Transcript Well-Being Measurement and Policy in Ireland Catalysing

Well-Being Measurement and Policy in Ireland
Catalysing Collective Intelligence
Dr. Michael Hogan
Claire Mc Moreland
Dr. Jane Walsh
Whitaker Institute for Innovation and Societal Change
NUI, Galway, Ireland
Indicators and collective decisions
The indicators a society
chooses to report to itself about
itself are surprisingly powerful.
They reflect the collective
values and inform collective
decisions. A nation that keeps
a watchful eye on its salmon
runs or the safety of its streets
makes different decisions than
does a nation that is only
paying attention to its GNP.
Donella Meadows
Aspirations and measurement goals – citizen consultations
“Conceptualising progress in this way clarifies that, in order to measure whether Australia is
progressing, it is important to understand the broad aspirations Australians hold for their country.
To this end, the consultation has focused on identifying those aspirations Australians hold for
national progress in the four broad areas (i.e. society, economy, environment and governance)”.
Freedom, empowerment,
democracy and wellbeing
Deeper than the utilitarian view of freedom from interference when
making choices is an older republican suppressed view of freedom -freedom as non-domination.
The role of the state is to provide security and infrastructure, and
the role of citizens is to share equally in controlling the state –
legislation, regulation, and taxation will not be dominating; it will
be an authorized form of interference.
This requires nonelectoral institutions, or citizen assemblies, of
a regulatory and contestatory kind that guard against majoritarian
oppression of minorities, the exploitation of public office for the
advantage of incumbents, and the usurpation of state power for
purposes of advancing the special interests of the rich and powerful.
Empowerment, democracy and wellbeing
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Measures of freedom to control your life explain as
much of the variance in wellbeing across countries as
is explained by GDP per head.
Cross-national analyses similarly suggest that areas
and cities with greater decentralisation, and
particularly fiscal decentralisation, are associated with
significantly higher life satisfaction.
The ten countries that most improved governance
quality between 2005–2012 increased life satisfaction
by the equivalent of a 40 percent increase in percapita incomes
“The evidence reinforces the case for devolution and
local empowerment, particularly for fiscal
decentralisation, and encourages alternative forms
of consultation” (p. 70).
Well-being Matters:
A Social Report for Ireland
The National Economic and Social Council (2009)
“…a person’s well-being relates to their
physical, social and mental state. It requires
that basic needs are met, that people have a
sense of purpose, that they feel able to
achieve important goals, to participate in
society and to live the lives they value and
have reason to value.”
Well-being Matters:
A Social Report for Ireland
People’s well-being is enhanced by conditions that include:
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6.
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Financial and personal security
Meaningful and rewarding work
Supportive personal relationships
Strong and inclusive communities
Good health
A healthy and attractive environment
Values of democracy and social justice
Wellbeing measure design time lines and the
importance of citizen consultation:
Steven Hick’s summary of the UK experience
The Canadian Wellbeing Index
timeline...
