How’s life? 2013 Measuring well-being [in OECD countries]

From the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development]**

Every person aspires to a good life. But what does “a good or a better life” mean? The second edition of How’s Life? paints a comprehensive picture of well-being in OECD countries and other major economies, by looking at people’s material living conditions and quality of life across the population. In addition, the report contains in-depth studies of four key cross-cutting issues in well-being that are particularly relevant: how has well-being evolved during the global economic and financial crisis?; how big are gender differences in well-being?; how can we assess well-being in the workplace?; and how to define and measure the sustainability of well-being over time?

Read the book by chapter

1. The OECD Better Life Initiative: Concepts and indicators

What drives people’s and nations’ well-being and where do countries need to improve to achieve greater progress for all? The OECD Better Life Initiative launched in 2011 addresses these questions by measuring well-being outcomesin 11 dimensions.

2. How’s Life? at a glance

This chapter shows that OECD countries have made considerable progress in many well-being areas over the past 20 years or so, although progress has been uneven across the 11 dimensions included in the OECD well-being framework. Similarly, there is great diversity in patterns amongst different countries as well as disparity in well-being achievements of different groups of the population within a country.

3. Well-being and the global financial crisis

This chapter analyses how well-being has changed during the global economic and financial crisis. Even though some effects of the crisis may become visible only in the long-term, the report finds that the crisis has had large implications for some economic and non-economic aspects of people’s well-being. Clear negative trends have emerged in subjective well-being and civic engagement, with increasing levels of stress, lower life satisfaction and decreasing trust in national governments.

4. Gender differences in well-being: Can women and men have it all?

The chapter looks at gender differences in well-being, showing that the traditional gender gap in favour of men has narrowed but has not disappeared. It also finds that women and men do well in different areas of well-being and that they are increasingly sharing tasks and roles.

5. Well-being in the workplace: Measuring job quality

This chapter looks at the quality of employment and well-being in the workplace. The report presents evidence on the main factors that drive people’s commitment at work and are key to strengthening their capacity to cope with demanding jobs.

6. Measuring the sustainability of well-being over time

The last chapter of the report studies the links between current and future well-being. It looks at ways to define and measure sustainability of well-being over time. This chapter focuses on four types of resources (or “capital”) that can be measured today, and that matter for future well-being: economic, natural, human, and social capital.

 

** From the About Page

Our origins date back to 1960, when 18 European countries plus the United States and Canada joined forces to create an organisation dedicated to global development. Today, our 34 member countries span the globe, from North and South America to Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. They include many of the world’s most advanced countries but also emerging countries like Mexico, Chile and Turkey. We also work closely with emerging giants like China, India and Brazil and developing economies in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Together, our goal continues to be to build a stronger, cleaner, fairer world.

Related articles

• UK a great place to live and work, says OECD (theguardian.com)
• OECD says young Irish are among main victims of the crisis (independent.ie)
• Euro zone crisis bearing heavy human toll – OECD (dnaindia.com)
• OECD: Well-Being in Euro Zone Has Suffered Since Crisis (online.wsj.com)
• Britons happier than before financial crisis as contentment plummets in Europe – OECD (telegraph.co.uk)
• UK scores highly in world quality of life rankings, says OECD (oddonion.com)
• Mixed Praise For Chile’s Economic Performance – Analysis (eurasiareview.com)
• Canadians among top seven nations for living well, says OECD ranking (canadianbusiness.com)

The U.S. Health Disadvantage – Part 2: Possible Causes and Solutions

by Kirsten Hartil 

“Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care.”

At least according to Article 25 of The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, so why does the United States, one of the wealthiest countries in the world, have some of the poorest health outcomes compared to other high income countries?

My previous blog, adapted from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report U.S. Health in International Perspective: Shorter Lives, Poorer Health, described how the U.S. compares in causes of mortality and years of life lost with other high income and OECD countries. Here, as outlined in the report, I explore some of the social determinants of health that may explain this. Social determinants of health, as opposed to biological determinants (biology and genetics), describe the…

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