IKD: Innovation, Knowledge and Development
Projects
The Capabilities Measurement Project
Investigators
Prof Paul Anand (Project Director), The Open University and Health Economics Research Centre, University of Oxford
Cristina Santos, The Open University
Graham Hunter, PhD Student, The Open University
Dermot Coates, PhD Student, The Open University and FGS Partnership, Ireland
Prof Ron Smith, Economics Department, Birkbeck College, London (Co-supervisor to Graham Hunter)
Dr Michelle Norris, University College Dublin, Ireland (Co-supervisor to Dermot Coates)
Prof Graciela Tonon, Social Policy and Law, Universidad Nacional de La Matanza and Universidad Nacional de Lomas de Zamora, Argentina
Prof Keith Dowding, RSSS, Australian National University, Australia
Prof Martin van Hees, Philosophy, Groningen University, Netherlands
Honorary Doctorand of The Open University
Prof Amartya K Sen, Harvard University
Aims and Objectives
The project seeks to operationalise Sen's capabilities approach to welfare economics, initially by developing datasets that provide indicators of capabilities across a wide range of life domains. Building on collaborative work concerning freedom and decision-making between Dr Anand and Dr van Hees, the project has examined and developed a variety of ways in which capabilities can be measured consistent with both theory and methodological conventions used in household surveys. Currently we are exploring econometric issues associated with datasets developed and extending the applications especially in the areas of health, housing, safety, national surveys, welfare economics, poverty assessment and quality of life research. We are also supporting health economics groups in Glasgow and Oxford explore the implications of the capabilities approach for health measurement and intervention assessment.
In 2007, Prof Anand was made a Fellow of the HCDA in recognition of the project's achievements and it welcomes inquiries from researchers interested in using or adapting the multi-dimensional instruments or datasets developed. We also thank Amartya Sen and Hillel Steiner for their support.
Funding
Leverhulme Trust, The Capabilities Approach to Economic Progress and Human Welfare (2011-14)
Arts and Humanities Research Board - UK. Innovation Award for Operationalising the Capabilities Approach (2005)
National Science Foundation - Netherlands. Award to write Report on Genomics, Freedom and Human Agency (2003)
A project closely related to the AHRB project outcome, led by Dr Paula Lorgelly and Prof Andy Briggs of Glasgow University was funded by Glasgow Centre for Population Health 2006
Related publications
Anand P et al, 2011, New Directions in the Economics of Welfare: Special Issue in Honor of Amartya Sen, Journal of Public Economics, in press.
Anand P, Hunter G, Carter I, Dowding K, Guala F and van Hees M 2009 The development of capability indicators. Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, 10(1), 125–152.
Anand P, Santos C and Smith R, 2009 The Measurement of Capabilities in Festschrift for Prof Amartya Sen, Basu K and Kanbur R (eds) Oxford, Oxford University Press.
Anand P, Pattanaik P and Puppe C, 2009 The Oxford Handbook of Rational and Social Choice, Oxford, Oxford University Press.
Anand P and Santos C, 2007 Violence, Gender Inequalities and Life Satisfaction, Revue d'Economie Politiques, 117, 135-60.
Anand P and van Hees M, 2006 Capabilities and Achievements: (with M v Hees), Journal of Socio-Economics, 35, 268-84.
Anand P, 2005 Capabilities and Health, Journal of Medical Ethics, 31, 299-303.
Anand P, 2005 Introduction, Social Indicators Research, 74 (1), 1-8 EDITOR OF JOURNAL SPECIAL ISSUE.
Anand P, Hunter G and Smith R, 2005 Capabilities and Wellbeing, Social Indicators Research, 74 (1), 9-55.
Anand P and Dolan P, 2005 Equity Capbilities and Health: Introduction, Social Science and Medicine, 60 (2), 219-222 EDITOR OF JOURNAL SPECIAL ISSUE.
Anand P, 2005 QALYS and Capabilities, Health Economics, 14, 1283-86.
Anand P, 2003 The Integration of Claims to Health-Care: A Programming Approach, Journal of Health Economics, 22 (5), 731-745.
van Hees M and Anand P, 2003 New Choices: Genomics Freedom and Morality, Social Theory and Practice, 29, 607-630.
Selected presentations and events
2011
New Directions in Welfare Conference organised at OECD in Paris (France). Interviews with Francois Bourguignon, Stephan Klasen, Martine Durand, Marco Mira D’Ercole and Mariano Rojas can be found at http://www.wikiprogress.org/index.php/Event:New_Directions_in_Welfare
2010
Nov - Stop Poverty Plenary Talk, Italian Ministry of Labour conference in Palermo, Sicily Economics Department Seminar, University of Verona, Italy.
2009
New Directions in Welfare Conference organised at St Catherine College Oxford in conjunction with HERC, Nuffield College Centre for Experimental Social Science and Kellogg College to celebrate the 75th birthday of Prof Amartya Sen, FBA. This event was attended by some 130 economists from around the world.
2008
17 April: JAN PRIEBE (University of Gottingen). The HDI Reconsidered: Is the index on the way to one-dimensionality? (The Open University, Walton Hall)
30 April: PAUL ANAND (Economics Department, The Open University). The Measurement of Capabilities: Welfare Economics Beyond GDP and SABINA ALKIRE (Director of the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, Department of International Development, Oxford University) The Multi-dimensional Measurement of Poverty (The Open University, Walton Hall)
28-29 May: PAUL ANAND (Economics Department, The Open University). Beyond GDP and HDI: An Overview of the Capabilities Measurement Project. Measuring Freedoms Workshop at Linacre College, Oxford organised by OPHI, Oxford University
24 June: CAPABILITIES AND HEALTH WORKSHOP Organised jointly by The Open University (UK) and the Human Development, Capability and Poverty International Research Centre. This event was help in Pavia Italiy on Tuesday 24 June 2008 and continued our work supporting the application of capabilities approach to issues of health. Some 10 papers were presented and will be available via a link from here shortly. A copy of the programme is available from Anna Schenk, anna.schenk@iusspavia.it.
Beyond GNP and Current HDI: An Overview of The Capabilities Measurement Project. (PowerPoint document, 365 KB)
2007
University of Barcelona, Spain. Economics Workshop on Poverty and Exclusion New York University, USA. Human Capabilities and Development Association International Conference
2006
University Groningen, Netherlands. Human Capabilities and Development Association International Conference
University of Oxford, UK. Workshop on Multi-dimensional Poverty
University of Modena, Workshop on Wellbeing as a Social Gendered Process
2005
UNESCO, Paris, France. Human Capabilities and Development Association International Conference
2004
University of Pavia, Italy. Human Capabilities and Development Association International Conference
University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Health Economic Theory Workshop
2003
Cambridge University, St Edmunds College
The Capabilities Approach to Economic Progress and Human Welfare
Collaborating Institutions
The Open University, Oxford University, Birkbeck College, London
Main Researchers
Paul Anand, The Open University, HERC Oxford University
Alastair Gray, HERC Oxford University
Ron Smith Birkbeck College
Ranjeeta Thomas, HERC Oxford University
Michael Wagstaff, YOUGOV
Advisors
Professor Ian Crawford, Oxford University
Professor James Heckman, Chicago University
Professor Jaya Krishnakumar, Geneva University
Funder
Leverhulme Trust
The Capabilities Measurement Project and the OXWELL Survey
The project constitutes one of the latest funded elements of the capabilities measurement project. The project developed initially out of a contribution between economists, philosophers and social scientists and has been running continuously for over a decade. In our work funded by the Leverhulme we continue to explore ways in which welfare outcomes, quality of life, opportunities and happiness can be measured and analysed. The OXWELL Survey developed under this programme is our latest survey instrument and it aims to explore the extent to which overall assessments of capabilities, functionings and happiness can be approximately measured in four overarching domains, work, home, community and environment and two cross-cutting domains comprising health and access to services. In addition, we are analysing secondary datasets that shed light on quality of life and both ends of the age spectrum.
Impact and Knowledge Transfer - The OxCAP Family of Survey Instruments
The initial OCAP survey instrument has been used in whole or part and modified for particular applications as follows. People who wish to use the instrument are requested to register with the capabilities measurement project director (p.anand@open.ac.uk) and cite the Anand et al (2009) Journal of Human Development and Capabilities article as the source any in publications. THANK YOU!
OCAP: Measures Adult Capabilities with Over 50 Indicators. Delivered in 2005 to approximately 1000 adults in the UK
OCAP-Sp: Translated into Spanish and tailored for use in Development. Delivered in 2007 to approximately 1000 adults in Argentina
OCAP-18: Tailored for Use in Public Health by Paula Lorgelly
OxCap-MH OCTET (Oxford Community Treatment Evaluation Trial): Employs some capability indicators in the evaluation of mental health application. Project led by Prof Tom Burns at Oxford University (2008-2012).
Poverty Conceptions Survey: Employs some capabilities indicators for assessment of welfare in Mexico (2010 Delivery)
ISFOL-2009 Social Exclusion Survey: The Italian Ministry of Labour has developed a survey which includes some OCAP questions.
Downloads
This area contains the original OCAP survey instrument developed with funding from AHRB as well as the results of its application to a national British sample of adults. Researchers and others are encouraged to use our instrument and data but we ask that you acknowledge the source as the 2009 Journal of Human Development and Capabilities paper listed above. We are more than happy to talk to people considering drawing on this work.
Angel Gurria's Welcome Speech at Project Conference in OECD, Paris France 6 July 2011
Questions, variables and values (PDF document, 165 KB)
Adult capabilities - British Isles 2005 (Excel document, 600 KB)
Open University iTunes U interviews with Prof Amartya Sen
Project contact
Prof Paul Anand, p.anand@open.ac.uk