To enjoy social well-being, certain material resources are needed.
Well-being is understood as the set of factors that a person needs to enjoy a good quality of life . These factors lead the subject to enjoy a peaceful existence and a state of satisfaction.
Social well-being , therefore, includes those things that positively affect the quality of life: decent employment, economic resources to satisfy needs, housing, access to education and health, time for leisure, etc. Although the notion of well-being is subjective (what is good for one person may not be good for another), social well-being is associated with objective economic factors .
For example: in a country where a typical family (four members) needs 200 dollars a month to satisfy their basic needs, all families with incomes less than that figure cannot enjoy social welfare. It is likely, therefore, that the members of a family that earns $100 a month will suffer from nutritional problems and have a lower life expectancy.
The subjectivity of social well-being
However, behind these figures stipulated as the minimum to achieve a healthy standard of living , there are a series of preconceptions that force people to think that they cannot survive if certain requirements are not met; For example, it is said that it is not possible to grow and develop correctly without consuming dairy products, generally from cows, since they are an irreplaceable source of calcium; this is not true at all.
Therefore, this figure hides a list of objectives that must be achieved to live well and, as in any generalization, individual or special needs are not taken into account, but rather it encompasses every human being who lives in a certain region. and they are considered a single entity. The question that arises, then, is: can a family of four people live well with less money than what is considered minimum by the government of their country? It is likely, although that also depends on the amount we are talking about and the economic situation of the place in question.
Just as in personal well-being, society should delve into its needs, consider its possibilities and question the validity of the system ; Through this search, it is likely that a situation of generalized crisis that causes nothing but discomfort and anguish in a large part of the population will become the starting point for a change of mentality, to leave behind the suffocating standards in favor of of a flexibility that allows one to live well using current means.
Guaranteeing access to food is essential for social well-being.
The role of the State
The State must be responsible for promoting social well-being among all its citizens. For this, it is necessary that political measures be taken to correct the inequalities inherent to the capitalist market. The redistribution of income and the development of free social services for all people are necessary conditions to achieve social well-being.
The possibility of extending social welfare to all social strata implies the existence of wealth (to cover state expenses); Therefore, each government must also be responsible for ensuring the generation of wealth.
The search for social well-being
But the concept of government should not be understood as a group of people without connection to the people and with the obligation to solve all the problems of a country; It is through the involvement of individuals in campaigns that seek to improve the quality of life of citizens that the most significant changes are obtained.
If every person with financial problems stopped to think about their own situation and looked for possible solutions, leaving aside the pre-established structure, it is likely that more than 50% would discover that their problems are not real.