--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/a-review-of-the-literature-on-regrettable-expenditures-and-implications-for-the-index-of-economic-well-being/" title: "A Review of the Literature on Regrettable Expenditures and Implications for the Index of Economic Well-being" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-02T10:39:05+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-02T10:39:05+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "commuting costs" - "crime costs" - "defensive spending" - "IEWB" - "Index of Economic Well-Being" - "regrettable expenditures" - "well-being measurement" country_focus: - "Canada" province_region: - "National" research_theme: - "Economic Well-Being" - "Productivity and Economic Measurement" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # A Review of the Literature on Regrettable Expenditures and Implications for the Index of Economic Well-being Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/a-review-of-the-literature-on-regrettable-expenditures-and-implications-for-the-index-of-economic-well-being/ # A Review of the Literature on Regrettable Expenditures and Implications for the Index of Economic Well-being [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2020-04-1.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Wong, Kimberly. 2020. “A Review of the Literature on Regrettable Expenditures and Implications for the Index of Economic Well-being.” CSLS Research Report 2020-04. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/a-review-of-the-literature-on-regrettable-expenditures-and-implications-for-the-index-of-economic-well-being/ ## Author: - Kimberly Wong Atlantic Institute for Policy Research, University of New Brunswick ## Report 2020-04 August 2020 28 pages ## Related research [A Survey of Indicators of Economic and Social Well-being Andrew Sharpe July 1999 | Report 1999-cprn | 72 pages](https://csls.ca/research/a-survey-of-indicators-of-economic-and-social-well-being/) [Human Well-being and Economic Well-being: What Values Are Implicit in Current Indices? 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It covers methodologies for estimating the costs of commuting, crime, household pollution abatement, auto accidents, divorce, and medical expenses. The report recommends maintaining the current definition of regrettable expenditures in the IEWB, adding some new regrettable costs, and updating the methodology for calculating existing components. Ce rapport recense la littérature sur les dépenses regrettables — des dépenses défensives qui n’augmentent pas directement le bien-être — et examine leurs répercussions sur l’Indice de bien-être économique (IBEE). Il couvre les méthodologies d’estimation des coûts liés aux déplacements domicile-travail, à la criminalité, à la lutte contre la pollution des ménages, aux accidents automobiles, au divorce et aux dépenses médicales. Le rapport recommande de maintenir la définition actuelle des dépenses regrettables dans l’IBEE, d’y ajouter de nouveaux coûts regrettables, et de mettre à jour la méthodologie de calcul des composantes existantes. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2020-04-1.pdf)