Multidimensional Measures of Well-Being: Standard of Living and Quality of Life Across Countries

SummaryUsing Sen’s capability approach, we propose to measure two components of well-being—standard of living and quality of life. Unlike the UNDP Human Development Index, the two indices do not mix measures of resource availability and of functioning and capability. The empirical results for 170 countries are based on two multidimensional analyses, the Totally Fuzzy Analysis and the Factorial Analysis of Correspondences. The paper also compares our results with the HDI and GDP per capita. It focuses on Africa, presents policy implications, and discusses aggregation and redundancy in multidimensional indices.