Canadian Index of Wellbeing Conceptual Framework
8 Domains
8 Indicators
in each domain
CIW Composite Index
64 indicators consolidated into a
single CIW average
LIVING STANDARDS
n
Ratio of top to bottom quintile of economic families, after tax
p
After tax median income of economic families (2010$)
n
Percentage of persons in low income
p
Scaled value of Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLC) economic security
n
Percentage of labour force with long-term unemployment
p
Percentage of labour force employed
p
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) index of employment quality
n
Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) housing affordability index
COMMUNITY VITALITY
P
Percentage reporting participation in organized activities
p
Percentage with six (6) or more close friends
n
Property crime rate per 100,000 population
n
Violent crime rate per 100,000 population
p
Percentage who feel safe walking alone after dark
p
Percentage who feel most/ many people can be trusted
p
Percentage who provide unpaid help to others on their own
p
Percentage reporting very or somewhat strong sense of belonging to community
HEALTHY POPULATIONS
P
Percentage self-rated health as excellent or very good
n
Percentage with self-reported diabetes
p
Life expectancy at birth, in years
n
Percentage of daily or occasional smokers among teens 12 to 19 years old
LEISURE AND CULTURE
p
Average percent of time spent on the previous day in social leisure activities
p
Average percent of time spent on the previous day in arts and culture activities
p
Average number of hours in the past year volunteering for culture and recreation organisations
p
Average monthly frequency of participation in physical activity over 15 minutes
p
Average attendance per performance in past year at all performing arts
p
Average visitation per site in past year to all national parks and national historic sites
p
Average number of nights away per trip in the past year on vacations over 80km from home
p
Expenditures in past year on culture and recreation as percent of total expenditures
EDUCATION
p
Ratio of childcare spaces to children aged 0 to 5 years of age
p
Percentage of children doing well on five developmental domains
n
Ratio of students to educators in public schools
p
Average of five social and emotional competence scores for 12 to 13 year olds
p
Basic knowledge and skills index for 13 to 15 year olds
n
Percentage of Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores explained by socio-economic
background
p
Percentage of 20 to 24 year olds in population completing high school
p
Percentage of 25 to 65 year olds with a university degree
TIME USE
n
Percentage of labour force participants working more than 50 hours per week
n
Percentage of 20 to 64 year olds reporting high levels of time pressure
n
Percentage of 20 to 64 year olds giving unpaid care to seniors
p
Percentage of 65 years and older reporting daily active leisure activities
Canadian Index of Well-being
Well-Being in Ireland Conference
June 8, 2012, NUI, Galway
Conference Objectives
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Establish a new national network of
scientists, community organizations, policymakers, and other key stakeholders to
discuss the latest advances in well-being
research and policy
Introduce conference participants to
Interactive Management, a collaborative
systems design methodology
Foster a dialogue on barriers to well-being
in Ireland and develop a systems model
describing how barriers to well-being in
Ireland are related
Use Interactive Management systems
design methods to agree a set of highimpact, feasible options to overcome
barriers to well-being in Ireland.
John N. Warfield (1925-2009)
Warfield, past president of the society for
systems science, developed Interactive
Management
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Relevant Books
1976. Societal Systems: Planning, Policy, and Complexity. New York: Wiley Interscience.
1990. A Science of Generic Design: Managing Complexity through Systems Design. Ames, IA: Iowa
State University Press 1994.
1994. A Handbook of Interactive Management. With Roxana Cárdenas, Ames, IA: Iowa State
University Press 1994.
2002. Understanding Complexity: Thought and Behavior. AJAR Publishing Company, Palm Harbor, FL.
2003. The Mathematics of Structure. AJAR Publishing Company, Palm Harbor, FL.
2006. An introduction to systems science. Singapore: World Scientific.
When a group works to resolve a shared problem they need to build
consensus models that facilitate collective action
Tools
Words
Graphics
Mathematics of
logic and structure:
eg., formal logic,
graph theory, matrices
Mathematics
Mathematics of content:
e.g., differential equations,
integral equations
used to describe
phenomena in physics,
chemistry, biology,
psychology, sociology.
Steps in the Interactive Management process
Step 1: Idea Generation in response to a trigger question (e.g.,
what are barriers to well-being in Ireland?)
Step 2: Recording , posting, clarifying and categorising
ideas on display walls
(3) Selection and ranking of sub-problems in the problem field
Statement
Number of
votes
Sum of ranks
Category
2. Lack of clear incentives to
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16
8
23. Clashing personalities and
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10
4
12. Challenge of identifying l
3
8
6
4. Lack of identity for the new
3
9
2
17. Uncertainty regarding new
2
7
2
25. Lack of reward systems to
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6
8
9. Difficulty in defining clust
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6
1
24. Unrecognized value of soci
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7
2
5. Specialization (mitigates ag
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6
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7. Lack of clear language that
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6
5
19. Overdependence on "bureauc
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4
6
22. Some individuals want to w
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2
4
3. Lack of motivation or intere
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7
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13. Lack of opportunity for fo
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26. Turf issues: individuals w
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5
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32. Someone needs to commit si
1
4
6
20. Divergence in methods, pro
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28. Not really an existing, re
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33. Institute based on what we
1
2
6
14. Lack of information/certai
1
1
5
15. Lack of translation of res
1
2
8
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(4) Structuring
the interdependence between problems in the problem field
From voting, to matrix, to structure
Figure C-1 shows a Boolean matrix (i.e., a matrix, all of whose entries are either 0 or 1). The
matrix rows and columns are identically indexed, the index numbers ranging from 1 to 15. Such a
matrix might represent the information provided to the computer by a group of participants, in
which e.g., 15 problems are interrelated (or possibly 15 options, or 15 events, etc.). The entries in
the matrix could represent a mix of the answers to questions posed to the participants and the
answers inferred by the computer (using a property of relationships known as transitivity).
Well-Being in Ireland Conference
June 8, 2012, NUI, Galway
Overcoming Barriers to Well-Being in Ireland: Workshop Report
 Lack of

trust/dissatisfaction
with the system,
government, and
decision-makers in
general (I)
A national sense of
gloom due to emphasis
on austerity (I)
Maladaptive coping
mechanisms (e.g.
avoidance of problems or
use of alcohol or drugs to
deal with problems) (B)
Lack of funding for
community well-being
initiatives (D)
Absence of holistic
approaches to health-care
(E)
Limited number of
government initiatives
designed to promote
social capital (e.g., social
cohesion and trust) (A)
Limited understanding of
the factors that influence
and increase well-being
(H)
Lack of education about
the importance of wellbeing in schools and
universities (G)
No charismatic champion
or leader to advance the
well-being of the nation
(F)
Lack of space for
dialogue on holistic
views of well-being (G)
Feelings of helplessness
in the face of current
global economic/
environmental conditions
(B)
Stigma associated with
mental health difficulties
such as depression,
anxiety and stress (E)
Corrosion of work-life
balance, with people
working longer/harder
and taking the stresses of
work home with them (E)
Lack of an effort to
galvanise collective
action around the issue of
promoting well-being (F)
Lack of understanding as
regards the nature of
well-being and how to
measurement it (H)
No national measurement
of well-being (A)
(5) Generate options as a response to the
structural problems
Multiple actors work in
multiple directions
Many butterflies flap their wellbeing wings...
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Conduct research to establish the factors that individuals and communities consider important for well-being
Encourage community and voluntary organisations to showcase initiatives of best practice that are currently working well
Change aspects of the education system to incorporate understanding of well-being
Organise a “National Day of Well-being” to raise awareness
Set up well-being “think-tank” similar to the New Economics Foundation (NEF) in Ireland
Teach happiness skills e.g. CBT (Penn Resiliency Programme), mindfulness, loving-kindness meditation; providing a basis for secular
flourishing and meaning
Promote values and promote the process over the product
Encourage active lifestyles by developing cycle paths, open-air gyms etc
Promote resilience through education about emotions and coping strategies
Reduce/ban advertising of ‘junk’ food, especially that which targets children, and advocate healthier eating/lifestyle advertising
campaigns
Use the media to challenge stigma around mental illness.
Educate parents about how to regulate their children’s use of (social) media
“Positive lives, good lives”: Encourage media focus on “good” celebrities e.g. Nelson Mandela, Nobel Laureates , and discuss their value
and impact on society
Implement mental health campaigns to highlight and remove stigma around issues like depression, anxiety, alcoholism by having
positive role models participate in these campaigns e.g. sports stars
Reduce inefficiencies in the HSE and creatively redesign services
Implement an overarching resource allocation model to target resources at areas of greatest need
Develop a ‘code of practice’ for promotion of well-being in voluntary organisations
Pooling of funding between groups for shared resources related to well-being
Lack of funding: encourage sharing of existing resources between groups involved in promoting well-being
Develop education/programmes for parents/young people pm eating healthily on a budget/recipes. This could be school-based and
done by volunteers.
