Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Well-being'

Hedonism is not terribly popular as a theory of well-being. And there are good reasons to question whether hedonism even supplies the best account of happiness. Yet hedonism captures something important, and it will be the goal of this essay to articulate just what that is. I suggest that hedonism provides the best account of phenomenal wellbeing (PWB). PWB is a restricted form of well-being that relates to the quality of the experience of a life—or, in other words, the quality of one’s phenomenal life. If wellbeing is characterized as “how well one’s life goes,” then PWB is “how well one’s life goes for her, from the inside.” In rating a life’s PWB, the life is judged solely on the basis of the contents of the experience of that life rated against the experience of the individual’s other possible lives. Unlike well-being, PWB is guaranteed to track more robust experiential benefits that a person gets out of living a life. In this work, I discuss the concept of well-being, including the feature of subjectrelativity that is sometimes ascribed to it; then, after introducing the concept of a phenomenal life, I develop the concept of phenomenal well-being. I propose what I take to be the best available account of PWB, which involves the hedonistic concept of satisfaction. An epistemic model of life-comparison (inspired by Peter Railton’s full information account of well-being) on which phenomenal lives are judged on the criterion of satisfaction is presented, followed by some objections, and replies, to PWB as satisfaction. Finally, some rival accounts of PWB are discussed and critiqued—notably, an account of cognitive life-satisfaction that resembles theories of “life-satisfaction” in happiness theory. The claim is that hedonism supplies the best answer to what makes the experience of our lives go best for us. In the closing chapter, I make some suggestions concerning the significance of this fact.

The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between religious commitment, spiritual well-being and psychological well-being in college students. The Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) and Psychological Well-Being Scale (PWBS) were administered. Also frequency of church attendance was assessed. Canonical Analysis was used to investigate the data from 425 participants to determine if there is relationship between religious/spiritual well-being and psychological well-being. A statistically significant relationship was found between religious/spiritual well-being and psychological well-being. The following describes the nature of the relationship. First, participants who experience existential well-being tend to be self-accepting and to a lesser extent have mastery of their environment and a purpose in life. Second, participants who experience existential well-being and to a lesser degree, religious well-being tend to accept themselves, have a purpose in life, possess mastery of their environment, positively relate to others, feel they are growing personally, and are autonomous. This study provided evidence of a relationship between religious/spiritual well-being and psychological well-being. Implications and limitations of the study, as well as recommendations for future research are discussed.
Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

This paper is a research through design approach (Zimmerman et al 2007),that seeks to reflect upon several designerly practices in action. Chiefly it’sconcerned with describing the development of a web-service withcollaborative media elements, as part of a user-centred design process, tosupport physiotherapy patients during their self-directed recovery. The reportalso reflects on a failed first design attempt, and draws through that reflectiondescribes the way I now choose to operate as a designer. The paper proposesa new definition of design for well-being which draws upon and combineswork by Dodge et al (2012) and Miller & Kälviäinen (2006). Finally, thereport also proposes a series of further steps to take in the futures to developthe web-service.

Practising psychologists across a range of disciplines are known to frequently work with individuals who have complex emotional difficulties. Excessive job demands and lack of resources are known to impact on the well-being of these professionals (Hannigan, Edwards, & Burnard, 2004) with consequences for the individual, clients, and organisations at a wider level. This thesis examines some of the factors which can affect wellbeing in psychologists. Section 1 presents the findings from a systematic literature review including 22 papers that looked at the experience of burnout in practising psychologists (e.g., clinical, counselling, and school psychologists). Psychologist burnout was within the moderate to high range in at least half of the studies examined. Variables including gender, practice setting and level of experience were related to burnout, as were several psychosocial variables. Methodological quality of studies varied hugely and compared to other professions, the literature on burnout for psychologists was generally lacking. Relevance to clinical practice and implications for future research are discussed. Section 2 comprises the quantitative research study, which explored whether job demands predicted psychological well-being in clinical psychologists, and whether the quality of the supervisory relationship was capable of moderating that relationship. A total of 194 clinical psychologists participated in the online study consisting of a questionnaire gathering demographic information and information on job characteristics, and five standardised self-report measures including a measure of job demands, a measure of the supervisory relationship, and three measures of psychological well-being. Job demands significantly predicted psychological well-being, but that relationship was not moderated by the strength of the supervisory relationship. A discussion of the findings, including possible reasons for the lack of moderation, are presented, along with suggestions for further research. Section three presents a critical appraisal of the research. It discusses the findings of the literature review and research study, as well as a critique of the methodology. Reflections on the research process are given and implications for clinical practice are discussed.

Well-being is increasingly of interest to schools and educational policy makers in the UK and beyond. This thesis is a philosophical and empirical enquiry into the relationship between well-being and education and into the nature of a theory and practice of well-being in educational settings. Well-being, I will argue, is not a single entity or the private possession of an individual; nor is it an add-on or optional extra for educators. It is rather an intergenerational, shared embodied theory and practice, an intrinsic goal of education and an inherent and constitutive part of how we engage in education. Well-being is not something we ‘deliver’ and we may not be able to teach or produce it directly. However, we can attempt to create an environment in which it can occur. I will argue that the qualities of this environment should be the focus of those who wish to promote well-being in education and that teachers need an educational environment which will allow them and their pupils, to be well. Using Arendt’s The Human Condition as a key insight into human ways of being and doing I will argue that well-being, being well, occurs when there is balance between the different activities that humans engage in and a balance in how they engage in those activities. I will also argue that such a balanced environment will serve a key educational function, the containment of anxiety and the containment of love. Theory and practice are indivisible and this theory arose from 13 years of practice in schools as an advisor into well-being in education. I therefore put my own emergent theory into practice by using it to develop a reflective research methodology, contemplative reflection, with which to study a well-being project I co-created and worked with for 13 years, which is called Celebrating Strengths.

