Evaluation of Utility and Disutility of China's Economic Growth Based on Genuine Progress Indicator 2.0

Based on making necessary adjustments to GPI2.0, the framework of China's GPI2.0 was constructed to estimate the GPI of the Chinese mainland and 30 provinces from 2005 to 2019 as a substitute indicator of gross domestic product (GDP) to assess the quality of China's economic growth. The results show that: (1)GDP overestimates the economic welfare by about 2-4 times. (2)There is an evident difference among regions in the total amount of GPI. (3)The per capita GPI of Ningxia and Qinghai has shown a downward trend in recent years. (4)Heilongjiang Province has the fastest growth rate of per capita GPI, and Ningxia Autonomous Region has the slowest growth rate. (5)The average annual growth rate of high-speed rail service value is the fastest, and the unemployment cost contributes the most to the social cost. (6)The contribution of different indicators to GPI varies among provinces. (7)The trends and characteristics of GPI reflect the comprehensive impact of a series of public policies implemented by the Chinese government since the 2000s