Quality of life is one of the most important issues facing the world today and is central to the development of social policy. This innovative book discusses this crucial topic, assessing the criteria for judging attempts to raise quality of life, including the satisfaction of basic and social needs, autonomy to enjoy life and social connectivity. It considers key topics such as: individual well-being and health-related quality of life human needs - living fulfilling and flourishing lives poverty and social exclusion social solidarity, altruism and trust within communities. Quality of Life is the first systematic presentation of this subject from both individual and collective perspectives. It provides a powerful overview of a concept which is becoming increasingly prominent in the social sciences and is essential reading for students of social policy, sociology and health studies.

This book looks at subjective and objective individual well-being and family, community and social life, relating quality of life to other contemporary concepts such as social capital, social inclusion and health inequality and sets them in an international and global perspective.

This work presents the first serious attempt to impose rigor on the definition and measurement of quality of life among the elderly. The book uses a conference to develop background but goes well beyond the meeting in terms of depth of reviews of the literature and of integration among the chapters. This book is intended for use by researchers in the many disciplines which focus on the mental and physical well-being of the elderly, including those in medicine, nursing, psychiatry, psychology, rehabilitation, sociology and social work, among others. In addition, this book provides important background information for professionals and policy makers interested in ensuring quality of life in the later years.

This comprehensive volume provides a broad overview of quality of life issues covering a wide geographical region: North America, Europe, parts of Africa, East Asia, and South Asia. Spread over more than 25 chapters, it includes the latest findings from these regions to provide a multidisciplinary account of the major dimensions of quality of life, and therefore has a vast scope. The volume is divided into four thematic parts: theoretical dimension; Demographic dimension; socio-cultural and economic dimensions; and urban and environment related dimensions. Extensive maps, diagrams and tables accompany the discussions and facilitate understanding. This is an indispensable reference and serves the interest of students and scholars of human geography, economics, demography, sociology, anthropology, social work, and philosophy. It is particularly useful for those engaged in further research on quality of life issues.

This book summarizes much of the research in subjective well-being and integrates this research into a parsimonious theory. The theory posits that much of the research on subjective well-being can be construed in terms of the personal strategies that people use to `optimize' their happiness and life satisfaction. These strategies include bottom-up spillover, top-down spillover, horizontal spillover, balance, re-evaluation, goal selection, and goal implementation.