The Four Qualities of Life

That is a part of a sequence of posts on happiness. Discover the entire sequence here.

Happiness phrases

On this sequence of posts, we’ve already talked loads about happiness and the completely different theories about what it truly is and learn how to get it. Let’s now take a look on the phrases we use to explain happiness. In any case, after we speak about happiness, and even after we simply suppose about it for ourselves, we at all times use the classes that our languages present with a view to make sense of the world. Think about being born right into a language that solely has a phrase for “pleasure” however none for “happiness.” Or a language that makes use of the identical phrase to explain “happiness” and “magnificence.” It’s simple to see how such modifications within the language would have an effect on one’s notion of what happiness is and what’s required to realize it.

On this chapter we’ll talk about an influential paper by Ruut Veenhoven, a Dutch sociologist who has been very influential in reviving curiosity in happiness research and the science of happiness (there’s a hyperlink to the paper on the finish of this text). He’s a founding editor of the Journal of Happiness Research and the founding director of the World Database of Happiness, which comprises analysis about happiness research throughout international locations.

Within the paper we’re discussing, Veenhoven distinguishes between the next phrases:

• Happiness
• Life satisfaction
• High quality of life
• Subjective well-being
• Welfare

Taking a look at these, we are able to ask: Do all these phrases imply the identical or various things? And: how would we describe a few of the variations?

We will in all probability agree that these phrases are utilized to a variety of phenomena: “Properly-being” can imply the standard of 1’s life as an entire, however it will possibly additionally imply how good or dangerous the sensible circumstances of 1’s life are: for instance, how the employment possibilities in a single’s society are or how simply it’s to entry medical care. It may additionally imply how intense the sensation of rest and pleasure are {that a} explicit individual enjoys at a specific second in time (“this bathe gel is the most recent well-being development”).

In the identical manner, “high quality of life” can refer both to how good a rustic is in creating the circumstances for glad lives (“the standard of life in Switzerland is excessive”) or it will possibly additionally discuss with the precise happiness of the residents of a rustic (“the standard of life in Morocco was larger this yr than final yr”).

Inclusiveness of the phrases

The query is, due to this fact, whether or not it is smart in any respect to speak of one high quality of life, as if there was one single factor that’s meant by this time period.

The usage of the phrases as an umbrella time period means that there’s something as ‘general’ high quality of life (…) Nevertheless that holistic assumption is doubtful. (p.1)

Veenhoven disputes whether or not there’s one single factor that’s meant after we use these phrases. After we really attempt to use these phrases in observe, we discover that we have to be extra particular and at this level we’ll attempt to make clear what we imply by every phrase.

It’s also vital to see that phrases like “high quality of life,” and “well-being” are actually evaluations. “High quality of life,” for instance, evaluates a life and ascribes to this life a specific “high quality.”

However what precisely is being evaluated?

“High quality of life” can consider the life on a person individual: “Kate has the next high quality of life than Peter.” But it surely can be used for aggregates, for instance after we speak in regards to the high quality of life of ladies within the twentieth century. Generally we might even use it to judge all human life over the course of historical past (“High quality of life has always improved because the historical instances”).

Different happiness phrases additionally get utilized in complicated methods. “Happiness” can be utilized of animals (“the milk of glad cows”), of particular person individuals (“an image of glad youngsters enjoying”) or of complete international locations (“Copenhagen is the happiness capital of the world”).

Goal and subjective high quality of life

If we wish to untangle these phrases, one distinction could be that between the goal and the subjective high quality of life.

Clearly, these two might be completely different.

One might be wealthy however sad. Think about somebody who as all the cash, all the fabric items they could presumably want, a loving household, and live in a very good place, however they’re nonetheless depressed and anxious and depressing. Clearly, their goal high quality of life might be excessive however they will nonetheless subjectively endure.

The alternative can be attainable. Monks and hermits usually don’t have possessions however they’re frequently cited as a few of the happiest teams of individuals. Though monks dwelling in materials poverty would fail in each survey of goal well-being circumstances, there’s a complete discipline of analysis attempting to ascertain why (significantly Buddhist) monks are so glad and whether or not there are any hyperlinks between their spiritual practices and their obvious happiness.

Notice additionally that subjective self-evaluation (“are you content?”) shouldn’t be a dependable technique to estimate one’s happiness. An individual could also be mistaken about their very own happiness in the identical manner that one could be mistaken about their well being: “I really feel youthful than ever!” is never an correct evaluation of 1’s goal medical situation.

Possibilities and outcomes

One other distinction is that between the possibilities which can be inherent in a specific life and the precise outcomes that this life has produced or achieved. Each might be addressed as happiness or well-being, however they’re very completely different.

Think about an outdated, wealthy man on the one hand and a poor younger scholar with wonderful grades and a superb profession forward of him on the opposite. Who’s happier?

A … related distinction is between alternatives for a very good life and the nice life itself. That is the distinction between potentiality and actuality. I discuss with this as ‘life-chances’ and ‘life-results’.