This thesis discusses theories of well-being with an emphasis on defending a particular kind of hedonism (what I will refer to as 'simple hedonism'). I hope to so show that hedonism as I construe it is tenable as a theory of well-being. Furthermore, will show that it compares favourably to rival theories. In the latter chapters I will explore the putative implications of this theory for the possibility that death is a misfortune for the one who dies. In doing so I will also consider in broader terms the plausibility of Epicurus' claim that death could never be a harm.

Allotment gardening has long been reputed to have health and well-being benefits, yet there has been little empirical research to date. Two premises were formulated for this research: allotment gardening results in health and well-being benefits and works as being an antidote to urban living. The fieldwork took place on eleven allotment sites in the environs of Manchester. Initial work established the allotment gardeners' demographic information, how they gardened, what they produced and its contribution to family diets. Further work then examined the well-being of allotment gardeners following a session on the allotment and demonstrated positive mood and higher self-esteem outcomes. There was no difference for gender for any of the well-being measures; there were however, significant differences according to occupation. The allotment session benefited the employed and retired allotment holders differently, with the post-test mood of the employed being significantly more positive and the self-esteem of the retired increasing significantly. A comparison between the well-being of the allotment gardeners and non-gardeners showed the better well-being of the allotment gardeners. Employed allotment gardeners had better physical well-being than the employed non-gardeners, and more positive mood and self-esteem following the allotment session. The difference between the well-being of the different populations increased over time. The second premise was also supported showing that the pre and post-test mood and self-esteem scores did not differ significantly between allotment sites or for ,"gender. The effect of the allotment session was to increase the overall positive mood t!.; ..• :' ~: ' ." \ . I • of the employed to a level that was not significantly different to the retired. This research has implications from 'cradle to grave'. It underlines the importance of teaching children future skills such as growing, cooking food and caring for things. It presents evidence which supports the well-being gains from allotment gardening which accrue into older age.

This thesis investigates the proposition that aspects of time influence well-being. In particular, it is theorised that a person's well-being is dynamically influenced by the temporal characteristics of social time, body time, and experiential time. Two intensive time-sampling studies were used to investigate this theory. The first was a study of sixty-one shiftworking nurses, who used a pocket computer to provide measures of sleep, affect and cognitive performance two hourly and daily for four weeks. The second was a study of thirty employed healthy volunteers who used the same instrument to provide similar measures for two weeks. The development and validation of the pocket computer as a research instrument is described. Ten investigations, five from each study, are reported. Each investigation tested hypotheses relating to a specific empirical research question and examined the influence of a different temporal characteristic on well-being. In general, the first study showed that changing the timing of people's activities affects their well-being. The second study showed that there are reciprocal relations between body time, experiential time and well-being. Individual findings have relevance to the understanding of work schedules, occupational health, the chronobiology of depression, affect regulation, and nonlinear affective processes. The thesis concludes by speculatively reformulating the temporal theory of well-being in the light of new evidence concerning consciousness, emotion and neurophysiology. The reformulated theory proposes stronger relations between time and well-being and is intended to provide a framework for future research in the area.

Since 1980, the global prevalence of obesity has more than doubled. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) more than one in ten of the world’s adult population are now obese. The prevalence of obesity is high both in the developed and developing countries, leading to suggestions of an “obesity pandemic” or “globesity”. In Scotland alone, 28% of adults are now obese, and a further 36% are overweight. Historically, the main focus of healthcare has been the avoidance of preventable mortality. As life-expectancy has increased, attention has focused on the need to improve health, as well as longevity. The WHO definition of health encompasses mental and social, as well as physical, well-being. It is widely accepted that obesity causes, or aggravates, a number of medical conditions, and is also associated with reduced life-expectancy. However, the research on adiposity and subjective well-being is still in its infancy and previous studies suggest that the relationship is complex. This thesis starts by demonstrating the importance of subjective well-being in terms of its association with adverse outcomes: all-cause death, coronary heart disease (CHD), cancer incidence, and psychiatric hospitalisations. This is followed by six complementary studies that explore the relationship between adiposity and subjective well-being. Subjective well-being is explored using various approaches including self-reported health (SRH), health-related quality of life (overall, physical and mental/psychosocial), mental health and mood disorder, and adiposity is assessed using four measures: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and body fat percentage (BF%) across the whole range of adiposity (from underweight to class III obese).

