Quality of life (QOL) research has made great strides since the social indicator movement started as a scientific enterprise in the 1960s. Following the lead of pioneers in North America and Europe, social scientists in other regions of the world have adopted and refined social data systems or barometers to monitor progress in enhancing the welfare and well-being of citizens. A distinctive feature of these barometers is that they measure both individual and societal quality of life. While not overlooking the more basic needs and material standards of living, the barometers also inform on issues of individual freedoms and choices and constraints on citizen empowerment that enhance and depress quality of life. Designed to capture nuances in local definitions of the good life, regional barometers are unique expressions of the obstacles facing different societies in their quest to achieve the good life. Scholars of public policy as well as policy makers will find inspiration from reviews of innovative initiatives to monitor contemporary quality of life in six regions of the world spanning South America, the Arctic, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia.

Valerie Møller is Professor of Quality of Life Studies in the Institute for Social and Economic Research at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa. She has researched a wide range of quality of life issues in South Africa for public information and policy purposes, including housing, poverty and unemployment, development and service delivery, criminal victimisation and intergenerational relations. Together with colleagues she developed the first survey instruments in the 1980s to measure perceptions of personal well-being among South Africans - the study is regularly updated. More recently she successfully lobbied for the inclusion of a quality of life module in Statistics South Africa's annual household survey which produces the bulk of national social indicators.

Denis Huschka is Managing Director of the German Council for Social and Economic Data, situated in Berlin/Germany. He also conducts scientific studies as a Research Associate of the Institute for Social and Economic Research at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa and he is Permanent Visiting Fellow of the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP). He has conducted empirical research on regional differences in Quality of Life in Germany and Europe, and on Anomia in post-apartheid South Africa. He was involved in establishing or carrying out several survey initiatives (Wohlfahrtssurvey, Germany; General Household Survey 2002, South Africa; Euromodule, Europe). His most recent research interest focuses on the sociological concept of individualisation as applied to given names as social indicators.

Alex Michalos

Social indicators inform citizens and governments alike on progress in society. The past decade has seen the birth of regional social barometers designed to monitor quality of life in all corners of the globe. Social scientists from different societal backgrounds have developed sets of indicators to guide policy in promoting citizen welfare and to monitor progress in achieving social goals. In many cases, this has been a team effort engaging policy makers and citizens. The contributions to this book span quality-of-life assessments on six continents ranging from the Arctic in the far north to 'down-under' Australia in the south. Of interest to both social scientists and policy makers, regional barometers reflect local nuances that capturing the essence of well-being under very different living conditions and in tune with popular expectations of the good life.  

The authors, all experts from different regions of the world, sketch the survey or surveys that serve as quality-of-life barometers in their part of the world. They share with us the most fascinating trends they have observed in survey results in the new millennium.