Measuring Progress: Is Life Getting Better?

This book is the most wide-ranging exploration of national progress yet undertaken, spanning social, economic and environmental perspectives. It brings together some of Australia’s leading researchers to consider indicators of national performance, what they tell us about the quality and sustainability of life in Australia, and how these measures can be improved. It also includes commentaries by senior bureaucrats, academics and community representatives. At one level, the debate is about the adequacy of Gross Domestic Product, as the dominant indicator of a nation’s performance, relative to both the past and other nations. However, the debate also reaches far beyond this question to challenge conventional thinking about progress and the relationships between economic activity, quality of life, health and well-being, and ecological sustainability.

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 517
Author(s):  
Ilia Adami ◽  
Michalis Foukarakis ◽  
Stavroula Ntoa ◽  
Nikolaos Partarakis ◽  
Nikolaos Stefanakis ◽  
...  

Improving the well-being and quality of life of the elderly population is closely related to assisting them to effectively manage age-related conditions such as chronic illnesses and anxiety, and to maintain their independence and self-sufficiency as much as possible. This paper presents the design, architecture and implementation structure of an adaptive system for monitoring the health and well-being of the elderly. The system was designed following best practices of the Human-Centred Design approach involving representative end-users from the early stages.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 101-111
Author(s):  
Łukasz Wojciechowski ◽  
Tomasz Wołowiec

The article analyzes the flaws of the classical measures of economic growth. It is based on the assumption that, while not questioning the quality of the GDP indicator as a tool for measuring economic activity, it points out that the way this indicator is constructed influences the actions of governments, citizens and other actors, affecting also non-productive areas. What we measure affects what we do - if production is measured, then the criterion determining the success of the state and society will be the growth of production, and not the level of education, health or state of the environment. Gross domestic product in many cases includes production that, from the point of view of the community, indicates unfavorable processes. These are the so-called anti-goods, i.e., phenomena that increase GDP, although they worsen well-being and are socially undesirable).


Author(s):  
Bruce K. Rutherford ◽  
Jeannie L. Sowers

How Do Environmental Problems Affect Egypt? Egypt faces grave environmental problems that negatively impact the health and well-being of its citizens and threaten the country’s unique natural and cultural heritages. Like many middle and low-income “developing” countries, Egypt must grapple with environmental problems associated with...


Sociology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth C. Land

How are we doing with respect not only to our economic level of living but, more generally, the quality of our lives, our well-being? Improving, staying about the same, or deteriorating? Compared to our past? Compared to other countries/societies? And, if improving, are the improvements shared throughout the society or only among some of us? These are the kinds of questions that have motivated research and development on social indicators, quality of life metrics, and well-being research over the past fifty years. This research has resulted in a substantial number of conceptual and empirical contributions to the measurement of social conditions, in general, and of quality of life/well-being, in particular.


EDIS ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamila R. Lepore ◽  
Wendy J. Dahl

Protein is an important nutrient. Many older adults do not consume enough of this vital nutrient, crucial to overall health and well-being. For those with dysphagia and on a puréed diet, consuming sufficient protein is even more difficult. While a texture-modified diet may not be the diet of choice, the goal is to make it as appealing as possible so that the person consuming the purées can experience a better quality of life. This 4-page fact sheet was written by Jamila R. Lepore and Wendy J. Dahl and published by the UF Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, March 2013.http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fs208 Revised July 2016 and March 2020. 


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 281-287
Author(s):  
Amal A. Kokandi ◽  
Jafar Salman Alkhalaf ◽  
Asmaa Mohammedsaleh

Physical activity is known to have benefits on health and well-being. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of life domains (using WHOQOL-Bref) in relation to the level of physical activity in young healthy adults at Saudi Arabia. An online questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF and IPAQ) was sent to adults without special needs in Saudi Arabia aged 18 years and more. In total 1026 completed the questionnaire. Females were 767 and males were 250 (9 were missing). Results of this study showed that IPAQ total score was significantly correlated with WHOQOL-BREF physical, psychological and social relationships health scores. Additionally, the high PA group had a significantly higher WHOQOL-BREF for all domains (physical, psychological, social relationships and environmental health scores) compared to the low PA group. Male subjects had a significantly higher physical health score than female subjects, however, female subjects had a significantly higher social relationships score. In conclusion, high physical activity is linked with high better quality of life in all domains.


2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 19-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Gregorčič

The article presents findings from a large-scale qualitative research study conducted as part of a three-year Erasmus+ project entitled Old Guys Say Yes to Community, which included partners from Slovenia, Portugal, Poland and Estonia. The project explored how inactive ageing affects the quality of life, health and well-being of men aged 60 years or more, and how (self-)exclusion from the community can lead to social and psychological ‘death’. The article highlights four interconnected themes which are inadequately, insufficiently, or simply not addressed by national institutions and often also the non-governmental sector in the researched countries. The themes – the pluralisation of transitions to retirement and ageing; absent bodies and invisible lives; hegemonic masculinity and gendered experiences; and community-based learning, action and spaces – are supported by well-defined issues and obstacles preventing men from integrating into the community and are completed with suggestions and recommendations to implement much-needed changes. In addition to these four themes, the article touches upon a series of subtopics and questions that should be addressed by further scientific research in the observed countries.


2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 68-72
Author(s):  
Charles R. Hall ◽  
Melinda J. Knuth

Abstract This paper provides an overview of the key resources available to green industry firms that provide evidence of the health and well-being benefits associated with plants and improved landscaped areas and how they influence the physiological, psychological, cognitive, and social well-being constructs affecting quality of life. These benefits may persuade reluctant residential homeowners to purchase plants and improve their landscapes, may aid municipal leaders and policymakers in justifying green infrastructure-related funding decisions, and may provide grounds for the construction industry for using biophilic design principles to ensure the built environment offers opportunities for green space interactions. In this way, the green industry can play a pivotal role not only in providing plants of high quality for these applications, but in educating stakeholders regarding the benefits discussed herein. This research should also be strategically incorporated into both industry-wide and firm-specific marketing messages that highlight the quality of life value proposition in order to maintain the industry's sense of value and relevance to residential landscape consumers of the future. If done correctly, the demand for green industry products and services may be affected positively. Index words: benefits of plants, information resources, elasticity of demand.


2005 ◽  
Vol 37 (Supplement) ◽  
pp. S174
Author(s):  
Louisa D. Raisbeck ◽  
Jeanne D. Johnston ◽  
Joel M. Stager

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