Influence of Subjective Factors on the Perception of Quality of Life

Note: This is a translation of the original article " Influenţa factorilor subiectivi asupra percepţiei calităţii vieţii " , published in Romanian the journal " Calitatea vieţii " (translated title: 1. Introduction If, in order to evaluate the quality of life of a collectivity or social group, we employ measures of the quality of life of its individual members, this psycho-individual frame may be very limited when we want to explain the sources of variation of perceived quality of life. In order to accomplish the last objective we must take into account the influence of the subjective factors. The models proposed until now are subordinated to a psycho-individual approach, assuming the existence of a purely individual, independent and autonomous self. Other methodological orientations contest this model, proposing models of (partial or total) determination of subjectivity. I was interested in the possibility of enlarging the frame of explanatory analysis of the variation of quality of life, including the psycho-sociological states (the influence of communication, psychological processes associated to the membership in social groups, etc.). In this paper I propose a theoretical analysis, seeking to identify the main methodological hallmarks and some starting points for elaborating such a model.