 (R) was elected. This election and the Nixon win over Johnson are the only two elections in the history of the index where it was relatively low when parties changed. But in both cases, it was climbing fairly steeply prior to the election. So it is possible that people felt they were becoming worse off.

During Bush 2’s first term, the misery index rose slightly to 8.92% by November 2004 and the election was very close. Resulting in Bush 2 barely getting re-elected. In July of 2008, toward the end of Bush’s 2nd term, the misery index climbed to 11.40% and by September of 2008, it was still 11.14%. Even though it had fallen to 7.87% by November the public mood was still miserable due to the stock market crash and unemployment continued to rise. The deflationary component of the misery index was due to a massive contraction in the money supply due to a stock market crash rather than any positive economic factors.

In effect, the crashing stock market led everyone to feel poorer (and most were poorer as the value of their house and any investments had declined precipitously) thus the market trumped the Misery index itself. So the social mood was ready for a change in political parties. Worldwide this same phenomenon appears to hold as well, this seems to be confirmed by the elections in both France and Greece where their economies were faltering and the seated Presidents were both voted out. In the 2012 election apparently, Obama was seen as presiding over a falling Misery index and so he was reelected.

In the 2016 election, the misery index had bottomed in 2015 at 5.06% and had been climbing reaching 6.29% by November this was combined with an increase in Civil unrest as evidenced by “Black Lives Matter” activities. A recent Gallup poll revealed that Americans are worried about race relations. 42% in the U.S. worried a “great deal” about race relations up from 17% in 2014. Thus Hillary Clinton was defeated and Trump was elected. For more information on how Social Mood affects politics and the economy See: Social Mood Resources at your Fingertips.

Which Party Has a Better Misery Index Record?

With all the talk about the misery index in politics, it begs the question: Which party has performed better? Simply looking at the chart it is possible for both parties to say they have done better, each party has had its good times and bad times. Looking at the overall numbers, however, Democratic Presidents have done slightly better with an average overall misery index of 8.87% while Republicans have had an average overall misery index of 9.57%. However, if we look at only the more recent average since Jimmy Carter, we see Democrats with 9.91% and Republicans with 9.81%. But since Congress actually makes the laws, it may be more accurate to include the political makeup of Congress to get a more accurate indication. Or perhaps looking at the last 3 years of each presidency would be more representative of a particular president’s policies. Since individual states’ political parties have a more direct influence on their economics… See Unemployment Rates by State to see which political party has had the best effect on each state’s unemployment rate.

Definition

The misery index is defined as, a measure of the economic well-being of the country, which is calculated by taking adding the unemployment rate and the inflation rate.

