Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research

2014 Edition
| Editors: Alex C. Michalos

Qualitative Indicators of Development

Reference work entry
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0753-5_2338
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Definition

Qualitative indicators of development refer primarily to the use of qualitative methods such as individual and group interviews to select indicators and to generate the content for and pilot measures in developing countries. Qualitative indicators of development might also refer to measuring inherently qualitative concepts such as empowerment or shame (Alkire, 2007) and using qualitative data to cross-check or interpret the results of survey indicators; however, this issue is not discussed here (see entry on Mixed Methods).

Description

Qualitative methods can be used alongside quantitative measures of quality of life to validate or interpret their results. They can also be used during their development to ensure that they are relevant and sensitive to important differences. Quality of life is a “hybrid” concept because it is both objective and subjective and these aspects cannot be separated or reduced to each other (Wilk, 1999). For this reason, Wilk recommends mixing...

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of International DevelopmentUniversity of East AngliaNorwichUK