This chapter aims to provide an overview of the dissertation presented here as a whole. It outlines the purpose, content and organisation of the following literature review (chapter 2) and empirical paper (chapter 3). This chapter also intends to show how the two main chapters fit together, and how they represent important research within the wider literature. Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic pain syndrome characterised by pain in the soft tissues of the body, general fatigue and sleep disturbance (Wolfe et al., 1990). Many individuals face a long and difficult journey to receive a diagnosis of FM. A recent survey reported that on average, respondents waited 2.3 years and saw 3.7 physicians before receiving a diagnosis of FM (Choy et al., 2010). Furthermore, individuals with FM have also reported that there is a considerable stigma associated with having the condition. In one qualitative study, women with FM reported feeling that others, including their physicians, questioned their credibility when reporting symptoms and their work ethic; and also implied that their illness was entirely psychological. As a result, the women reported that they coped with these difficulties either by withdrawing from social activity to avoid such experiences, or by putting on a façade that masked the true extent of their suffering (Asbring & Narvanen, 2002). Current medical and psychological treatments for FM are limited in success with regards to providing consistent benefits to the FM population as a whole (Abeles, Solitar, Pillinger & Abeles, 2008; Vlaeyen & Morley, 2005). Traditionally the dominant approach to intervention within both the medical and psychological fields is to focus on the reduction of negative symptoms. In contrast, the growing field of positive psychology continues to demonstrate the utility of exploring the processes and conditions that are conducive to optimal human functioning (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000) as an alternative or complimentary approach to conventional methods of healthcare. Subjective well-being (SWB) can be defined as “a person’s cognitive and affective evaluations of his or her life” (Diener, Lucas & Oishi, 2002, p.63). A large body of evidence suggests that individuals who have higher SWB enjoy a range of positive outcomes, including health-related benefits (e.g. Deiner & Chan, 2011). The application of a positive psychology approach may be particularly relevant to FM, where there is growing evidence of a specific deficit in positive affect (PA), a major component of SWB. Chapter 2 of this thesis is a systematic review of the literature regarding PA in individuals with FM. It focuses on the quantitative literature and specifically aims to answer the question: is there a deficit in PA in individuals with Fibromyalgia relative to other pain conditions, general health conditions, and also the general population? The literature review begins by giving a rationale as to why exploring the evidence for a deficit in PA specific to the FM population is important. It also summarises the background literature regarding the structure of affect, as well as theories relating to the potential function, and proposed mechanism of action, of PA. Next, the method section outlines the systematic methods that were used to identify the relevant studies that are included in the review. This is followed by the results section, which succinctly presents a synthesis of the characteristics of the included studies, along with the key findings regarding PA. The discussion section considers how the findings answer the question of whether there is a specific deficit in PA within the FM population. It also considers the clinical implications of the findings. This is followed by an in-depth discussion of the potential limitations of the review, in terms of both the quality of the studies included and also the methodological considerations of the review process itself. Finally, recommendations for future research are made. It has been hypothesised that hope is a major contributor to well-being (Snyder, 2002). In non-clinical samples, the association between hope, particularly goal-focused hope, and SWB has been well documented (e.g. Snyder, 2002). More recently, mindfulness has also been identified as promoting increased SWB (e.g. Brown & Ryan, 2003). Chapter three of this thesis is an empirical paper that aims to add to the current literature by exploring the specific impact SWB has on improving FM-related symptoms and difficulties. It also builds on the existing literature in non-clinical samples by investigating if goal-focused hope and mindfulness significantly contribute to the promotion of SWB within the FM population. To achieve these aims, the research utilises structural equation modelling (SEM) techniques to simultaneously explore the relationships amongst the key study variables. This was done by pre-specifying a hypothesised model of how hope and mindfulness may lead to increased SWB in FM, based on past research. The extent to which this model fit the actual data collected was then examined. The empirical paper starts by considering the importance of SWB with regards to physical health outcomes. It also introduces the concepts of goal-focused hope and mindfulness, and begins to consider the theory behind how they may lead to higher SWB within the FM population. The method section then gives details of the study’s participants, measures and procedures. It also reports how the data was analysed, with a particular focus on a description of SEM. Next, the results section begins with details of how the data was prepared and includes findings from the preliminary analysis. The main focus of this section involves testing the hypothesised SEM model against the study data. Finally, the discussion section reflects on the study’s findings within the context of existing research and theory. Potential limitations of the study are considered, as well as the implications for future research and clinical practice. This section is concluded with a succinct summary of the study’s key contributions to the literature and how this should inform future work.

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This dissertation consists of three essays on subjective well-being.The first essay examines whether aggregate job satisfaction in a certain labormarket environment can have an impact on individual-level job satisfaction.We seek an answer to this question using two different datasets from the UnitedKingdom characterizing two different labor market environments: WorkplaceEmployment Relations Survey (WERS) at the workplace level (i.e., narrowlydefined worker groups) and British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) at thelocal labor market level (i.e., larger worker groups defined in industry × regioncells). Implementing an original empirical strategy to identify spillover effects,we find that one standard deviation increase in aggregate job satisfaction leadsto a 0.42 standard deviation increase in individual-level job satisfaction at theworkplace level and 0.15 standard deviation increase in individual-level jobsatisfaction at the local labor market level. These social interactions effectsiiiare sizable and should not be ignored in assessing the effectiveness of thepolicies designed to improve job satisfaction.Individuals tend to self-report higher subjective well-being levels on certaindays of the weeks than they do on the remaining days, controlling for observedvariation. The second essay tests whether this empirical observation suffersfrom selection bias by using the 2008 release of the British Household PanelSurvey. In other words, we examine if subjective well-being is correlated withunobserved characteristics that lead the individuals to take the interview onspecific days of the week. We focus on two distinct well-being measures: jobsatisfaction and happiness. We provide convincing evidence for both of thesemeasures that the interviews are not randomly distributed across the days ofthe week. In other words, individuals with certain unobserved characteristicstend to take the interviews selectively. We conclude that a considerable partof the day-of-the-week patterns can be explained by a standard “non-randomsorting on unobservables” argument rather than “mood fluctuations”. Thismeans that the day-of-the-week estimates reported in the literature are likelyto be biased and should be treated cautiously.In Sub-Saharan Africa, some scholars identify ethnicity as a cause of instability and poor economic growth, which is due to worse public policies. Eifert,Miguel, and Posner (2010) show that ethnic identification is more prominentduring competitive election periods in comparison to other identifying categories such as gender, religion, and class/occupation. The third essay utilizesdata from 12 Sub-Saharan African countries and over 40,000 respondents takenivfrom the Afrobarometer. It asks if individual subjective well-being changes inthe run up to competitive elections. We find strong evidence that individualsubjective well-being does change. It is positively related to the proximity toan election and this proximity effect depends on the competitiveness of theelection. We further investigate the background mechanisms behind this positive relationship i.e.: to what extent does well-being of the individual change ifthe party that the individual supports wins the election, and is there a changein well-being of the individual before and after the election? In addition, wedocument that ethnic identification also has a positive impact on individualwell-being after controlling for electoral cycle variables. Policy makers shouldinternalize these positive externalities driven from politically-induced ethnicidentification

This milestone presents a pool of available indicators and indicator systems which go beyond the narrow concepts of national economic accounts as well as a structuring of the indicators and indices according to central areas of well-being. The milestone builds the basis for Task 202.2, where a subset of indicators will be selected based on different theoretical frameworks, e.g. services / functionings, needs. Some of the indicators will be included in the macro-economic models in order to account for key dimensions of sustainability.
Series: WWWforEurope

