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Publications based on the SSRC Quality of Life in Britain surveys
[Page last updated 31 Jan 2018]
Bibliography for Quality of Life in Britain and related surveys
This bibliography lists all known publications arising from the design and analysis of Quality of Life in Britain surveys conducted by Mark Abrams and John Hall at the SSRC Survey Unit between 1971 and 1975, as part of a cross-national programme to develop subjective social indicators ("Quality of Life") including comparative analyses with USA
data.
They cover two 1971 pilot surveys, the 1973 national survey and two simultaneous local surveys and the 1975 national survey in urban Britain, and the 1973 USA survey by Angus Campbell et al (ISR, Ann Arbor, Michigan). Publications based on related surveys in Europe are also covered.
Available on this site:
Abrams M & Hall J F 1971
The Condition of the British People
(Survey Unit, Social Science Research Council, March 1971)
Working paper reporting on a pilot survey using self-reporting scales. This paper is a preliminary report on the first pilot survey of a research programme intended eventually to produce a questionnaire which could be used in large scale sample surveys to measure, in social matters, the aspirations, disappointments, grievances, expectations and values of the British people as a whole.
Abrams M and Hall J F 1972
Life Satisfaction of the British People: October - November 1971
Report prepared for OECD conference on Social Indicators, Paris, May 1972
Covers methodology, content and analysis of the 2nd pilot survey and should be taken as a follow-up to Abrams and Hall 1971 above.
Abrams M 1972
Social Indicators and Social Equity
New Society, 23 Nov 1972
Hall J F 1973
Measuring the Quality of Life Using Sample Surveys
in Stober G and Schumacher D (Eds)
Technology Assessment and Quality of Life
(Elsevier, 1973)
Abrams M 1973
Subjective Social Indicators
Reprinted from Nissel M (Ed) Social Trends 4 HMSO, 1973
Abrams M 1974
This Britain 1: A Contented Nation?
New Society, 21 Feb 1974
Hall J F & Ring A J 1974
Indicators of Environmental Quality and Life-Satisfaction: a subjective approach
Paper to International Sociological Association Research Committee 26 Perceptions of Environmental Quality and Measuring the Quality of Life. 8th World Congress, Toronto, 1974
Abrams M 1975
Note: Subjective Social Indicators
Extract from Nissel,M [Ed] Social Trends 6, HMSO, 1975
Hall J F & Ring A J 1975
The relationship between subjective and objective indicators of individual well-being: a linear modelling approach
Paper to UK/USA SSRC Conference on Subjective Measures of Quality of Life, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
SSRC Survey Unit, September, 1975
Marsh C 1975
Job Satisfaction: the Search Goes On
Paper to UK/USA SSRC Conference on Subjective Measures of Quality of Life, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
SSRC Survey Unit, September, 1975
Hall J F 1976a
The Conceptual Universe of Subjective and Objective Indicators
Revised version of pre-publication draft: paper prepared for a joint UK/USA seminar "Subjective Measures of Quality of Life", Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, September 1975 (sponsored by the UK Social Science Research Council)
Hall J F 1976b
Subjective measures of quality of life in Britain 1971 to 1975: Some developments and trends
in Thompson E [Ed]
Social Trends 7 (HMSO, 1976)
Specially commissioned article describing pioneering work by Dr Mark Abrams and John Hall at the SSRC Survey Unit in the early 1970s to develop subjective social indicators based on the use of questionnaire surveys to measure satisfaction with various life domains relevant to social policy (housing, neighbourhood, employment, health etc.) and sub-domains, together with self-reported "objective" measures of respondents' current situation within each domain and sub-domain.
Aware that "personality" variables might also determine variation in satisfaction levels, we included other questions to determine levels of, for instance, personal efficacy, disposition to trust other people etc. Finally a range of items were tested to tap into a general sense of personal well-being and satisfaction with life as a whole. The surveys were carried out in collaboration with the late Prof. Angus Campbell, Director of the Institute of Social Research at Ann Arbor, Michigan, and are generally referred to as the "Quality of Life" (QoL) surveys.
Hall J F 1976c
The Way We Like It
Reprinted from Harford Thomas [Ed] Places for People: a Resources for Learning Handbook Guardian Business Services Ltd 1976
Invited contribution to discussion on realisation that architects and planners need to take more account of people's perceived needs and satisfactions into their future housing and environmental decisions. Suggests improvements should include more subjective input to design and layout. Declares findings from SSRC Survey Unit "Quality of Life" surveys demonstrate clear links between objective and subjective indicators for housing and local neighbourhood.
See also : Letter from Marie Jahoda
Andrews F M and McKennell A C
Measures of Cognition and Affect in Self-reported Well-Being: Their Affective, Cognitive and other components
Social Indicators Research 8 1980 pp 127 -155
Comprehensive statistical examination of data from the SSRC surveys and the parallel sister surveys conducted by Campbell et al in the USA.
Transcript of contribution from floor by John F Hall to Statistics Users Council
Conference on Quality of Life Indicators (1987)
Letter from John Hall to Dr John Cunningham MP, Shadow Secretary of State (Environment) in 1988, responding to a report that Dr Cunningham was to be put in charge of co-ordinating the Shadow Cabinet's attack on quality of life issues and offering assistance from Dr Mark Abrams and himself. Answer came there none.