Veenhoven talks of “life possibilities” and “life outcomes.” Life chances are high the (but unrealised) potentialities inherent in a specific life scenario. Life outcomes are the precise achievements of a life properly lived:

“Alternatives and outcomes are associated, however are actually not the identical. Possibilities can fail to be realized, as a consequence of stupidity or dangerous luck. Conversely, individuals typically make a lot of their life despite poor alternatives.” (p.3)

Outer and interior qualities of life

Now think about two different elements influencing happiness: having a very good household scenario, and, however, being a cheerful individual. What’s the distinction between these qualities?

Lets say that what we see here’s a distinction between “exterior” and “inner” qualities. “Exterior qualities of life” are qualities of the atmosphere by which somebody is located. “Inner” qualities are properties of the individual herself, her character or disposition.

4 qualities of life (p.4)

Taking these distinctions significantly, we are able to now see that what we normally understand as one “high quality of life” is basically a minimum of 4 various things:

The “livability of the atmosphere” describes the dwelling circumstances: how a specific atmosphere advantages or hinders the event of a person’s life. The “life-ability of individual” describes the interior qualities that make a specific individual kind of ready to deal with the issues of life (p.5). The “utility of life” refers back to the outwardly seen outcomes of 1’s life: how one (and maybe others) would choose the usefulness of 1’s life. And at last, the appreciation of life describes how one’s life feels to oneself, how each would themselves choose the standard of their very own life.

How Happy Does This Make You?

Happiness researchers are confronted with the query learn how to reliably measure happiness in surveys. A paper by Kahneman discusses Direct Utility Measurements, the Expertise Sampling Technique and the Day Reconstruction Technique as three approaches that enable us to measure how explicit actions contribute to modifications of happiness all through an individual’s day.

These distinctions are attention-grabbing, however not at all times clear. For instance, what does “appreciation of life” actually imply? Who’s appreciating right here and in keeping with which requirements? Are we supposed to understand our lives in accordance solely to our non-public requirements for what we envision or lives to be, or ought to we additionally rely different individuals’s appreciation of our life? If different individuals envy and admire us, is that this one thing that ought to be counted right here? Actually, that is distinct from the “utility” of life, which is concentrated on the outward outcomes of 1’s life. However we are able to admire individuals for his or her interior qualities, too, no matter their life’s success. It isn’t clear the place such admiration would match into the scheme proposed by Veenhoven.

Evolutionary metrics

With the intention to make clear the argument, Veenhoven provides examples from different disciplines that work with an identical four-fold division of ideas.

In biology, for instance, we may have a desk like this:

The life chances are high the environmental circumstances that decide the standard of life for a person, that’s, the nice and dangerous points of a specific biotope by which the person lives. The interior high quality relating to life possibilities is the person’s health. The outer high quality when it comes to life outcomes is how properly the person is definitely capable of survive, and thus, how properly the species survives. And the interior high quality when it comes to outcomes is the lengthy and “glad” lifetime of the person. “Completely happy” right here ought to in all probability be understood to imply “profitable” quite than glad in a psychological sense (which wouldn’t make sense for many species).

Meanings inside the 4 quadrants

We will now attempt to insert various different phrases into the 4 quadrants of Veenhoven’s scheme, simply to see how they’d match. Attempt to distribute these conventional phrases or ideas into the containers within the first desk above:

• Air pollution and world warming
• Site visitors jams
• Materials welfare and social equality
• Psychological well being
• Emotional intelligence
• The affect of a king’s life on historical past
• The affect of an inventor on technological growth
• The worth of Jesus’ life for in the present day’s Christians
• Satisfaction with the quantity of 1’s wage
• An analysis of 1’s private attractiveness
• Satisfaction with one’s job

Can high quality of life be measured inclusively?

Veehoven’s predominant argument is that this: Cross-quadrant sum-scores make no sense.

One can’t meaningfully talk about ‘high quality of life’ at giant. It makes extra sense to differentiate 4 qualities: 1) livability of the atmosphere, 2) life-ability of the individual, 3) utility of life for the atmosphere, and 4) appreciation of life by the individual. These qualities can’t be added, therefore sum-scores make little sense. The most effective accessible abstract indicator is how lengthy and fortunately an individual lives.

Which means that we’re by no means justified in talking about “happiness” or “well-being” in a broad sense that may cross the boundaries of Veenhoven’s desk. One can’t meaningfully evaluate possibilities with outcomes, or one’s appreciation of life with how helpful one’s life seems to an observer. Is a the lifetime of a younger, educated individual (excessive possibilities however low outcomes) higher or the lifetime of an outdated, achieved scientist (low possibilities however excessive outcomes)? Such questions simply don’t make a lot sense.

Additionally, we must always notice that there could also be dependencies between the 4 quadrants, within the sense that some values rely on others (p.24). Which environmental circumstances are good for the person will rely on its interior survival qualities. A lion thrives in a special setting from a frog, or, as Veenhoven places it: “An orchestra could also be properly geared up with violins, but when its members are horn gamers the musical efficiency will nonetheless be poor.”

Learn extra…

• Veenhoven, Ruut (2000). The 4 Qualities of Life. Journal Of Happiness Research, vol 1, pp 1-39. Discover it here.

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