Measuring Well-Being for Public Policy: A Freedom-Based Approach

• Cenci, Alessandra ^[1]
  1. [1] Roskilde University

     Roskilde University

     Dinamarca

     
• Localización: Agora: papeles de filosofía, ISSN 0211-6642, Vol. 34, Nº 1, 2015, págs. 111-144
• Idioma: inglés
• DOI: 10.15304/ag.34.1.2157
• Títulos paralelos:
  • Measuring well-being for public policy: a freedom-based approach
• Enlaces
  • Texto completo
• Resumen
  • español

    Este artículo pone en cuestión la adecuación de los enfoques convencionales de la Calidad de Vida (QL) e intenta realizar una contribución al debate existente acerca de la revisión, integración o mejora de las métricas del bienestar tal como son usadas tradicionalmente en la bibliografía de indicadores estadísticos. Como una alternativa, este estudio basa sus principales supuestos en el Enfoque de la Capacidad (CA) de Amartya Sen. La principal hipótesis es que los análisis del bienestar que se basan en mediciones puramente monetarias o que olvidan la importancia del valor intrínseco de la libertad (y se fijan solo en sus efectos instrumentales) impiden adquirir imágenes adecuadas de las auténticas condiciones de vida de la gente en las complejas sociedades contemporáneas y, de ese modo, perjudican el diseño de la política pública. Esta hipótesis es verificada y comprobada tanto a través de una discusión teórica como también por medio de un análisis empírico de datos estadísticos de la OCDE. Lo que nuestras conclusiones indican es la gran importancia de incrementar la libertad para conseguir mejores resultados sociales e individuales.

  • English

    This article questions the adequateness of conventional approaches to Quality of Life (QL) and aims to contribute to the on-going debate around revision, integration or improvement of the metrics of well-being as traditionally used in the statistic indicators literature. As an alternative, this study substantiates its main assumptions on Amartya Sen’s Capability Approach (CA). The main hypothesis is that welfare analyses which are based on pure monetary measurements or which neglect the importance of the intrinsic value of freedom (and focus only on its instrumental effects) impede the achievement of adequate pictures of people’s real living conditions in contemporary complex societies and thus, prejudice the design of public policy. This hypothesis is verified and tested both by a theoretical discussion and by an empirical analysis using OECD statistical data. What the findings suggest is the great importance of enhancing freedom for the achievement of better individual and societal outcomes.

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