Wide ranging presentation for interactive discussion about what wellbeing means - specifically in Wales. Also what are the policy drivers for increasing wellbeing in Wales.

1. How to get long term Wellbeing by Dafydd Thomas

3. What makes you happy?

6. Definitions Hedonic Wellbeing = consists of pleasure or happiness * Eudaimonic Wellbeing = realised in achieving the individual’s potential *(Ryan and Deci (2001)) Subjective Wellbeing = an individual’s assessment of their own circumstances, what they think and feel (harder to measure and influence) ** Objective Wellbeing = the social and material attributes that contribute or detract from an individual or community’s wellbeing ** Process or Outcome ? **(Felce and Perry (1995))

7. Definitions (cont’d) Quality of life is about the non-material aspects of human wellbeing, and includes subjective and objective features Well-being or welfare , is broader than quality of life: it comprises both material resources and non-material aspects Sustainability , which considers whether an activity or condition can be maintained indefinitely, is about whether wellbeing can last in the future (OECD 2010)

8. Subjective Wellbeing “ subjective well-being refers to all of the various types of evaluations, both positive and negative, that people make of their lives. It includes reflective cognitive evaluations, such as life satisfaction and work satisfaction, interest and engagement, and affective reactions to life events, such as joy and sadness. Thus, subjective well-being is an umbrella term for the different valuations people make regarding their lives, the events happening to them, their bodies and minds, and the circumstances in which they live” E. Diener, ‘Guidelines for National Indicators of Well-Being and Ill-Being’, 28 November 2005

10. What makes you happy? Health: physical and mental well-being ; “ the absence of symptoms, illness, disease and morbidity” (WHO 1948 and 2004) Well-being: subjective state of being: happy and contented; comfortable and satisfied; a quality of life; Includes: physical, material, social, emotional, development and activity dimensions (Danna & Griffin 1999; Diener 2000)

11. Evidence for Different Outcomes – Priority Fields The Young Foundation HEALTH SPORTS AND THE ARTS COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT FAMILY AND CHILDHOOD EDUCATION WORK AGEING

16. Major new ‘happiness test’ for the people of Wales The nation’s “happiness” would be officially measured under plans to protect and promote the wellbeing of Welsh people. Proposals by the Assembly Government to gauge overall life satisfaction have been welcomed by health experts and business leaders as a bold way of building a better balanced country. Western Mail 1 March 2010

17. France to count happiness in GDP “ Happiness, long holidays and a sense of well-being may not be everyone’s yardstick for economic performance, but Nicolas Sarkozy believes they should be embraced by the world in a national accounting overhaul” Financial Times 14 September 2009

18. Easterlin Paradox

19. “ The Gross National Product counts air pollution and cigarette advertising, and ... the destruction of the redwood and the loss of our natural wonder in chaotic sprawl ... Yet [it] does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play ... the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages ... it measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile.” Robert Kennedy 1968

26. What next - questions?

27. Questions? www.wellbeingwales.org [email_address]