Abstract
Quality of life must be measured within a multidimensional framework preferably including objective and subjective indicators of quality of life that add to the information obtained through economic indicators. This paper proposes for the first time, the fuzzy set approach to quality of life measurement. The application uses the 2012 data collected for Germany by Eurofound during the third wave of the European Quality of Life Survey. The fuzzy approach, developed in the early 1990s, proves to be highly consistent and efficient in this empirical application when compared to distribution analyses. In addition, it is also statistically robust. Both the theoretical background and the application of the approach are described. The fuzzy set provides relevant added value for both data analysts and data users as it presents results easily and concisely, facilitates comparison and cross-references between dimensions, and allows for the consolidation of monetary and non-monetary aspects of life quality.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
For instance, while analysing poverty dynamics, it would be interesting to observe the intersection of the two dissimilar sets ‘being poor at time t − 1’ and ‘not being poor at time t’, i.e., the fuzzy measures of ‘exit from poverty’.
References
Aassve, A., Betti, G., Mazzuco, S., Mencarini, L.: Marital disruption and economic well-being; a comparative analysis. J. R. Stat. Soc. Ser. A 170(3), 781–799 (2007)
Belhadj, B.: Employment measure in development countries via minimum wage and poverty: new Fuzzy approach. Opsearch 52(2), 329–339 (2015)
Betti, G., D’Agostino, A., Neri, L.: Educational mismatch of graduates: a multidimensional and fuzzy indicator. Soc. Indic. Res. 103(3), 465–480 (2011)
Betti, G., Gagliardi, F., Lemmi, A., Verma, V.: Sub-national indicators of poverty and deprivation in Europe: methodology and applications. Camb. J. Reg. Econ. Soc. 5(1), 149–162 (2012)
Betti, G., Gagliardi, F., Lemmi, A., Verma, V.: Comparative measures of multidimensional deprivation in the european union. Empir. Econ. 49(3), 1071–1100 (2015a)
Betti, G., Soldi, R., Talev, I.: Fuzzy multidimensional indicators of quality of life: the empirical case of Macedonia. Soc. Indic. Res. (2015b). doi:10.1007/s11205-015-0965-y
Betti, G., Verma, V.: Measuring the degree of poverty in a dynamic and comparative context: a multi-dimensional approach using fuzzy set theory. In: Proceedings, ICCS-VI, vol. 11, pp. 289–301, Lahore, Pakistan, August 27–31, 1999
Betti, G., Verma, V.: Fuzzy measures of the incidence of relative poverty and deprivation: a multi-dimensional perspective. Stat. Methods Appl. 12(2), 225–250 (2008)
Cerioli, A., Zani, S.: A fuzzy approach to the measurement of poverty. In: Dagum, C., Zenga, M. (eds.) Income and Wealth Distribution, Inequality and Poverty, pp. 272–284. Springer, Berlin (1990)
Cheli, B., Lemmi, A.: A Totally fuzzy and relative approach to the multidimensional analysis of poverty. Econ. Notes 24, 115–134 (1995)
Eurofound: Monitoring Quality of Life in Europe. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, Luxembourg. http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/htmlfiles/ef02108.htm (2003)
Eurofound: Subjective Well-Being in Europe. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, Luxembourg. http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/pubdocs/2009/108/en/1/EF09108EN.pdf (2009)
Eurofound: Third European Quality of Life Survey. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg (2012)
Eurostat: European Social Statistics: Income, Poverty and Social Exclusion: 2nd Report. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, Luxembourg (2002)
Filippone, A., Cheli, B., D’Agostino A.: Addressing the interpretation and the aggregation problems in totally fuzzy and relative poverty measures. ISER Working Paper Series number 2001–22, University of Essex (2001)
Guio, A.-C.: What can be Learned from Deprivation Indicators in Europe? Eurostat methodologies and working paper. Eurostat, Luxembourg (2009)
Klir, G.J., Yuan, B.: Fuzzy Sets And Fuzzy Logic. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs (1995)
Lemmi, A., Betti, G. (eds.): Fuzzy Set Approach to Multidimensional Poverty Measurement. Springer, New York (2006)
Maggino, F., Ruviglioni, E.: Obtaining Weights: From Objective to Subjective Approaches in View of More Participative Methods in the Construction of Composite Indicators. In: EUROSTAT, pp. 37–46, Brussels—Belgium, February 18–20, 2009, Eurostat—European Commission (2009)
Nussbaum, M., Sen, A. (eds.): The Quality of Life. Oxford University Press, Oxford (1993)
Phillips, D.: Quality of Life: Concept, Quality, Practice. Routledge, London (2006)
Rapley, M.: Quality of Life Research: A Critical Introduction. Sage, London (2003)
Whelan, C.T., Layte, R., Maitre, B., Nolan, B.: Income, deprivation and economic strain: an analysis of the European Community Household Panel. Eur. Sociol. Rev. 17, 357–372 (2001)
Zadeh, L.A.: Fuzzy sets. Inf. Control 8, 338–353 (1965)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Betti, G. Fuzzy measures of quality of life in Germany: a multidimensional and comparative approach. Qual Quant 51, 23–34 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-015-0291-0
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-015-0291-0