The value of freedom: the development of the WeRFree capability instrument

Abstract

AbstractThe capability concept by Sen has been argued to be ambiguous with respect to some elements of freedom, such as the burdens that people might experience whilst achieving capabilities. Developing instruments with a more comprehensive definition of capability might increase their sensitivity to a broader range of constructs. In this study, a framework that is based on the concept of “option freedom”, a more comprehensive definition of capability, is operationalized into a newly developed instrument.The Multi Instrument Comparison (MIC) database was used to develop an instrument. First, items from the MIC database were matched to themes from a framework that had been developed in an earlier qualitative study. Second, a measurement model was constructed with the selected items and model fit was assessed. Third, an instrument was created that can be used for wellbeing assessment.A measurement model was constructed with 57 items and 11 factors. Data-driven explorative adjustments were made to improve model fit. Based on this model an instrument was developed with three scales (“Reflective Wellbeing”, “Affective Wellbeing” and “Perceived Access to Options”) totaling 15 items. This instrument showed adequate psychometric characteristics in terms of reliability and model fit indices.The instrument shows that the concept of option freedom can be operationalized for wellbeing assessment. Furthermore, the analysis indicated that in the context of outcome measurement with the instrument, information about both capabilities and functionings related to subjective wellbeing is required to assess the wellbeing of an individual. Further research is required to validate the instrument.