Quality of Life: Issues and Challenges in Measurement

Questions have always been raised about the measurement of National Income and its use as an indicator of economic welfare. These questions were referred in 2008 by President of France to the commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress headed by Prof Stiglitz for their recommendations. Among many other issues, the commission did focus on a better measure of economic performance and well-being. It emphasized that it is important that measurement now shifts from economic production to people’s well-being and recommended that both level and distribution of consumption and income and not production should be the main focus of well-being evaluation and care may be taken to also include non-market activities. The commission also looked at the definition and the importance of the measurement of quality of life, which was described to be broader than the concept of economic production and wellbeing. They discussed different approaches and different measures of quality of life including the objective features; e.g. health, education, political voice and governance, etc.