Special Issue “Capability Approach and Multidimensional Well-being in High-income Countries”

Abstract

This article is the Introduction to the Special Issue on “Capability Approach and Multidimensional Well-being in High-income Countries”. The volume offers an in-depth investigation of the major methodological challenges faced in the attempt to measuring and analyzing well-being in high-income countries and portrays people's well-being conditions in different European countries. It contains seven papers, which are an interesting combination of theoretical, methodological, and empirical works. The common denominator is the endorsement of Amartya Sen's capability approach as conceptual framework guiding the analysis.

Keywords:

• human development
• well-being, poverty
• measurement
• high-income countries

JEL classifications:

• I300
• O150
• I310
• D630
• C430

Notes

¹ See: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/beyond_gdp/index_en.html

² More information is provided in the official webpage: http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/ (consulted: 20 August 2013).

³ Using the Constitution as basis to derive a legitimate set of well-being dimensions, Burchi et al. (2014) found “decent job” to be the most important dimension in Italy.

Additional information

Funding

This paper is an outcome of the National Research Project (PRIN) “Measuring Human Development and Capabilities in Italy: methodological and empirical issues” co-funded by the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR).