This paper is a piece of advocacy for the use of wellbeing analysis in social and development policy and practice, drawing on the work of the Wellbeing in Developing Countries Research Group (WeD) at the University of Bath, UK.
The paper offers a simple definition of wellbeing, and then explores the three basic dimensions that this comprises. It notes some potential hazards in taking wellbeing as focus, and concludes by considering what difference a focus on wellbeing could make to social and development practice.