Tourism and travel play a significant role in helping people prioritize their physical, social and psychological well-being in their lives. By providing people with a time to disconnect from the stress and hassle of work and daily responsibilities at home, tourism and travel allows tourists to experience two types of well-being. Firstly, hedonic well-being through short-term extreme happiness and pleasure and, secondly, eudaimonic well-being which focuses on personal growth and human development. Therefore, well-being (both hedonic and eudaimonic) is a desired feature which is beneficial to tourists themselves. Well-being outcomes also play a significant role in the tourism industry as tourist well-being outcomes can influence destination attachment. Destination attachment is significant in tourism marketing as it influences revisit intentions and destination loyalty. However, despite the importance of well-being to tourists themselves, and the potential of well-being as a tourism product resource, there are specific gaps in existing literature. Firstly, empirical research still lack theoretical foundations to support the relationship between holidays and well-being. Secondly, the literature on how different tourist experiences influences hedonic or eudaimonic well-being remains unconsolidated. Finally, there are minimal studies, which examine how well-being can be utilised by the tourism industry as a marketing tool. This thesis draws on the top-down and bottom-up theories of well-being and the place attachment theory to investigate the effects of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being in tourism and whether well-being, as a tourism product resource can support the sustainability of the tourism industry by enhancing behavioural intentions and destination attachment. The top-down and bottom-up theories of well-being (Diener, 1984) were originally developed in positive psychology and argue that well-being is influenced either by a person’s internal disposition (top-down) or through external events and circumstances (bottom-up). These theories have not been widely applied in tourist well-being research and, current, existing research largely supports a bottom-up approach whereby tourist experiences influences tourist well-being. This study extends this understanding by further investigating the significance of the top-down approach in influencing well-being within a tourism context. Place attachment theory (Hidalgo & Hernandez, 2001) was first developed in environmental psychology and previous studies have commonly applied place attachment theory to examine how destination image and tourist satisfaction influences attachment. This study extends this understanding by examining how well-being plays a role in destination attachment. To answer the overall aim of this thesis, three research questions were formulated to support the theoretical foundation and guide the overall direction of the research. This thesis is framed within a positivist paradigm and employed quantitative research methods. The first phase of the study included a systematic quantitative literature review to identify the relationship between tourist well-being, tourism and hospitality and marketing management. The systematic quantitative literature review was significant as it informed and guided the empirical investigation in the second phase of this study. The empirical investigation involved the collection of data from 430 recent travellers and examined aspects of their trip in relation to their goals, memorable tourism experience (MTE), well-being, behavioural intentions and destination attachment. This thesis is presented as a series of published and yet to be published papers in order to provide direct evidence that the current work is of a publishable standard. This PhD format was also selected for the mentoring and experience gained through the exposure to the peer-review process and the efficiency to increase publications during candidature. Therefore, the results of this thesis are presented in three separate papers, which form the core chapters of this thesis. Two papers have been published, and one is currently under review with A ranked journals in the ABDC listing. ABDC listing refers to the Australian Business Deans Council Journal Quality List, which is a widely recognised journal-ranking list in Australia. Paper one presents the results from the systematic quantitative review of 82 peer-reviewed articles in English-language tourism and hospitality academic journals to examine the current state of research between the intersection of positive psychology and tourist well-being studies. This review indicated an evident need to link tourist well-being to tourism and hospitality marketing and management. By mapping what is known in the intersection between positive psychology and tourist well-being, this paper identified existing gaps and future opportunities for research in this growing area of interest. This paper also presented a conceptual framework on the antecedents, episodes and consequences of tourist well-being. This framework provided a better understanding of how tourist well-being is triggered in the context of tourism and hospitality, which have significant implications for marketing and management. Paper two presents the results from the first empirical enquiry which tested a proposed model which was underpinned by the top-down, bottom-up theories of well-being, and examined the relationship between goals, MTE and well-being on behavioural intentions. The results showed that the top-down approach significantly influenced well-being (through goals) in comparison to the bottom-up approach (through MTEs). Hedonic well-being also had a significant effect on behavioural intentions (revisit intention and positive word-of-mouth) in comparison to eudaimonic well-being. Therefore, the findings suggest that although eudaimonic well-being does not directly influence revisit intentions and positive word-of-mouth, it may be triggered through hedonic well-being. Paper three presents the results from the second empirical enquiry which was underpinned by place attachment theory and examined the relationship between MTE, well-being and place attachment. Visit frequency was included as a moderating variable. The results showed that both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being influences destination attachment as tourists develop an attachment to a destination when their experience is memorable, satisfying and enhances their purpose and meaning in life. This thesis makes both theoretical and practical contributions, which are reflected in each of the three papers. Theoretically, paper one contributes to existing knowledge in the intersection between positive psychology and tourist well-being studies through a conceptual framework, which maps the current state of knowledge and areas for future research between positive psychology, and tourist well-being studies. Paper two contributes to three bodies of knowledge. Firstly, to well-being research by providing insights into its antecedents (goals) and construct operationalization (well-being) from a positive psychology perspective. Secondly, to tourism research by emphasizing the significant role of the top-down theory of well-being in comparison to the bottom-up theory of well-being. Thirdly, to the positive psychology literature by tapping into tourism market segmentation research. Paper three contributes to the destination loyalty literature by examining the determinants of place attachment beyond destination image and tourist satisfaction. This paper also enhances the positive psychology literature by emphasizing the importance of well-being on place attachment. Overall, this thesis presents empirical evidence to support the application of positive psychological theories, principles and concepts to tourist well-being studies. Practically, this thesis contributes to managerial implications by recommending that tourist marketers’ segment travellers based on their travel goals, which can effectively enhance well-being. Specifically, general tourist satisfaction questionnaires could be expanded to include measurement of emotions and self-development categories such as personal growth. This would allow tourism and hospitality managers to re-design services to accommodate travellers’ goals, which are ultimately linked to well-being. It is critical to nurture happy tourists, not only for the well-being benefits to tourists themselves, but also for the economic benefits for tourism destinations in terms of revisit intentions and positive WOM.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Dept Tourism, Sport & Hot Mgmt
Griffith Business School
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The present work aims to establish a link between the concepts of development and well-being by defining the former as a function of the latter. A new comprehensive definition of well-being is proposed, and, as a result, it is possible to link both notions in the same coherent vision in accordance with the capability approach framework. By doing so, we can clarify important issues for debate, such as: • Dimensions and limitations of the concept of freedom; • An analysis of the existing relationship between the capability approach and its ethical or moral context; more specifically, about the scope of relevant capabilities that individuals need to develop in order to be considered as positive and not harmful at both individual and social levels. By proposing a joint novel approach to these concept, it is not intended to replace the already existing ones, but rather to contribute to their better understanding, and in consequence, the policies and programs where they are applied.

