In A Handbook for Wellbeing Policy-Making, Paul Frijters and Christian Krekel offer a new guide to wellbeing-driven public policy, focusing on the proposal to replace GDP with wellbeing as the key metric to assess societal progress. With the book comprehensively exploring the theoretical and methodological assumptions and implications of the wellbeing approach, Paulo Anciaes recommends this timely work to practitioners at all levels of government. A Handbook for Wellbeing Policy-Making. Paul Frijters and Christian Krekel. Oxford University Press. 2021

Anciaes, Paulo Rui

English

LSE Research Online

Book	Review:	A	Handbook	for	Wellbeing	Policy-Making	by	Paul	Frijters	and	Christian	KrekelIn	A	Handbook	for	Wellbeing	Policy-Making,	Paul	Frijters	and	Christian	Krekel	offer	a	new	guide	to	wellbeing-driven	public	policy,	focusing	on	the	proposal	to	replace	GDP	with	wellbeing	as	the	key	metric	to	assess	societalprogress.	With	the	book	comprehensively	exploring	the	theoretical	and	methodological	assumptions	andimplications	of	the	wellbeing	approach,	Paulo	Anciaes	recommends	this	timely	work	to	practitioners	at	all	levels	ofgovernment.A	Handbook	for	Wellbeing	Policy-Making.	Paul	Frijters	and	Christian	Krekel.	Oxford	University	Press.	2021.Wellbeing	is	how	happy	people	feel	or	how	satisfied	they	are	with	their	life.	Achievingwellbeing	is	the	aim	of	most	individuals,	so	it	is	fair	to	argue	that	the	main	goal	ofgovernments	should	also	be	to	improve	people’s	wellbeing.	This	idea	has	beenaround	for	300	years	but	has	gained	momentum	during	this	century.	A	Handbook	forWellbeing	Policy-Making	is	the	latest	in	a	succession	of	recent	handbooks	onwellbeing-driven	public	policy	(for	example,	Hugh	Barton	et	al,	2015;	Matthew	D.Adler	and	Marc	Fleurbaey,	2016;	and	Laura	Musikanski	et	al,	2019).	PaulFrijters	and	Christian	Krekel’s	new	work	has	a	similar	scope	as	these	other	books,	butit	gives	more	attention	to	practical	issues	in	the	implementation	of	wellbeingapproaches.The	authors	argue	that	the	time	is	ripe	for	wellbeing	policymaking	because	it	is	noweasier	to	directly	measure	wellbeing,	due	to	the	availability	of	large	datasets,advances	in	experimental	techniques	and	the	accumulated	knowledge	of	170,000studies	on	the	determinants	of	wellbeing	(4).	The	main	proposition	of	this	book	is	thatwellbeing	could	replace	Gross	Domestic	Product	(GDP)	as	the	key	metric	to	assesssocietal	progress.	This	is	not	a	far-fetched	idea:	there	are	some	real-world	examplesof	this	type	of	approach.	In	fact,	one	of	the	few	things	many	people	know	about	Bhutan	is	that	in	2006,	‘GrossNational	Happiness’	was	enshrined	in	the	country’s	constitution	as	the	main	goal	of	the	state.A	shift	towards	wellbeing	metrics,	as	this	book	recommends,	would	influence	policy	selection,	including	theallocation	of	resources	(which	should	go	to	projects	that	bring	more	wellbeing	per	unit	cost).	Indicators	of	wellbeingwould	support	both	the	appraisal	and	evaluation	of	public	policies:	in	other	words,	they	would	be	useful	both	beforeand	after	policy	implementation.	The	proposed	method	equates	wellbeing	with	life	satisfaction,	measured	inWELLBYs	(wellbeing-adjusted	life	years),	a	unit	of	life	satisfaction	on	a	0-10	scale	for	one	person	for	a	year.	Theadvantage	of	this	approach	is	that	it	uses	a	single	indicator,	which	is	simpler	than	composite	measures	(such	as	theUnited	Nations	Human	Development	Index	or	national-level	indices	of	happiness	and	quality	of	life)	that	require	aweighting	system	to	combine	components.USApp – American Politics and Policy Blog: Book Review: A Handbook for Wellbeing Policy-Making by Paul Frijters and Christian Krekel Page 1 of 3		Date originally posted: 2022-07-10Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/2022/07/10/book-review-a-handbook-for-wellbeing-policy-making-by-paul-frijters-and-christian-krekel/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/Image	Credit:	Photo	by	Jacqueline	Munguía	on	UnsplashA	Handbook	for	Wellbeing	Policy-Making	is	split	into	five	rather	long	chapters	of	80	pages	each	on	average,	roughlyfollowing	the	topics	set	out	in	the	book’s	subtitle	–	History,	Theory,	Measurement,	Implementation	and	Examples	–but	with	plenty	of	overlaps	and	repetitions.Chapter	One	situates	the	concept	of	wellbeing	in	its	historical,	philosophical,	political	and	governance	context.	Theauthors	make	some	interesting	connections	to	justify	the	contemporary	relevance	of	wellbeing.	For	example,	theynote	that	many	people	now	make	decisions	(such	as	on	buying	something,	visiting	places,	etc)	based	on	theaverage	ratings	of	satisfaction	of	others,	typically	provided	online.	In	the	same	vein,	public	policies	could	be	basedon	their	aggregate	impact	on	the	life	satisfaction	of	individuals.	On	the	negative	side,	this	chapter	also	features	anover-long	digression	on	how	policies	are	formulated	and	budgets	are	allocated	in	the	UK,	which	was	not	wellintegrated	into	the	main	discussion	of	wellbeing	and	may	be	less	relevant	for	non-UK	readers.Chapter	Two	examines	different	ways	of	measuring	wellbeing	and	reviews	the	factors	that	have	been	found	toinfluence	it.	The	material	is	not	presented	in	the	same	way	as	the	usual	literature	reviews	in	academic	papers,	butrather	to	illustrate	specific	points	made	by	the	authors.	For	example,	the	measures	of	wellbeing	are	examined	interms	of	their	assumptions	and	the	practical	problems	of	applying	them	outside	academic	studies.	The	factorsaffecting	wellbeing	are	examined	in	relation	to	their	implications	for	public	policies	and	the	formation	of	checklists	inpolicy	formulation.Chapter	Three	introduces	a	method	for	policy	appraisal	and	evaluation:	wellbeing	cost-effectiveness.	This	involvescomparing	changes	in	WELLBYs	with	the	cost	of	the	policies.	The	method	is	first	described	intuitively	and	thenusing	mathematics,	so	readers	can	understand	it	without	looking	at	equations.	Again,	assumptions	are	explored	indetail,	and	several	applications	are	presented.Chapter	Four	compares	the	wellbeing	cost-effectiveness	approach	with	more	established	approaches	(namely,cost-benefit	analysis	and	multi-criteria	analysis).	The	authors	argue	that	even	though	wellbeing	could	be	integratedinto	cost-benefit	analyses	(by	converting	WELLBYs	into	monetary	values),	the	wellbeing	cost-effectivenessapproach	requires	different	assumptions	and	ways	of	thinking	(for	example,	it	does	not	assume	individuals	are	fullyrational	and	aware	of	everything	that	affects	their	wellbeing).	When	explaining	these	differences,	the	chapterbecomes	a	bit	abstract.	The	second	part	of	the	chapter	is	less	heavy,	reviewing	several	wellbeing	appraisalframeworks	in	use,	with	an	interesting	discussion	of	the	case	of	Bhutan.USApp – American Politics and Policy Blog: Book Review: A Handbook for Wellbeing Policy-Making by Paul Frijters and Christian Krekel Page 2 of 3		Date originally posted: 2022-07-10Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/2022/07/10/book-review-a-handbook-for-wellbeing-policy-making-by-paul-frijters-and-christian-krekel/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/Finally,	Chapter	Five	describes	seven	case	studies	of	applying	wellbeing	methods	in	policy	appraisal	or	evaluation.Only	one	case	study	is	not	from	the	UK:	an	application	at	the	global	level	comparing	two	policy	responses	toCOVID-19	(namely,	lockdowns	versus	‘business	as	usual’).	The	book	then	ends	abruptly	at	the	end	of	this	chapter,with	no	overall	conclusions.The	main	strength	of	this	book	is	that	it	comprehensively	explores	the	theoretical	and	methodological	assumptionsand	implications	of	the	wellbeing	approach.	However,	it	was	not	clear	to	me	how	this	approach	would	account	forthe	aspects	that	also	pose	a	challenge	to	usual	approaches	such	as	cost-benefit	analysis.	These	include,	forexample,	altruism,	non-use	values	(for	example,	valuing	the	existence	of	an	environmental	resource	without	anintention	to	use	it)	and	the	wellbeing	of	future	human	generations	and	other	species.The	conclusions	at	the	end	of	most	of	the	chapters	revolve	around	a	practical	aspect:	the	idea	that	to	integratewellbeing	into	policy,	governments	need	to	know	how	each	policy	affects	the	wellbeing	of	those	affected.	Theauthors	argue	that	state	bureaucracies	should	adopt	a	self-learning	approach,	based	on	data	previously	collectedand	methods	previously	defined,	to	collect	more	data	or	to	apply	existing	data.	It	sounds	a	bit	general,	and	I	am	notsure	how	applicable	it	is	for	governments	with	tight	budgets	or	in	developing	countries.The	book	overwhelmingly	uses	examples	from	the	UK,	which	may	make	it	less	appealing	to	readers	in	othercountries	that	have	different	political	and	governance	structures.	Having	said	that,	the	book	is	timely	in	the	Britishcontext	and	is	aligned	with	the	latest	version	of	the	official	guidance	on	policy	appraisal	(‘The	Green	Book’),	theactivities	of	the	What	Works	Centre	for	Wellbeing	and	projects	such	as	the	Measuring	National	Wellbeing	initiativeby	the	Office	for	National	Statistics.	A	Handbook	for	Wellbeing	Policy-Making	is	especially	recommended	forpractitioners	at	all	levels	of	government.This	review	first	appeared	at	LSE	Review	of	Books.Please	read	our	comments	policy	before	commenting.Note:	This	article	gives	the	views	of	the	author,	and	not	the	position	of	USAPP	–	American	Politics	and	Policy,	norof	the	London	School	of	Economics.	Shortened	URL	for	this	post:	https://bit.ly/3ap2MgoAbout	the	reviewerPaulo	Anciaes	–	University	College	LondonPaulo	Anciaes	is	a	Senior	Researcher	at	the	Centre	for	Transport	Studies,	UCL	(University	College	London).	He	isinterested	in	social,	environmental,	health,	and	wellbeing	aspects	of	transport	and	urban	planning.	Read	moreabout	Paulo’s	work	in	his	UCL	profile:	https://iris.ucl.ac.uk/iris/browse/profile?upi=PRANC25.USApp – American Politics and Policy Blog: Book Review: A Handbook for Wellbeing Policy-Making by Paul Frijters and Christian Krekel Page 3 of 3		Date originally posted: 2022-07-10Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/2022/07/10/book-review-a-handbook-for-wellbeing-policy-making-by-paul-frijters-and-christian-krekel/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/

Book review: A handbook for wellbeing policy-making by Paul Frijters and Christian Krekel

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Book review: A handbook for wellbeing policy-making by Paul Frijters and Christian Krekel

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