Estes R.J., Sirgy M.J. (eds.) The Pursuit of Human Well-Being: The Untold Global History

Springer International Publishing, Switzerland, 2017. — 829 p. — (International Handbooks of Quality-of-Life) — ISBN: 978-3-319-39100-7.This handbook informs the reader about how much progress we, the human race, have made in enhancing the quality of life on this planet. Many skeptics focus on how the quality of life has deteriorated over the course of human history, particularly given World War II and its aftermath. This handbook provides a positive perspective on the history of well-being. Quality of life, as documented by scientists worldwide, has significantly improved. Nevertheless, one sees more improvements in well-being in some regions of the world than in others. Why? This handbook documents the progress of well-being in the various world regions as well as the differences in those regions.
The broad questions that the handbook addresses include:
What does well-being mean?
How do different philosophical and religious traditions interpret the concept of well-being within their own context?
Has well-being remained the same over different historical epochs and for different regions and subregions of the world?
In which areas of human development have we been most successful in advancing individual and collective well-being? In which sectors has the attainment of well-being proven most difficult?
How does well-being differ within and between different populations groups that, for a variety of socially created reasons, have been the most disadvantaged (e.g., children, the aged, women, the poor, racial, ethnic, and sexual minorities)?Historical Conceptions of Well-Being over the Long Term
The Search for Well-Being: From Ancient to Modern Times
Western Historical Traditions of Well-Being
East Asian Historical Traditions of Well-Being
Well-Being in India: A Historical and Anthropological Report
Islamic Conceptions of Well-Being
Domains of Well-Being
How We Measure Well-Being: The Data Behind the History of Well-Being
Regional Analyses of the History and Contemporary State of Well-Being Since World War II
New Beginnings in an Ancient Region: Well-Being in Sub-Saharan Africa
Well-Being in Latin America
Well-Being in Canada and the United States
The History of Well-Being in East Asia: From Global Conflict to Global Leadership
The History of Well-Being in South Asia
The History of Well-Being in Southeast Asia
The History of Well-Being in Europe
The History of Well-Being in Oceania
Well-Being in the Transition Economies of the Successor States of the Former Soviet Union: The Challenges of Change
The History of Well-Being in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
Well-Being of Circumpolar Arctic Peoples: The Quest for Continuity
Special Issues Related to the Well-Being of Nations and Population Groups
The History of Well-Being and the Global Progress of Women
The Role of Technology in the History of Well-Being: Transformative Market Phenomena Over Time
Epilogue
The History of Well-Being in Global Perspective