The aim of the Handbook of Social Indicators and Quality of Life Research is to create an overview of the field of Quality of Life (QOL) studies in the early years of the 21^st century that can be updated and improved upon as the field evolves and the century unfolds.

The aim of the Handbook of Social Indicators and Quality of Life Research is to create an overview of the field of Quality of Life (QOL) studies in the early years of the 21^st century that can be updated and improved upon as the field evolves and the century unfolds.

Social indicators are statistical time series “…used to monitor the social system, helping to identify changes and to guide intervention to alter the course of social change”. Examples include unemployment rates, crime rates, estimates of life expectancy, health status indices, school enrollment rates, average achievement scores, election voting rates, and measures of subjective well-being such as satisfaction with life-as-a-whole and with specific domains or aspects of life.

This book provides a review of the historical development of the field including the history of QOL in medicine and mental health as well as the research related to quality-of-work-life (QWL) programs. It discusses several of QOL main concepts: happiness, positive psychology, and subjective wellbeing. Relations between spirituality and religiousness and QOL are examined as are the effects of educational attainment on QOL and marketing, and the associations with economic growth. The book goes on to investigate methodological approaches and issues that should be considered in measuring and analysing quality of life from a quantitative perspective. The final chapters are dedicated to research on elements of QOL in a broad range of countries and populations.

Acknowledgments.- Prologue: The Development and Evolution of Research on Social Indicators and Quality-of-Life (QOL): Kenneth C. Land, Alex C. Michalos, and M. Joseph Sirgy.- 1. The Good Life: Eight Century to Third Century BCE: Alex C. Michalos, and Steve R. Robinson.- 2. Happiness, Also Known as Life Satisfaction and Subjective Well-Being: Ruut Veenhoven.- 3. Subjective Well-Being Homeostasis: Robert A. Cummins, Anna L.D. Lau, and Melanie Davern.- 4. Positive Psychology and the Quality-of-Life: Cross Sectional and Time Series Evidence: Richard A. Easterlin, and Laura Angelescu.- 6. National Accounts of Well-Being: Ed Diener, and William Tov.- 7. Time Use as a Social Indicator: John P. Robinson, and Steve Martin.- 8. Issues in Composite Index Construction: The Measurement of Overall Quality of Life: Michael R. Hagerty, and Kenneth C. Land.- 9. Measuring the Quality of Life and the Construction of Social Indicators: Filomena Maggino, and Bruno Zumbo.- 10. Quality of Life in General Medicine, Psychiatry and Mental Health: Michael Frisch.- 11. Education and Quality of Life: Jason D. Edgerton, Lance W. Roberts, and Suzanne von Below.- 12. Review of Research to Quality-of-Work-Life (QWL) Programs: Joe Sirgy, Nora P. Reilly, Jiyun Wu, and David Efraty.- 13. Spirituality, Religion and Subjective Quality of Life: Ralph Piedmont, and Philip Freedman.- 14. Consumer Well-Being (CWB): Various Conceptualizations and Measures: Dong-Jin Lee, and M. Joseph Sirgy.- 15.  Perceived Quality of Life of Children and Youth: Scott Huebner, Rich Gilman, and Claudia Ma.- 16. The Quality of Life of Adults: Elizabeth Eckermann.- 17. Cross-National Comparisons of Quality of Life   in Developed Nations, Including the Impact of Globalization: Wolfgang Glatzer.- 18.Quality of Life in Developing Nations: Laura Camfield.- 19. Economies in Transition: Revisiting Challenges to Quality of Life: Richard J. Estes.- 20. Quality of Life in Australia: Robert A. Cummins, Jacqueline Woerner,Adrian Tomyn, and Adele Gibson.- 21. Quality of Life in Est Asia: The Case of Hong Kong: Daniel T.L. Shek.- 22. The Quality of Life of Muslim Populations: The Case of Algeria: Habib Tiliouine, and Mohamed Meziane.- 23. Quality of Life in Latin America and the Caribbean: Mariano Rojas.- 24. Quality of Life in Argentina: Graciela Tonon.- 25. ‘’Failed’’ and ‘’Failing’’ States: Is Quality of Life Possible?: Richard J. Estes.-