Subjective and objective social indicators in studies of regional social well-being

Abstract

Dale B. (1980) Subjective and objective social indicators in studies of regional social well-being, Reg. Studies 14, 503–515. Studies of regional well-being carried out so far have often produced confusing and conflicting results, in particular regarding the degree of correspondence between results based on, respectively, subjective and objective indicators. In this paper some explanations of these contradictory results are suggested. These stress the lack of explicit definitions of “subjective” and “objective” indicators, the failure to take account of the relationship between indicators and life-domains and failure to pay attention to the influence of the spatial context. The explanations are first related to a sample of case studies. Thereafter, they are elaborated in the light of recent Norwegian research on social well-being.