ABSTRACT
The concept of ‘wellbeing’ underpins our institutions of morality, politics, law and economics. Theologians and philosophers continue to inquire how best to understand wellbeing, its measurement, and its place in moral and political thought. The Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development has led the way with regards to instilling the importance of the measurement of wellbeing as a policy instrument. The recognized importance of wellbeing, which gained momentum from the 1970s, underpins the policy agenda in most countries, which has, in turn, led to a proliferation of research efforts toward measuring wellbeing. Theories of wellbeing traditionally fall into three categories, which in part mirror long established divisions between contrasting schools of thought in normative ethics. The main problem with such an approach is that different people hold different meanings and understanding of what constitutes wellbeing and these can sometimes be misinterpreted within the dominant universalist model.
