Capabilities and Happiness

Capabilities and Happiness
Author: Luigino Bruni
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2008-10-30
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0199532141

Approaches to well-being have been hotly debated across the social sciences, with most challenging the conventional economic approach which uses income as a key indicator of happiness. This volume compares and contrasts two such approaches, the Capability and Happiness Approach, via a series of interdisciplinary papers from top names in the field.

Capabilities and Happiness

Capabilities and Happiness
Author: Luigino Bruni
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 362
Release: 2008-10-30
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0191559717

Few would dispute that the well-being of individuals is one of the most desirable aims of human actions. However, approaches on how to define, measure, evaluate, and promote well-being differ widely. The conventional economic approach takes income (or the power to acquire market goods) as the most important indicator for well-being, and the utility function as the formal device for positive and normative analysis. However, this approach to well-being has been questioned for being seriously limited and other approaches have arisen. The capability approach to well-being, which has been developed during the last two decades by Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum, and the Happiness Approach to well-being, championed by Richard Easterlin, both provide an alternative. Both approaches come from different traditions and have developed independently, but nevertheless aim to overcome the rigid boundaries of the conventional economic approach to well-being. Given these common aims, it is surprising that little comparative work has been undertaken across these approaches. This book aims to correct this by providing the reader with contributions from leading names associated with both approaches, as well as contributions which evaluate the approaches and contrast one with the other.

Wellbeing, Freedom and Social Justice

Wellbeing, Freedom and Social Justice
Author: Ingrid Robeyns
Publisher: Open Book Publishers
Total Pages: 152
Release: 2017-12-11
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1783744243

How do we evaluate ambiguous concepts such as wellbeing, freedom, and social justice? How do we develop policies that offer everyone the best chance to achieve what they want from life? The capability approach, a theoretical framework pioneered by the philosopher and economist Amartya Sen in the 1980s, has become an increasingly influential way to think about these issues. Wellbeing, Freedom and Social Justice: The Capability Approach Re-Examined is both an introduction to the capability approach and a thorough evaluation of the challenges and disputes that have engrossed the scholars who have developed it. Ingrid Robeyns offers her own illuminating and rigorously interdisciplinary interpretation, arguing that by appreciating the distinction between the general capability approach and more specific capability theories or applications we can create a powerful and flexible tool for use in a variety of academic disciplines and fields of policymaking. This book provides an original and comprehensive account that will appeal to scholars of the capability approach, new readers looking for an interdisciplinary introduction, and those interested in theories of justice, human rights, basic needs, and the human development approach.

Freedom and the Pursuit of Happiness

Freedom and the Pursuit of Happiness
Author: Sebastiano Bavetta
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 255
Release: 2014-10-06
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1139992597

This book is about the relationship between different concepts of freedom and happiness. The book's authors distinguish three concepts for which an empirical measure exists: opportunity to choose (negative freedom), capability to choose (positive freedom), and autonomy to choose (autonomy freedom). They also provide a comprehensive account of the relationship between freedom and well-being by comparing channels through which freedoms affect quality of life. The book also explores whether the different conceptions of freedom complement or replace each other in the determination of the level of well-being. In so doing, the authors make freedoms a tool for policy making and are able to say which conception is the most effective for well-being, as circumstances change. The results have implications for a justification of a free society: maximizing freedoms is good for its favorable consequences upon individual well-being, a fundamental value for the judgment of human advantage.

New Frontiers of the Capability Approach

New Frontiers of the Capability Approach
Author: Flavio Comim
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 671
Release: 2018-10-25
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1108427804

Leading scholars from a range of disciplines contribute to an inclusive discussion of the latest techniques and issues examined by the capability approach. It will appeal to readers across academic backgrounds including development studies, economics, sociology, education, urban planning, political science, geography, public policy and management.

Amartya Sen and the Capabilities Versus Happiness Debate

Amartya Sen and the Capabilities Versus Happiness Debate
Author: Tony Burns
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2019
Genre: Electronic books
ISBN:

This chapter discusses Amartya Sen,Äôs capabilities approach to human development from the standpoint of the concept of happiness. It locates Sen,Äôs work against the background of the recent capabilities versus happiness debate. Sen,Äôs version of the capabilities approach is commonly regarded as a critique of the happiness approach to development ethics. It is sometimes assumed that he attaches no importance at all to the value of happiness. I argue that this view misrepresents what Sen has to say about the value of happiness in his writings. A distinctive feature of Sen,Äôs views on this subject is that he agrees with the view that happiness is nothing more than subjective mental state and rejects the idea of objective happiness. This distinguishes his version of the capabilities approach from the ethical eudaimonism of both Aristotle and John Stuart Mill. The chapter concludes by suggesting that Sen could and should have taken this idea more seriously than he does.

The Idea of Justice

The Idea of Justice
Author: Amartya Sen
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 497
Release: 2011-05-31
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0674060474

Presents an analysis of what justice is, the transcendental theory of justice and its drawbacks, and a persuasive argument for a comparative perspective on justice that can guide us in the choice between alternatives.

Commodities and Capabilities

Commodities and Capabilities
Author: Amartya Sen
Publisher: OUP India
Total Pages: 102
Release: 1999-06-17
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9780195650389

Commodities and Capabilities presents a set of inter-related theses concerning the foundations of welfare economics, and in particular about the assessment of personal well-being and advantage. The argument presented focuses on the capability to function, i.e. what a person can do or can be, questioning in the process the more standard emphasis on opulence or on utility. In fact, a person's motivation behind choice is treated here as a parametric variable which may or may not coincide with the pursuit of self-interest. Given the large number of practical problems arising from the roles and limitations of different concepts of interest and the judgement of advantage and well-being, this scholarly investigation is both of theoretical interest and practical import.

Happiness Skills Workbook

Happiness Skills Workbook
Author: Tchiki Davis, Ph.d.
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Total Pages: 110
Release: 2016-12-03
Genre:
ISBN: 9781540644763

A must-have resource for anyone trying to balance personal well-being with a growing list of competing priorities, The Happiness Skills Workbook compiles scientifically-supported activities so people can learn the skills that help them live a more satisfying, meaningful, and fulfilling life. On college campuses, the demand for mental-health services is as much as doubling in a single year. At companies, there is an epidemic of employee burnout. And at home, increasing economic and social pressure is leading to an entire generation of stressed-out kids. Now we are at a precipice. People are beginning to realize that skyrocketing mental-health-care costs, increased workplace attrition, and lackluster academic performance can all be improved by developing people's happiness and well-being. Although scientific research has uncovered dozens of ways that people can improve their happiness and well-being, there is not yet a resource that helps people to easily learn, grow, and practice these skills. A simple, practical, and fun resource for developing happiness skills is long overdue.

The Capability Approach

The Capability Approach
Author: Flavio Comim
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 636
Release: 2008-04-24
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780521862875

The capability approach developed by Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen has become an important new paradigm in thinking about development. However, despite its theoretical and philosophical attractiveness, it has been less easy to measure or to translate into policy. This volume addresses these issues in the context of poverty and justice. Part I offers a set of conceptual essays that debate the strength of the often misunderstood individual focus of the capability approach. Part II investigates the techniques by which we can measure and compare capabilities, and how we can integrate them into poverty comparisons and policy advice. Finally, Part III looks at how we can apply the capability approach to different regions and contexts. Written by a team of international scholars, The Capability Approach is a valuable resource for researchers and graduate students concerned with the debate over the value of the capability approach and its potential applications.