Entrepreneurship

Do entrepreneurs earn supernormal returns, or does competitive pressure ensure that entrepreneurs receive the same utility as workers? If those who run their own business get supernormal returns (or ''rents'') they should be happier than those who work as employees. The paper tests this hypothesis. It uses survey data from Britain and the United States to show that, in comparison with those in regular forms of employment, the self-employed report significantly higher levels of utility as proxied by overall satisfaction data.