Vilovärdet

Vilovärdet is a term used in Swedish-language literature in labor economics and health sciences to denote the perceived value of rest, leisure, and inactivity in daily life. It captures the marginal utility of time spent resting, distinct from work time and consumption. In time-use research, vilovärdet helps explain why individuals might forego additional income to gain more rest or leisure and how rest contributes to well-being, health, and productivity.

Methods to estimate vilovärdet combine revealed preference analyses from time-use diaries with stated preference techniques such as contingent valuation or discrete choice experiments. Researchers may use proxies like self-reported life satisfaction, sleep quality, fatigue, cognitive performance, or healthcare use to calibrate the value attached to rest. Cross-cultural and demographic differences are common in expressed vilovärdet.

Policy relevance arises in debates over work hours, vacation policy, and occupational health programs. A higher vilovärdet implies greater welfare gains from policies that preserve or expand rest time, flexible schedules, and sleep-promoting work environments. It is often considered alongside the value of income and consumption in cost-benefit analyses of labor-market reforms.

Limitations include measurement difficulty, subjective bias, and endogeneity with health and income. Critics argue that rest value varies with context and that short-term studies may not capture long-run welfare effects. Nevertheless, vilovärdet provides a framework for analyzing rest as an economically meaningful component of welfare.

See also: time-use research, leisure, sleep health.