ComputingA1/proposal.html at main · Aresenick/ComputingA1 · GitHub

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>Proposal</title>
    <link rel="stylesheet" href="style.css">
    <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/font-awesome/6.4.0/css/all.min.css">
</head>
<body>

     <nav>
        <ul>
            <li><a href="index.html"><i class="fa-solid fa-house"></i> Home</a></li>
            <li><a href="proposal.html" class="active"><i class="fa-solid fa-file-lines"></i> Proposal</a></li>
            <li><a href="health.html"><i class="fa-solid fa-heart-pulse"></i> Health</a></li>
            <li><a href="trade.html"><i class="fa-solid fa-globe"></i> Trade</a></li>
            <li><a href="national.html"><i class="fa-solid fa-shield"></i> National Security</a></li>
            <li><a href="conclusion.html"><i class="fa-solid fa-flag-checkered"></i> Conclusion</a></li>
            <li><a href="references.html"><i class="fa-solid fa-book"></i> References</a></li>
            <li><a href="T.html"><i class="fa-solid fa-book"></i> Trump Effect</a></li>
        </ul>
    </nav>

    <div class="hero2">
        <h1 id="header">Reaserch Proposal</h1>
    </div>
    <hr class="dashed">

    <p>
        This report will dive into the effects Economic Policy Uncertainty (EPU) has had on the US public’s happiness over the last 20 years.
        EPU is the uncertainty presented in newspaper articles, often reflecting public thoughts and concerns of economic policies and factors,
        which then trickles down to a slower and more volatile economy. This report explores how the effects of certain EPU derivatives in the US
        impact public happiness by comparing and analysing trends between EPU data and public happiness data.
    </p>

    <p>
        EPU data is taken from the Economic Policy Uncertainty webpage. The data is collected by running thousands of articles from 10 leading US
        newspapers through a filter that checks for key terms. If flagged as containing a key term for any category, a count is added to that category.
        The final count is then scaled so that an average EPU is 100, higher EPU scores are higher (>100), and lower EPU scores are lower (<100).
        The following lists the terms used to flag articles for the three chosen categories.
    </p>
    <section>
        <div class="graph-container">
            <img src="images/happinessgraph.png" alt="graph of USA happiness index from 2013-2025" />
        </div>
        <div>
          <p>The graph above presents the USA Happiness Index (0 = unhappy, 10 = happy) from the World Happiness Report covering 2013–2025. The United States recorded a score of 6.72 in 2025, below its 2013–2025 average of 6.92 and down from its peak of 7.12 in 2015. After remaining relatively stable through 2020–2021, happiness levels declined significantly in 2022–2023, reaching a low of 6.69 in 2023, before showing a modest recovery in 2024–2025. This downward trend corresponds with rising inflation and cost-of-living pressures, growing income inequality, political polarization, declining institutional trust, and global geopolitical tensions that have contributed to economic uncertainty and reduced social cohesion. Although the U.S. remains above the global average, the sustained decline since the mid-2010s suggests structural pressures affecting overall national well-being beyond traditional economic growth indicators. </p>
        </div>
      </section>

    <p>
        We have already passed the first quarter of the 21st century, and there have been 80 years without a world war. Ever since World War II ended,
        none of the countries are willing to start a war due to the great cost of nuclear conflict. COVID-19 has served as a catalyst over the past
        five years, rapidly escalating global tensions and national security issues.
    </p>

    <p>
        Research proves that EPU data is tightly linked with a nation’s response to conflict and change, especially in the case of the USA, where
        elections, policy changes and conflict situations are widely represented in the media. EPU offers an unbiased view of the level of
        magnification of a given issue (how much the general public is affected by it).
    </p>

    <p>
        America has been a major factor in this rapid change. Ever since the early 2000s, the US has experienced significant spikes in EPU driven
        by major events and policy debates, including the 9/11 attacks and subsequent wars, the 2008 financial crisis, intense debates over the
        Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), trade wars and tariff policies (especially during the Trump administration), debt ceiling crises, and
        the COVID-19 pandemic response.
    </p>

    <p>
        According to the USA Happiness Index data from theglobaleconomy.com, in the past 20 years, the average satisfaction level of US citizens
        has decreased gradually, with several fluctuations. It has dropped out of the top 20 happiest nations multiple times. Certain events,
        such as the 2008 financial crisis, COVID-19, Trump’s elections and trade wars, have all demonstrated effects on national happiness.
    </p>

    <p>
        By examining EPU and Happiness Index trends with a focus on health care, trade policies and national security data, we are provided with
        a fuller understanding of how national and international changes affect citizens’ quality of life. This offers a different perspective
        in analysing global issues, allowing us to focus on real social impacts rather than just economic statistics.
    </p>
    <div class="functionbutton">
        <button onclick="window.scrollTo({top: 0, behavior: 'smooth'})">↑ Back to Top</button>
    </div>
</body>
</html>