‘Cost associated with healthy lifestyle’- often don’t need to pay money to engage in healthy behaviours eg. Sports team/running vs gym,
grow veg or shop in market vs organic food store
Etc.
Continue the dialogue and transform the system
Read Conference Report Here
Wellbeing : Designing Measures and Implementing
Policies, June 2013
Trigger question for Design Conference:
In the context of developing a new national wellbeing
index for Ireland, what are the strategic objectives that
should guide our efforts to enhance the wellbeing of the
people of Ireland over the coming decade?
Top Ranked Strategic Objectives across Ten Wellbeing domains
How Strategic Objectives are seen by conference participants to be related in an
‘enhancement structure’
Read Full Conference Report Here
Design Challenges Moving Forward
Consulting with Citizens in the Design
of Wellbeing Measures
Claire Mc Moreland
• Two primary research questions:
1. In developing an Irish National Wellbeing Index,
what do citizens consider important goals for
improving wellbeing?
2. Do goals differ across age cohorts?
• Design: Nine citizen group consulted – 3 young, 3
working adult and 3 older adult groups.
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Votes
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2
0
Category
Older adult
Working Age
Teenage
Aggregate votes across 39 categories of strategic objectives, for older adults, working age groups, and
teenage groups, respectively.
Whole group influence model of
high-level category themes
Theme 1
Governance &
Infrastructure
Tot AvgInf: 67.49
Health: Services
Governance: Restructuring
Governance:
Accountability &
Monitoring
Governance: Transparency
Health Infrastructure
Law & Order
Funding of Services
Transport
Sustainability
Theme 2
Social Factors
Tot Avg Inf: 24.91
Caring for the Elderly
Elderly: Independence
Equality
Employment
Organisational Wellbeing
Provisions for homeless
people
Theme 3
Education & Culture
Tot Avg Inf: 18.92
Educational Infrastructure
Education: Curriculum
Focus
Ireland: Appreciation of
the local environment
Irish Drinking Culture
Ireland: Promoting Ireland
Theme 4
Personal Factors
Tot Avg Inf: 2.89
Identity & Perspective
Taking
Physical Activity
Loneliness, Isolation &
Exclusion
Personal Finance
Health: Mental Health
Health & Wellbeing
Promotion
Accepting & Promoting
Diversity
Theme 5
Community
Tot Avg Inf: -7.17
Community: Outlets
Civic Engagement of
Marginalised Groups
Community:
Empowerment
Intergenerational Exchange
Community: Inclusion &
Involvement
Urban Design
Moving forward
• International case studies suggest that empowering citizens to
identify values, goals, and preferences and design and implement
wellbeing policies and programmes is hugely important.
• What indicators can help us to best track performance in relation to
goals? Citizen groups and expert round tables need to work
together.
• What indicators do we currently have available? What do we need
to add? Consult with expert stakeholders across all relevant
government departments.
• How best to distribute measurement demands across the nation?
Import additional social science intelligence in the design process.
• How best to pool data and use data to inform policy, practice, and
collective action on the ground? Empower local groups.
The People’s Participation Network
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The work of the Health and Wellbeing Cluster
on Collective Intelligence and Wellbeing was
recently published as part of a major
Government Report on Citizen Engagement
with Local Government.
The report of the working group on citizen
engagement with local government
recommends that a People’s Participation
Network (PPN) be established in every Local
Authority area in Ireland to ensure extensive
input by citizens into the decision-making
process at local government level.
Engagement of this nature has been provided
for under the Local Government Reform Act
2014 in Ireland.
Think global, act local
The Galway Healthy Cities Project
Overcoming Barriers to Wellbeing in Galway City
Galway Healthy Cities 2014
• A total 149 barriers to wellbeing were organised into 12 categories
• A total of 254 options to overcome barriers to wellbeing
• Synergist projects tacking leadership, community engagement, and awareness barriers
• Systems logic informing project design – empowering stakeholders
Thank you!
Questions?