Studies in the areas of goal pursuit and well-being suggest that the goals people work toward in their daily lives are important contributors of well-being. However, research to date has focused primarily on aspects of the individual in goal pursuit even though goals are not pursued in isolation. In fact, there is evidence that this emphasis on the individual, particularly salient in Western cultures, has negative consequences at both the individual and community levels. With regard to well-being, data have indicated that it is best represented as two dimensional, including hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. However, the research on personal goals has primarily focused on hedonic well-being of the individual. Overall, hedonic well-being appears to be more related to affective experience, whereas eudaimonic well-being appears to be more comprehensive and related to topics like purpose in life, self-acceptance, and positive relations with others. The theoretical framework of Virtue Ethics posits that social affiliations are essential for human beings to flourish and experience eudaimonia, and this study examines that premise. A two-step approach to structural equation modeling was used to contribute to the extant literature on goal pursuit and well-being by 1) exploring the individual and interpersonal dimensions of goal pursuit and their relationships to hedonic and eudaimonic well-being and 2) exploring the interpersonal dimensions of goal pursuit as a mediator of the relationship between individual dimensions of goal pursuit and eudaimonic well-being. The retained structural model from the two-step approach included Efficacy (an Individual Dimension of Goal Pursuit) and Generativity (an Interpersonal Dimension of Goal Pursuit). Results demonstrated that Efficacy and Generativity were both significantly related to Hedonic and Eudaimonic Well-being; however, Generativity was more strongly related to Eudaimonic than Hedonic Well-being. These findings were consistent with the premise of Virtue theory, that those engaged in goal pursuit with or on behalf of others are more likely to experience higher levels of eudaimonic well-being. Future research should include further exploration of the Interpersonal Dimensions of Goal Pursuit and well-being specifically by focusing on improving measurement for the Interpersonal Dimensions of Goal Pursuit, Hedonic, and Eudaimonic Well-being.

Educational Psychologists (EPs) spend much of their time working with school staff to solve problems. Staff often report perceptions of high levels of stress, overwork and lack of time to plan and implement changes indicating frequent experience of poor mental well-being. There has been a recent increase in awareness of promoting the well-being of children and young people, however, little attention appears to have been focused as yet upon the school staff who will promote and support this agenda.Research in schools has tended to focus on teachers rather than including all staff. There is a preponderance of research clarifying contributors to teachers’ stress and, to a lesser extent describing interventions in schools. However, little research has focused on school staff understanding and value of well-being and about perceptions of interventions carried out in schools. This study aimed to obtain a greater understanding of the perceptions of school staff about well-being, the value they placed upon it and the experience and perceived impact of taking part in a study aiming to promote staff well-being. An 8 week intervention was carried out in a primary school with weekly sessions of a project which was known as ‘Chill and Chat’. Data was gathered via questionnaires completed before and after the project and 3 focus groups held before, during and after the project. Data was analysed using thematic analysis.It was found that well-being was seen as important, however, colleagues with poor mental well-being were ‘pathologised’. ‘Learning’ to cope and maintain positive well-being was perceived as a responsibility of the staff member. Staff perceived the informality of provision to support their well-being as important and valued the time to develop better relationships with colleagues rather than ‘working relationships’ and also feeling valued and cared for. Staff reported perceptions of greater efficacy in the classroom, increased job satisfaction and feeling calmer in the classroom. The most significant limitation of the study was the continuation of provision to support staff mental well-being which requires commitment and understanding from school senior management teams and local authority members regarding the impact that increased well being can have on teaching and learning and a shift of thought towards focusing on positive well-being promotion rather than managing poor well-being.There are implications for EP practice and research in helping school staff reflect on their well-being and actions that they can take as a team to promote well-being in school. EPs can also be instrumental in disseminating research findings highlighting the impact of staff mental well being on teaching and learning.

Background: The prevalence of mental health difficulties in d/Deaf populations is higher than that of the hearing population. The association between mental health difficulties in childhood and well-being in adulthood amongst d/Deaf populations, including as perceived by Deaf people themselves, has been little explored. Access by d/Deaf people to mental health services is poor. In addition, there is a paucity of mental health assessments available in British Sign Language. Aims: The aims of this thesis were; (i) to understand the association between childhood and adulthood mental well-being in d/Deaf populations; (ii) to find out how well the standardised mental health assessments can be used with d/Deaf populations; and (iii) to explore Deaf people’s perspectives on mental well-being. Methods: BSL versions of four mental health assessments (the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation – Outcome Measure (CORE-OM), the Patient Health Questionnaire(PHQ-9), the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), and the Work and Social Adjustment Scale (WSAS)) were produced by carrying out a translation process to ensure that the statements in the assessments are linguistically and culturally meaningful to a Deaf population. The reliability and validation of the mental health assessments were examined by piloting them with d/Deaf populations. In order to gain Deaf people’s own perspectives on mental well-being, four focus groups were set up in England. Results: Thematic analysis of the focus group data identified pre-disposing factors in childhood that Deaf participants believed would affect adult mental well-being. The CORE-OM BSL, PHQ-9 BSL, GAD-7 BSL, and WSAS BSL were found to be reliable and have been validated. The pilot study which compared the reliability between the BSL and English version of one mental health assessment (CORE-OM) as completed by d/Deaf people found that two domains had lower reliability in English in comparison with the BSL version. Conclusions: Reliable standardised instruments in BSL are required to identify and assess common mental health problems amongst Deaf people. These are now available. Deaf people identified a number of factors that are important to well-being, for example, ease of communication with others, a strong sense of identity, a ‘can do’ attitude, and a firm sense of belonging. These factors are of importance if we are to attempt to reduce the prevalence of mental health difficulties in d/Deaf populations in the future.

