The quality of European societies : a compilation of composite indicators

Abstract

This volume presents a compilation of composite indicators created in order to measure important aspects of the quality of European societies. It examines three main questions: do Europeans live in good societies and enjoy good lives; are European societies becoming better as time passes, or is their quality slowly deteriorating; is the quality of life of Europe's citizens improving over time or is it gradually and irrecoverably getting worse. The volume uses a precise and rigorous system of information to answer these questions and to assess the current situation and monitor the quality of European societies. It describes and discusses fourteen key domains, and per chapter, presents five rankings of EU countries based on composite indicators, which are used as one of the best instruments social science has to synthesize a large amount of information, and they are especially well suited to measure multidimensional social phenomena. The new System of Indices on the Quality of European Societies (SIQES) presented in this volume offers a very broad and rich empirical overview of more than 70 social composite indicators and their nearly 300 dimensions. One of the key findings coming out from the SIQES is that, according to the societal quality of European countries, there exist five different "Europes" inside Europe. Chapter 1. Towards A System of Indices on The Quality 0f European Societies (SIQES) (Eduardo Bericat) -- Chapter 2. The Quality of European Societies: An Overview (Eduardo Bericat) -- Chapter 3. Quality of Life (Mercedes Camarero) -- Chapter 4. Subjective Well-Being (Eduardo Bericat) -- Chapter 5. Social and Political Participation (Mercedes Camarero) -- Chapter 6. Cultural Practice, Creativity and Innovation (Manuel Herrera-Usagre) -- Chapter 7. Democratic Quality and Governance (Alex Tusell-Collado) -- Chapter 8. Consumption (María Dolores Martín-Lagos) -- Chapter 9. Job Quality (Eduardo Bericat) -- Chapter 10. Environment Sustainability (Katharina M.K. Stepping) -- Chapter 11. Social Equality (María Luisa Jiménez-Rodrigo) -- Chapter 12. Gender Equality (Eduardo Bericat) -- Chapter 13. Children Well-Being (Juan Miguel Gómez Espino) -- Chapter 14. Elderly Well-Being (María José Dorado-Rubín) -- Chapter 15. Health Conditions (María Luisa Jiménez-Rodrigo) -- Chapter 16. Crime, Security and Rule of Law (Manuel Jesús Caro-Cabrera).