Experienced utility provides a measure of actual human pleasure and pain. It reflects
hedonic experiences that result from acts of choice. Experienced utility has historical
significance in economic theory as well. Francis Edgeworth (1845-1926) suggested
measuring experienced utility with an imaginary instrument called a ‘hedonimeter’. The
instrument would function much like a barometer, but it would measure the level of
pleasure or pain that an individual experienced at any moment. Plotting this as a function
of time and then taking the integral under the curve would measure an individuals’
happiness for a given period. Current research in behavioral economics and subjective
well-being are leading to a greater understanding of experienced utility. This research is
also raising questions about decision utility and the assumptions of rationality on which
it is based