This dissertation explores whether families of incarcerated fathers are more likely to experience food insecurity as a result of the conviction of the father. More specifically, I test whether food insecurity explains some of the devastating consequences of paternal incarceration on mothers and children. Because children of incarcerated fathers are at higher risk of following their fathers’ footsteps, this cycle of incarceration can be self-perpetuating. I try to determine how policy can be used to break this cycle. This dissertation examines the role of food insecurity in explaining the negative impact of paternal incarceration on the well-being of mothers and children. The United States has experienced a huge prison boom over the last 40 years. A growing proportion of the incarcerated population are parents. Children growing up with one or both parents missing tend to have long-lasting disadvantages. Previous studies have attempted to suggest a few mechanisms through which paternal incarceration has negative consequences for families but has not considered the role of food insecurity. I propose a theoretical framework to show that paternal incarceration negatively affects mothers and children through food insecurity. Using a longitudinal study of fragile families, I find that food insecurity explains some of the negative consequences of paternal incarceration on maternal depression. On the other hand, food insecurity plays no role in the effect of paternal incarceration on child behavior problems. The findings also cast doubt on whether paternal incarceration affects child well-being. The implications for policy are two-fold. First, reducing food insecurity would mitigate the negative effects of paternal incarceration on maternal depression. More research is needed in order to understand whether the negative effects of paternal incarceration on maternal well-being can be further mitigated. Second, prison reform would do little to reduce the behavior problems experienced by children of incarcerated fathers. Rather than incarceration, other factors contributing to social disadvantages could explain why children of incarcerated fathers have more behavior problems than other children.

This thesis is an exploration of how artificial lights are used to create atmospheres in a space, andhow they enhance an individual’s well-being. The focus here is placed on students in Sweden,specifically those who live in one-room apartments. Students typically do not invest much intheir lights yet being in Scandinavia, artificial lighting is used to compensate for the lack ofdaylight hours. As such, the lights they have will impact how they go about their day.A light is designed using product design methods to respond to the research question: “to whatextent can a versatile light source alter the atmosphere of a student’s space to enhance their wellbeing?”As the research is situated in Sweden, aspects of the Scandinavian lighting culture will beexamined and implemented in the design. The student’s well-being will be assessed through thetheory of subjective well-being, specifically how it can be enhanced through perceived control.The light design also aims to be socially sustainable, focusing on how individuals’ well-being canbe improved through lighting. The design also attempts to tackle inequalities by showing it canbe made of cheap and accessible materials, as well as being professionally manufactured. Thecheaper version is to ensure students with lower incomes can access the same quality of light asothers, where the light will create a similar atmosphere. Finally, the concept of social lighting isdefined in the context of this thesis. It concentrates on designing the light based on interviewswith students and emphasising the relationship between a student and their apartment.Through interviews and photos, a design brief was formed to understand what type of lightstudents use in their apartment and what they were looking for. After a series of iterations, afinal design was obtained and created. One version was made professionally in metal by BelidLighting. Another was made out of thick card and paper clips, materials easily accessible tostudents. The models were tested by students in their home for two nights, after which aninterview took place to obtain impressions and feedback on the design.It was concluded that a versatile light source altered the atmosphere of a student space toenhance their well-being to a certain extent. This was due to people’s existing relationship withlights, where they don’t generally interact beyond switching them on and off. Nonetheless,participants enjoyed making their own lamp, and found the lamp design quite unique. Thishelped maintain their subjective well-being.

The aim of the study was to examine the determinants of well-being in Malaysian students at home and overseas. Prior to the main study, interviews were conducted with seven PhD students of Malaysia studying in Plymouth, to explore their needs and values, and their adaptation experiences in terms of missing and enjoyment experiences abroad. Based on the interview findings and literature reviews, a questionnaire was developed and named as the Adaptation to Life Index, which consisted of two scales - ‘missing experience’ and ‘enjoyment experience’. A longitudinal survey was carried out using Malaysian students in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, the US, Ireland, and Canada as well as students who remained in Malaysia. At Time 1, data were collected from 1118 students who were enrolling at various overseas preparatory studying programmes and 972 first year students in one of the public university in Malaysia who were continuing their education in Malaysia. Measurements used were the Big Five Personality Inventory (John, Donahue, & Kentle, 1991), Schwartz’s Short Value Scale (SSVS) (Lindeman & Verkasalo, 2005; Schwartz, 1992), Positive and Negative Affect Scales (PANAS) (Watson, et al, 1988), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) (Diener, et al., 1985), perceived stress scale (based on the results of Malaysian Certificate of Education and perceived English language fluency), and a section on socio-demographic background. At time 2, 30 % of the participants (N= 628) were retained. Life satisfaction for home students remained constant over time. However, life satisfaction for overseas students started much lower at Time 1 but increased at Time 2. Results showed that life satisfaction at time 1 strongly predicted life satisfaction at Time 2, but neither personality nor values were predicted life satisfaction at Time 2. Personality and values at Time 1 predicted ‘missing experience at Time 2 and in the overseas students, being fluent in English predicted less ‘missing experience’. There were few predictors of Time 1 for ‘enjoyment’ at Time 2, but fluency with English predicted better enjoyment.

The study of subjective well-being an interdisciplinary field that borrows from and contributes to disciplines such as psychology, economics, philosophy, and related fields due to the positive effects correlated with high subjective well-being. Cross cultural examinations of well-being help expand the knowledge base of subjective well-being, however, if current measures fail to take into account cultural variances in subjective well-being it undermines the validity of subjective well-being as a construct because western understandings of well-being are not as generalizable to other cultures as seems to be assumed by some measures. This essay provides an examination of popular measurements of subjective well-being and an analysis of the way they could interact with cultural differences in constructs related to subjective well-being.

