미국이 이렇게 부유한데도 어떻게 이렇게 우울해졌나

Despite strong economic metrics like low unemployment and wage growth, American happiness, job satisfaction, and consumer confidence have plummeted since 2020 in what experts call a 'vibecession'. Cumulative inflation—particularly in housing and services—has eroded the affordability assumptions that middle-class life depended on, explaining why the wealthiest households show the greatest sentiment decline. This divergence between economic data and emotional indicators reveals that sentiment-driven factors like social trust erosion and algorithm-mediated isolation now materially influence political outcomes and economic behavior.