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Global Development and Happiness: How Can Data on Subjective Well-Being Inform Development Theory and Practice?

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  • Christian Kroll

Abstract

While research on subjective well-being (SWB) has recently attracted much attention in richer nations, its potential in a development context remains underexploited. This paper, therefore, considers conventional development theory through an SWB lens. The Human Development approach with its three key elements of material conditions, health and education is re-assessed by examining to what extent these factors actually matter for people's life satisfaction in different nations. Using data from the World Values Survey for 100 000 people from 70 nations, considerable heterogeneity is identified and a new country ranking in the form of an SWB-adjusted Human Development Index, or 'Happy Development Index', is devised.

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  • Christian Kroll, 2015. "Global Development and Happiness: How Can Data on Subjective Well-Being Inform Development Theory and Practice?," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(3), pages 281-309, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:oxdevs:v:43:y:2015:i:3:p:281-309
    DOI: 10.1080/13600818.2015.1067293
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Sabina Alkire, Maria Emma Santos, 2010. "Acute Multidimensional Poverty: A New Index for Developing Countries," OPHI Working Papers 38, Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford.
    2. Sarah Fleche & Conal Smith & Piritta Sorsa, 2011. "Exploring Determinants of Subjective Wellbeing in OECD Countries: Evidence from the World Value Survey," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 921, OECD Publishing.
    3. Helliwell, John & Layard, Richard & Sachs, Jeffrey, 2012. "World happiness report," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 47487, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
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    Cited by:

    1. Rémi Yin & Anthony Lepinteur & Andrew E Clark & Conchita d'Ambrosio, 2021. "Life Satisfaction and the Human Development Index Across the World," Working Papers halshs-03174513, HAL.
    2. Delhey, Jan & Steckermeier, Leonie C., 2016. "The Good Life, Affluence, and Self-reported Happiness: Introducing the Good Life Index and Debunking Two Popular Myths," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 50-66.
    3. Shiri Cohen Kaminitz & Nathan Sussman, 2024. "Experimenting with a strong dual necessity approach to social progress," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-9, December.
    4. Matthys, Marie-Luise & Acharya, Sushant & Khatri, Sanjaya, 2021. "“Before cardamom, we used to face hardship”: Analyzing agricultural commercialization effects in Nepal through a local concept of the Good Life," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    5. Christian Kroll & Jan Delhey, 2013. "A Happy Nation? Opportunities and Challenges of Using Subjective Indicators in Policymaking," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 114(1), pages 13-28, October.
    6. Mansi Jain & Gagan Deep Sharma & Mandeep Mahendru, 2019. "Can I Sustain My Happiness? A Review, Critique and Research Agenda for Economics of Happiness," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(22), pages 1-36, November.
    7. Junichi Hirose & Koji Kotani, 2021. "How does inquisitiveness matter for generativity and happiness?," Working Papers SDES-2021-3, Kochi University of Technology, School of Economics and Management, revised May 2021.
    8. Gregor Gonza & Anže Burger, 2017. "Subjective Well-Being During the 2008 Economic Crisis: Identification of Mediating and Moderating Factors," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 18(6), pages 1763-1797, December.

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