Bibliography for Quality of Life in Britain and related surveys
This bibliography lists all known publications arising from the design and analysis of Quality of Life in Britain surveys conducted by Mark Abrams and John Hall at the SSRC Survey Unit between 1971 and 1975, as part of a cross-national programme to develop subjective social indicators ("Quality of Life") including comparative analyses with USA
data.
They cover two 1971 pilot surveys, the 1973 national survey and two simultaneous local surveys and the 1975 national survey in urban Britain, and the 1973 USA survey by Angus Campbell et al (ISR, Ann Arbor, Michigan). Publications based on related surveys in Europe are also covered.
Available on this site:
Abrams M & Hall J F 1971
The Condition of the British People
(Survey Unit, Social Science Research Council, March 1971)
Working paper reporting on a pilot survey using self-reporting scales. This paper is a preliminary report on the first pilot survey of a research programme intended eventually to produce a questionnaire which could be used in large scale sample surveys to measure, in social matters, the aspirations, disappointments, grievances, expectations and values of the British people as a whole.
Abrams M and Hall J F 1972
Life Satisfaction of the British People: October - November 1971
Report prepared for OECD conference on Social Indicators, Paris, May 1972
Covers methodology, content and analysis of the 2nd pilot survey and should be taken as a follow-up to Abrams and Hall 1971 above.
Abrams M 1972
Social Indicators and Social Equity
New Society, 23 Nov 1972
Hall J F 1973
Measuring the Quality of Life Using Sample Surveys
in Stober G and Schumacher D (Eds)
Technology Assessment and Quality of Life
(Elsevier, 1973)
Abrams M 1973
Subjective Social Indicators
Reprinted from Nissel M (Ed) Social Trends 4 HMSO, 1973
Abrams M 1974
This Britain 1: A Contented Nation?
New Society, 21 Feb 1974
Hall J F & Ring A J 1974
Indicators of Environmental Quality and Life-Satisfaction: a subjective approach
Paper to International Sociological Association Research Committee 26 Perceptions of Environmental Quality and Measuring the Quality of Life. 8th World Congress, Toronto, 1974
Abrams M 1975
Note: Subjective Social Indicators
Extract from Nissel,M [Ed] Social Trends 6, HMSO, 1975
Hall J F & Ring A J 1975
The relationship between subjective and objective indicators of individual well-being: a linear modelling approach
Paper to UK/USA SSRC Conference on Subjective Measures of Quality of Life, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
SSRC Survey Unit, September, 1975
Marsh C 1975
Job Satisfaction: the Search Goes On
Paper to UK/USA SSRC Conference on Subjective Measures of Quality of Life, Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
SSRC Survey Unit, September, 1975
Hall J F 1976a
The Conceptual Universe of Subjective and Objective Indicators
Revised version of pre-publication draft: paper prepared for a joint UK/USA seminar "Subjective Measures of Quality of Life", Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, September 1975 (sponsored by the UK Social Science Research Council)
Hall J F 1976b
Subjective measures of quality of life in Britain 1971 to 1975: Some developments and trends
in Thompson E [Ed]
Social Trends 7 (HMSO, 1976)
Specially commissioned article describing pioneering work by Dr Mark Abrams and John Hall at the SSRC Survey Unit in the early 1970s to develop subjective social indicators based on the use of questionnaire surveys to measure satisfaction with various life domains relevant to social policy (housing, neighbourhood, employment, health etc.) and sub-domains, together with self-reported "objective" measures of respondents' current situation within each domain and sub-domain.
Aware that "personality" variables might also determine variation in satisfaction levels, we included other questions to determine levels of, for instance, personal efficacy, disposition to trust other people etc. Finally a range of items were tested to tap into a general sense of personal well-being and satisfaction with life as a whole. The surveys were carried out in collaboration with the late Prof. Angus Campbell, Director of the Institute of Social Research at Ann Arbor, Michigan, and are generally referred to as the "Quality of Life" (QoL) surveys.
Hall J F 1976c
The Way We Like It
Reprinted from Harford Thomas [Ed] Places for People: a Resources for Learning Handbook Guardian Business Services Ltd 1976
Invited contribution to discussion on realisation that architects and planners need to take more account of people's perceived needs and satisfactions into their future housing and environmental decisions. Suggests improvements should include more subjective input to design and layout. Declares findings from SSRC Survey Unit "Quality of Life" surveys demonstrate clear links between objective and subjective indicators for housing and local neighbourhood.
See also : Letter from Marie Jahoda
Andrews F M and McKennell A C
Measures of Cognition and Affect in Self-reported Well-Being: Their Affective, Cognitive and other components
Social Indicators Research 8 1980 pp 127 -155
Comprehensive statistical examination of data from the SSRC surveys and the parallel sister surveys conducted by Campbell et al in the USA.
Transcript of contribution from floor by John F Hall to Statistics Users Council
Conference on Quality of Life Indicators (1987)
Letter from John Hall to Dr John Cunningham MP, Shadow Secretary of State (Environment) in 1988, responding to a report that Dr Cunningham was to be put in charge of co-ordinating the Shadow Cabinet's attack on quality of life issues and offering assistance from Dr Mark Abrams and himself. Answer came there none.