The broad objective of this thesis is to study the patterns of objective and subjective well-being among the immigrants in Europe. The main part of the thesis consists of three single-authored empirical chapters. The first chapter analyzes the longitudinal patterns of relative poverty among the foreign-born in Sweden. The second chapter examines the mechanisms of occupational attainment, occupational mobility and long-term occupational cost of migration among Senegalese immigrants in France, Spain and Italy. The third chapter analyzes life satisfaction and income satisfaction among immigrants in Germany. At the most general level, the results in the empirical chapters suggest that the objective well-being improves with duration of stay at destination, even if very gradually for some immigrant groups, while, on the other hand, there is a ceteris paribus negative relationship between the subjective well-being and duration of stay. A number of other findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the processes associated with the well-being among immigrants.
L'objectiu general d'aquesta tesi és estudiar les pautes del benestar objectiu i subjectiu dels immigrants a Europa. La part principal de la tesi consisteix en tres capítols empírics d'autoria única. El primer capítol analitza les pautes longitudinals de pobresa relativa entre els nascuts a l’estranger a Suècia. El segon capítol examina els mecanismes d’obtenció d’ocupació, la mobilitat i cost professional a llarg termini de la migració entre els immigrants d’origen senegalès a França, Espanya i Itàlia. El tercer capítol analitza la satisfacció general amb la vida i la satisfacció amb els ingressos entre els immigrants a Alemanya. Els resultats en els capítols empirics suggereixen, a nivell general, que el benestar objectiu millora a mida que creix la durada de l’estada en el lloc de destí, tot i que de manera molt gradual per alguns grups d’immigrants, mentre que, d’altra banda, hi ha una relació ceteris paribus negativa entre el benestar subjectiu i la durada de l’estada. Diversos resultats contribueixen a una comprensió més matisada dels processos associats amb el benestar entre els immigrants.

The present thesis concerns middle-aged women’s subjective well-being (SWB). The interest is focused on the importance of childhood factors, social circumstances, and personality for middle-aged women’s general SWB. Data were taken from the longitudinal research program Individual Development and Adaptation (IDA, Magnusson & Bergman, 2000) and concerned a sample of about 300 women. The main analyses were made on data collected at age 43, but data collected at age 13 and age 49 were also used to elucidate the purposes of this thesis. The results can be summarized as follows: 1) In a Swedish sample of middle-aged women, social circumstances had only a moderate effect on general SWB variables. The strongest relationship was found between marital status and global life satisfaction. When personality factors were controlled for, they wiped out nearly all relationships between the social circumstances variables and SWB, except for those between global life satisfaction and marital status or unemployment; 2) The level of general SWB was found to be considerably higher for Swedish employed women as compared to their counterparts in Lithuania and different socio-demographic variables predicted SWB in those two countries. For the Swedish sample, family-oriented variables were the strongest predictors of SWB, while for the Lithuanian sample income and educational level were more important; 3) Results from applying longitudinal structural equation modeling suggested that optimism in adolescence influenced optimism in middle age, which in its turn had both a direct influence on global life satisfaction and an indirect influence via the negative affect dimension. In relation to a number of different adjustment factors measured in adolescence it was found that optimism was the only factor that was constantly related to SWB 30 years later; 4) Typical patterns of general SWB were identified. Cluster analyses at age 43 and age 49 separately resulted in similar well-functioning six cluster solutions at both ages, indicating structural stability across six years. In addition to the typical high/low/average SWB clusters that could be to some degree expected from variable-oriented results, a cluster with intense affect and one with very low GLS emerged. All clusters except the latter one showed individual stability across six years.

The theme of this dissertation is the design of IT artefactsfor increased well-being in the home. The goal has been toprovide a better understanding of the coupling between designand health, and to give examples of how to design for increasedwell-being. The context for the investigation has been thehome, and various research initiatives in smart homes andIT-supported care. We create our reality in the form of material structuressuch as buildings, products, workplaces and homes. Theseartefacts are a reflection of ourselves, we have created themand we understand ourselves through them. Together withimmaterial artefacts like political systems, educationalsystems and healthcare, they constitute our society. Thetotality of these material and immaterial artefacts forms theconditions of our everyday life. This investigation points at anew way to look at artefacts as social actors in an interactiveworld. In this perspective, use becomes a dialogue andcooperation with the artefact. Design work becomes a carefulcreative practice in which the focus is the interplay betweenthe artefact and its social environment. Stress and ill-healthis an indication that there is an unbalance in the interplay.Well-being on the other hand means that there is a balancebetween the artificial world and the individual. Designpractitioners, and others that create our world, have animportant task in designing new artefacts that do not reproduceobsolete or dysfunctional behaviour. Inspired by coping theories, a salutogenic approach todesign aims at identifying and strengthening the aspects ofartefacts that help us handle adversities. This means to createartefacts that form a world, which is comprehensible,manageable and meaningful. People that live in environmentswhere they cannot influence decisions, with high demands andlow control, are likely to become ill. But people that haveenvironments, in which they receive feedback, support and cancontrol their own situation stay well. With new, complextechnology such as ubiquitous computing, it becomes even moreimportant to support recognition and routines. And it becomesessential in domestic use and in IT-support for the disabledand elderly. The empirical work reported here consists of four casestudies related to IT artefacts for well-being. The casestudies include field studies, critical analysis, designconcepts, prototype building and evaluation. Based on thefindings in these studies, four considerations for design ofinteractive systems for the home are suggested: design forunderstanding, for detecting and managing of errors, fordisabling and for alternative coping. Finally it is suggested that if research is to concernitself not only with evaluations and general laws, but alsowith ideas and practical examples of a better future life–then design knowledge becomes an essential element inresearch. In this endeavour we need more cooperation betweenpractitioners from the social and technical sciences, thehumanities and design.
QC 20100618

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Cincinnati, 2008.
Advisors: George Thomas Bible (Committee Chair), Elizabeth Riorden (Committee Co-Chair). Title from electronic thesis title page (viewed Sept. 7, 2008). Includes abstract. Keywords: well-being; social; patterns. Includes bibliographical references.

