Abstract
In what follows I plan to come to grips with some terminological and philosophical confusion that seems to underlie a number of controversies between what is often viewed as rather antagonistic approaches in the study of human welfare. The main argument will be that a utilitarian, “subjectivist” quality-of-life approach is not necessarily inimical to a conception of welfare research oriented toward “needs” “resources” or “rights”. I shall discuss in some detail a conceptual structure in which quality of life qua subjective well-being (happiness/utility) is presently being used as an empirical referent and as the “hard core” normative takeoff point for delineating such elusive concepts as “needs” and “rights” . Clarifying the relationship between these concepts and approaches may eliminate some terminological confusion as well as provide some indication of areas of substantive research that deserves special attention in the years to come.
I am grateful for comments, criticism, and encouragement regarding earlier versions of this essay from Fredrik Engelstad, Arne Mastekaasa, Alex Michalos, Lester Milbrath, Siri Næss, Arne Næss, J.P. Roos, and Elèmer Hankiss, none of whom may be held responsible for my conclusions. This chapter is a revised and expanded version of Mourn [20].
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Moum, T. (1994). Needs, Rights and Resources in Quality of Life Research. In: Nordenfelt, L. (eds) Concepts and Measurement of Quality of Life in Health Care. European Studies in Philosophy of Medicine 1, vol 47. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8344-2_6
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