Rural change and individual well-being

Abstract

Much of rural Europe has witnessed vast changes over the past two decades, including major demographic and economic change. The question of how these changes have affected individual well-being and quality of life remains largely unanswered. This paper aims to shed light on this topic by employing both qualitative and quantitative research methods in the analysis of rural quality of life in Ireland, including focus groups, locally-specific surveys and two representative surveys of individuals carried out in 2001 and 2007. We use the respondents’ self-reported life satisfaction level as a proxy for their well-being to examine the determinants of quality of life and also examine how attitudes have changed over this period. Results show a consistently high life satisfaction in rural Ireland. The greatest changes are witnessed in attitudes to the provision of facilities and services. Respondents’ perceptions of the benefits and limitations of rural living remain constant between the two periods, focusing on quality of life and environmental issues. However, the main problems of rural living have shifted away from the cost of housing to access to healthcare and public transport. Issues that are found to be important at the local scale include economic indicators (for example, security of income, home ownership), dwelling characteristics, social factors (for example, belonging to the community) and environmental amenities (for example, access to green space, good-quality environment). The importance of these issues is born out by the analysis at the national scale. The paper concludes by exploring the policy implications of these findings.