IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/taf/jhudca/v10y2009i1p21-42.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Adaptation, Poverty and Well-Being: Some Issues and Observations with Special Reference to the Capability Approach and Development Studies

Author

Listed:
  • David Clark

Abstract

The idea that people adapt to poverty and deprivation by suppressing their wants, hopes and aspirations has gained a lot of currency in development ethics. While the 'adaptation problem' is often cited as one of the primary arguments for abandoning utility-based concepts of well-being in favor of the capability approach, it also has serious implications for the capability approach and development studies generally. These implications are not normally discussed or acknowledged in the well-being and development literature. Fortunately for development studies, the available evidence suggests that adaptation is not ubiquitous. Moreover, where adaptation occurs, there is some evidence to suggest that it takes a different — and far less damaging — form than the type discussed in work on human well-being and development.

Suggested Citation

  • David Clark, 2009. "Adaptation, Poverty and Well-Being: Some Issues and Observations with Special Reference to the Capability Approach and Development Studies," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 10(1), pages 21-42.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jhudca:v:10:y:2009:i:1:p:21-42
    DOI: 10.1080/14649880802675051
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14649880802675051
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/14649880802675051?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. David A. Clark, 2002. "Visions of Development," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 2711.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Andrew E. Clark & Conchita D’Ambrosio & Simone Ghislandi, 2016. "Adaptation to Poverty in Long-Run Panel Data," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 98(3), pages 591-600, July.
    2. Suppa, Nicolai, 2012. "Does Capability Deprivation Hurt? – Evidence from German Panel Data," Ruhr Economic Papers 359, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    3. Patricio S. Dalton & Sayantan Ghosal & Anandi Mani, 2016. "Poverty and Aspirations Failure," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 126(590), pages 165-188, February.
    4. repec:zbw:rwirep:0359 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Gonzalo Salas & Andrea Vigorito, 2019. "Subjective Well-Being and Adaptation. The Case of Uruguay," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 14(3), pages 685-703, July.
    6. Fu, Mengzhu & Exeter, Daniel J. & Anderson, Anneka, 2015. "“So, is that your ‘relative’ or mine?” A political-ecological critique of census-based area deprivation indices," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 27-36.
    7. Nicolai Suppa, 2012. "Does Capability Deprivation Hurt? – Evidence from German Panel Data," Ruhr Economic Papers 0359, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    8. Victor, Bart & Fischer, Edward F. & Cooil, Bruce & Vergara, Alfredo & Mukolo, Abraham & Blevins, Meridith, 2013. "Frustrated Freedom: The Effects of Agency and Wealth on Wellbeing in Rural Mozambique," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 30-41.
    9. Ambra Poggi, 2012. "Public jobs and capabilities: the case of the Italian waste sector," LABORatorio R. Revelli Working Papers Series 127, LABORatorio R. Revelli, Centre for Employment Studies.
    10. Tim Forsyth, 2015. "Ecological Functions and Functionings: Towards a Senian Analysis of Ecosystem Services," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 46(2), pages 225-246, March.
    11. Andrew E. Clark & Conchita d'Ambrosio & Simone Ghislandi, 2013. "Poverty and Well-Being: Panel Evidence from Germany," Working Papers hal-00814659, HAL.
    12. Antoinette BAUJARD & Muriel GILARDONE, 2020. "Reconciling agency and impartiality: positional views as the cornerstone of Sen’s idea of justice," Economics Working Paper from Condorcet Center for political Economy at CREM-CNRS 2020-03-ccr, Condorcet Center for political Economy.
    13. Solava Ibrahim, 2011. "Poverty, aspirations and wellbeing: afraid to aspire and unable to reach a better life – voices from Egypt," Global Development Institute Working Paper Series 14111, GDI, The University of Manchester.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Leßmann, Ortrud, 2011. "Empirische Studien zum Capability Ansatz auf der Grundlage von Befragungen: Ein Überblick," UFZ Discussion Papers 4/2011, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Division of Social Sciences (ÖKUS).