Recent Misery Index Component Numbers

Date U-3 Unemployment CPI-U Inflation Misery Index Jan-09 7.80% 0.03% 7.83% Feb-09 8.20% 0.24% 8.44% Mar-09 8.60% -0.38% 8.22% Apr-09 8.90% -0.74% 8.16% May-09 9.40% -1.28% 8.12% Jun-09 9.50% -1.43% 8.07% Jul-09 9.50% -2.10% 7.40% Aug-09 9.70% -1.48% 8.22% Sep-09 9.80% -1.29% 8.51% Oct-09 10.10% -0.18% 9.92% Nov-09 9.90% 1.84% 11.74% Dec-09 9.90% 2.72% 12.62% Jan-10 9.70% 2.63% 12.33% Feb-10 9.70% 2.14% 11.84% Mar-10 9.70% 2.31% 12.01% Apr-10 9.80% 2.24% 12.04% May-10 9.60% 2.02% 11.62% Jun-10 9.50% 1.05% 10.55% Jul-10 9.50% 1.24% 10.74% Aug-10 9.60% 1.15% 10.75% Sep-10 9.60% 1.14% 10.74% Oct-10 9.70% 1.17% 10.87% Nov-10 9.80% 1.14% 10.94% Dec-10 9.40% 1.50% 10.90% Jan-11 9.10% 1.63% 10.73% Feb-11 9.00% 2.11% 11.11% Mar-11 8.90% 2.68% 11.58% Apr-11 9.00% 3.16% 12.16% May-11 9.00% 3.57% 12.57% Jun-11 9.10% 3.56% 12.66% Jul-11 9.10% 3.63% 12.73% Aug-11 9.10% 3.77% 12.87% Sep-11 9.00% 3.87% 12.87% Oct-11 8.90% 3.53% 12.43% Nov-11 8.70% 3.39% 12.09% Dec-11 8.50% 2.96% 11.46% Jan-12 8.30% 2.93% 11.23% Feb-12 8.30% 2.87% 11.17% Mar-12 8.20% 2.65% 10.85% Apr-12 8.10% 2.30% 10.40% May-12 8.20% 1.70% 9.90% Jun-12 8.20% 1.66% 9.86% Jul-12 8.30% 1.41% 9.71% Aug-12 8.10% 1.69% 9.79% Sep-12 7.8% 1.99% 9.79% Oct-12 7.9% 2.16% 10.06% Nov-12 7.8% 1.76% 9.56% Dec-12 7.8% 1.74% 9.54% Jan-13 7.9% 1.59% 9.49% Feb-13 7.7% 1.98% 9.68% Mar-13 7.6% 1.47% 9.07% Apr-13 7.5% 1.06% 8.56% May-13 7.6% 1.36% 8.96% Jun-13 7.6% 1.75% 9.35% Jul-13 7.4% 1.96% 9.36% Aug-13 7.3% 1.52% 8.82% Sep-13 7.2% 1.18% 8.38% Oct-13 7.3% 0.96% 8.26% Nov-13 7.0% 1.24% 8.24% Dec-13 6.7% 1.50% 8.20% Jan-14 6.6% 1.58% 8.18% Feb-14 6.7% 1.13% 7.83% Mar-14 6.7% 1.51% 8.21% Apr-14 6.3% 1.95% 8.25% May-14 6.3% 2.13% 8.43% Jun-14 6.1% 2.07% 8.17% Jul-14 6.2% 1.99% 8.19% Aug-14 6.1% 1.70% 7.80% Sep-14 5.9% 1.66% 7.56% Oct-14 5.8% 1.66% 7.46% Nov-14 5.8% 1.32% 7.12% Dec-14 5.6% 0.76% 6.36% Jan-15 5.7% -0.09% 5.61% Feb-15 5.5% -0.03% 5.47% Mar-15 5.5% -0.07% 5.43% Apr-15 5.4% -0.20% 5.20% May-15 5.5% -0.04% 5.46% Jun-15 5.3% 0.12% 5.42% Jul-15 5.3% 0.17% 5.47% Aug-15 5.1% 0.20% 5.30% Sep-15 5.1% -0.04% 5.06% Oct-15 5.0% 0.17% 5.17% Nov-15 5.0% 0.50% 5.50% Dec-15 5.0% 0.73% 5.73% Jan-16 4.9% 1.37% 6.27% Feb-16 4.9% 1.02% 5.92% Mar-16 5.0% 0.85% 5.85% Apr-16 5.0% 1.13% 6.13% May-16 4.7% 1.02% 5.72% Jun-16 4.9% 1.01% 5.91% Jul-16 4.9% 0.84% 5.74% Aug-16 4.9% 1.06% 5.96% Sep-16 5.0% 1.46% 6.46% Oct-16 4.9% 1.64% 6.54% Nov-16 4.6% 1.69% 6.29% Dec-16 4.7% 2.07% 6.77% Jan-17 4.8% 2.50% 7.30% Feb-17 4.7% 2.74% 7.44% Mar-17 4.5% 2.38% 6.88% Apr-17 4.4% 2.20% 6.60% May-17 4.3% 1.87% 6.17% Jun-17 4.4% 1.63% 6.03% Jul-17 4.3% 1.73% 6.03% Aug-17 4.4% 1.94% 6.34% Sep-17 4.2% 2.23% 6.43% Oct-17 4.1% 2.04% 6.14% Nov-17 4.1% 2.20% 6.30% Dec-17 4.1% 2.11% 6.21% Jan-18 4.1% 2.07% 6.17% Feb-18 4.1% 2.21% 6.31% Mar-18 4.1% 2.36% 6.46% Apr-18 3.9% 2.46% 6.36% May-18 3.8% 2.80% 6.60% Jun-18 4.0% 2.87% 6.87% Jul-18 3.9% 2.95% 6.85% Aug-18 3.9% 2.70% 6.60% Sep-18 3.7% 2.28% 5.98% Oct-18 3.7% 2.52% 6.22% Nov-18 3.7% 2.18% 5.88% Dec-18 3.9% 1.91% 5.81% Jan-19 4.0% 1.55% 5.55% Feb-19 3.8% 1.52% 5.32% Mar-19 3.8% 1.86% 5.66% Apr-19 3.6% 2.00% 5.60% May-19 3.6% 1.79% 5.39% June-19 3.7% 1.65% 5.35% July-19 3.7% 1.81% 5.51% Aug-19 3.7% 1.75% 5.45% Sep-19 3.5% 1.71% 5.21% Oct-19 3.6% 1.76% 5.36% Nov-19 3.5% 2.05% 5.55% Dec-19 3.5% 2.29% 5.79% Jan-20 3.6% 2.49% 6.09% Feb-20 3.5% 2.33% 5.83% Mar-20 4.4% 1.54% 5.94% Apr-20 14.7% 0.33% 15.03% May-20 13.3% 0.12% 13.42% June-20 11.1% 0.65% 11.75% July-20 10.2% 0.99% 11.19% Aug-20 8.4% 1.31% 9.71%

See Also: