This section of the Sports Kitbag will introduce you to ?well-being?; provide links to research that has been carried out and also tools on how to measure it.
According to the New Economics Foundation (nef), there are two aspects to well-being. These are:
1)
Life Satisfaction ? satisfaction of the amount you earn, where you live and your friends/personal contacts
2)
Personal Development ? being curious and engaging in challenging and absorbing activities
These two combined can generate strong feelings of satisfaction and well-being and can be affected (positively and negatively) in many ways. For example, nef and Nottingham City Council undertook a pilot project to look at the well-being of over 1000 young people (7 to 19).
The research showed that young people registering sport as their favourite activity had significantly higher well-being than those that didn?t. The report also calls for an increase in sport within schools and in the community.
You can download a summary ? The power of well-being 2
here
The full report can be accessed from the nef website:
www.neweconomics.org
The first paper in this series identifies the discrepancy between economic wealth and development and provides a useful introduction to well-being. It outlines the discrepancy between increased economic output (Gross Domestic Product ? GDP) over the last 30 years in particular, and the relative stability of life satisfaction. This can be expressed in a composite Measure of Domestic Progress (MDP), which is designed to factor in the environmental and social costs of growth.
Simply put: although the UK is much more economically well off than it has ever been, all the measures and indicators show an increasing gap between this and personal well-being. The countries wealth does not necessarily make people happier.
You can download The power of well-being 1
here
There is increasing interest in this area within government and the East Midlands Development Agency (emda ? see
Jargon Buster for description). As a sport social enterprise having an understanding of well-being, measuring it and presenting the findings can contribute to the process of
Measuring Impact.
This enables you to present to your stakeholders (funders, users, clients, partners) the positive impact your social enterprise has on your community. This may increase the likelihood of funding and contracts, greater customer loyalty and increased staff satisfaction ? well-being.