    2. Barrington, D.J. & Sridharan, S. & Shields, K.F. & Saunders, S.G. & Souter, R.T. & Bartram, J., 2017. "Sanitation marketing: A systematic review and theoretical critique using the capability approach," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 194(C), pages 128-134.
    3. Rafi Amir-ud-Din & Faisal Abbas & Sajid Amin Javed, 2018. "Poverty as Functioning Deprivation: Global Estimates," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 140(3), pages 1077-1108, December.
    4. Stanley, Janet & Vella-Brodrick, Dianne, 2009. "The usefulness of social exclusion to inform social policy in transport," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 90-96, July.
    5. Maria Ana Lugo & Esfandiar Maasoumi, 2008. "Multidimensional Poverty Measures from an Information Theory Perspective," Working Papers 85, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    6. Laura Camfield & Awae Masae & J. McGregor & Buapun Promphaking, 2013. "Cultures of Aspiration and Poverty? Aspirational Inequalities in Northeast and Southern Thailand," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 114(3), pages 1049-1072, December.
    7. Jeremy S. Brooks, 2013. "Avoiding the Limits to Growth: Gross National Happiness in Bhutan as a Model for Sustainable Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 5(9), pages 1-25, August.
    8. Daniel Neff, 2007. "Subjective Well-Being, Poverty and Ethnicity in South Africa: Insights from an Exploratory Analysis," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 80(2), pages 313-341, January.
    9. repec:lib:00johs:v:13:y:2017:i:1:p:22-33 is not listed on IDEAS
    10. Lessmann, Ortrud, 2012. "Applying the Capability Approach Empirically: An Overview with Special Attention to Labor," management revue. Socio-economic Studies, Rainer Hampp Verlag, vol. 23(2), pages 98-118.
    11. Morten Fibieger Byskov, 2017. "Democracy, Philosophy, and the Selection of Capabilities," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(1), pages 1-16, January.
    12. Punová, Monika & Navrátil, Pavel & Navrátilová, Jitka, 2020. "Capabilities and well-being of child and adolescent social services clients in the Czech Republic," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    13. David A Clark & Mozaffar Qizilbash, 2008. "Core Poverty, Vagueness and Adaptation: A New Methodology and Some Results for South Africa," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(4), pages 519-544, April.
    14. Karen Hofmann & Dominik Schori & Thomas Abel, 2013. "Self-Reported Capabilities Among Young Male Adults in Switzerland: Translation and Psychometric Evaluation of a German, French and Italian Version of a Closed Survey Instrument," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 114(2), pages 723-738, November.
    15. Dorothea Kleine, 2010. "ICT4WHAT?-Using the choice framework to operationalise the capability approach to development," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 22(5), pages 674-692.
    16. David Alexander Clark, 2011. "Adaptation and development: issues, evidence and policy relevance," Global Development Institute Working Paper Series 15911, GDI, The University of Manchester.
    17. Ambra Poggi, 2012. "Public jobs and capabilities: the case of the Italian waste sector," LABORatorio R. Revelli Working Papers Series 127, LABORatorio R. Revelli, Centre for Employment Studies.
    18. Tom Lavers, 2008. "Reconciling the needs and wants of respondents in two rural Ethiopian communities," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 86(1), pages 129-147, March.
    19. Laura Camfield & Gina Crivello & Martin Woodhead, 2009. "Wellbeing Research in Developing Countries: Reviewing the Role of Qualitative Methods," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 90(1), pages 5-31, January.
    20. Monica Guillen-Royo, 2008. "Consumption and Subjective Wellbeing: Exploring Basic Needs, Social Comparison, Social Integration and Hedonism in Peru," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 89(3), pages 535-555, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:taf:jhudca:v:10:y:2009:i:1:p:21-42. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Chris Longhurst (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.tandfonline.com/CJHD20 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.