Two major intuitions dominate contemporary legal and political philosophy. One springs from a form of objectivism: if we can know what is good for people, states should, in principle, help them lead good lives. The other is the widely shared presumption in favour of freedom, a principle often cited in debates regarding the limits of the law. As people often fail to serve their own good, the conflicts that inevitably arise between the two positions raise crucial questions regarding legislation and governmental policies. An attempt to resolve these conflicts must start from a critical evaluation of the content of our intuitions. Freedom seems to be most valued when understood as personal autonomy, i.e. a principle of free self- authorship. On the other hand, the' good' we expect the state to promote is what is good for persons, i.e. their personal well-being. Once we have appreciated the value of personal autonomy as well as the basic elements of well-being, we can conclude that there is an aspect of the latter that can be justifiably promoted by appropriately mild coercive means. This is a job for legal paternalism. The other aspect, which is dependent on the successful pursuit of wholeheartedly endorsed goals and projects allows only for encouragement and argument on the p311 of the state. These conclusions have significant implications for the justification and practice of legal paternalism as well as for the non-paternalistic promotion of well-being in schemes that are often categorised under the heading 'liberal perfectionism'.

Using data from the National Survey for Families and Households, ordinary least squares regression is performed to assess to what degree the quality and quantity of sibling relationships affect men and women. Well-being is measured by a twelve item scale, Cronbach 's Alpha = .928. Sibling relationships are measured in two facets: quality and quantity. A positive evaluation of sibling quality correlates with higher levels of well-being for men, but not women. A negative evaluation of sibling quality correlates with lower levels of well-being for both men and women. Men and women do differ in the strength of this effect. No significant relationship is found between the number of times an individual sees his or her siblings and an individual's well-being. However, the number of times siblings talk to each other does have a significant effect on well-being for both men and women.
Department of Sociology

This thesis examines work and well-being in relationship to teamwork in two organisations employing professionals; one organising work in Japanese style teams and one with self-managing work teams. It offers a critique of current research on employee well-being in teams and outlines some ways forward for filling in the gaps in existing research. Using two case studies, the working conditions may be in teamwork organisations are investigated. Second, the moderating effects of teamwork on the relationship between working conditions and employee well-being are investigated. Third, this thesis examines which aspects of teamwork may have a particularly strong moderating effect on the relationship between poor management and employee well-being, with a particular focus on the claim that social support is the main reason why working in teams may improve employee well-being. Finally, following on from the results of the moderating effects, the importance of opportunities for learning and innovation and supportive management for employee well-being are investigated in self-managing work teams. The conclusion of this thesis is that implementing teamwork in organisations may only have limited benefits for employee well-being. Where such effects are found they can be explained by sources of social support and team support for innovation. Finally, it was found that whilst working in self-managing work teams predicts opportunities for learning and innovation, the relationship between such opportunities and employee well-being are mediated by a supportive management. The results of this thesis are discussed in view of the importance of conducting detailed risk assessments and how teamwork should be best supported to achieve the potential benefits of working in teamwork organisations.

The current paper reviews measures of subjective psychological well-being in older adults and draws conclusions about how the concept of well-being is defined and measured. A systematic search of four databases identified eight measures developed to capture the notion of psychological well-being; the Positive And Negative Affect Schedule, the Life Satisfaction Index, the Bradburn Affect Balance Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, the Perceived Well-Being Scale, the Scales of Psychological Well-Being, the Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale, and the Memorial University of Newfoundland Scale of Happiness. An evaluation of these measures revealed a range in dimensionality and composition, with measures defining well-being as primarily hedonic, eudaimonic, or a combination of the two. The validity of the measures was investigated by considering the extent to which measures capture facets of well-being identified by older people as important for successful aging. It was concluded that whilst all measures consider several important aspects of well-being, no measure captured the entire range of factors highlighted by older people as paramount to well-being.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Economics, 2004.
Includes bibliographical references.
This thesis examines the well-being of families under changing labor market conditions, changes in the legal environment and changes in public policy. The first chapter asks how women's fertility decisions are affected by changing labor market conditions. Chapter two examines whether divorce shocks persist into old age, and the final chapter studies how the elderly alter their living arrangements in response to changes in Social Security benefit payments. Chapter one exploits exogenous variation in labor demand for women to measure how total fertility responds to changes in female earnings. The principal finding is that women who are likely to face lower wage offers - those who have completed high school or are high school dropouts - reduce their total fertility when labor market conditions are better. In contrast, women who are likely to face higher wage offers - those who have completed at least some college - increase their total fertility when labor market conditions improve. Chapter two exploits variation in property division laws to examine whether there is a persistent effect of such laws on the well-being of ever-divorced women in retirement. The results suggest that a woman who divorces in a state and year where all pension assets are recognized as marital property has higher per capita household income in retirement than a woman who divorced in a state where pensions were not considered marital property.
The results are consistent with some persistence in the effect of property division laws at divorce, but the effects do not appear to be pervasive enough to have a significant impact on other measures of well-being in retirement, including whether a woman lives independently, whether she or a member of her household owns her home, whether she receives government assistance, and whether she receives pension income. Chapter three examines how elderly individuals change their living arrangements when their social security benefits change. Findings suggest that living arrangements are substantially more elastically demanded by non-married elderly than previous studies, and that reductions in Social Security benefits would significantly alter the living arrangements of the elderly. Most of these effects appear to be concentrated among the less educated elderly.
by Cynthia Diane Perry.
Ph.D.

The main objective of this study is to explain and predict subjective well-being among the elderly as a function of their social location in society and the nature of their social networks. More specifically, the study seeks to answer the following questions: First, how do the elderly perceive their well-being? Second, does social location in society, as defined by income and education, produce different perceptions of well-being? Third, how would interaction and receipt of goods and services in the social support network modify the impact of social location on subjective well-being? Using the data of the National Survey on the Aged, 1975, conducted by Ethel Shanas, the study utilized a social structure and personality framework. as an approach to the problem. Through multiple regression analyses, the study found that the impact of social locational factors on subjective well-being among the elderly is not mediated by the pattern of social interaction in the social support network. Education was found to be an important correlate of subjective well-being among the elderly.
Master of Science