Adaptation Poverty And Development

In contrast to previous attempts to examine adaptation to climate change in developing countries, the authors focus on how individuals and broader social groups adjust their aspirations, mental states, social values and behaviour as well as practices in response to changes in their personal and social circumstances.

Employing a unique blend of cross-disciplinary work from economics, psychology, sociology and philosophy, this innovative book draws on quantitative and qualitative techniques. The three sections deal with conceptual issues, empirical studies and specific topics (gender, disability, migration) relating to adaptation in developing countries.

It includes detailed case studies of adaptation in China, Ethiopia, India and South Africa and underlines the case for listening to the poor by suggesting that people who become worse off are less likely to lower their aspirations - or restrict their values - than is commonly thought by some philosophers and social scientists.

Review: 'Economics is venturing into a new world previously inhabited by psychologists, the extent to which people adapt in various ways to changing circumstances. Better knowledge of adaptation is fundamental to advancing our understanding of human behavior and feelings of well-being. This volume is a welcome and valuable contribution to an important and much-neglected subject.' - Richard A.

Easterlin, Professor of Economics, University of Southern California, USA 'This book breaks new ground by bringing together theoretical and empirical perspectives on the problem of adaptation, using case studies in India, China and Africa. Clear, insightful and methodical, it will become essential reading for all those interested in the increasingly important question of how to interpret subjective measures of well-being, especially in a development context.' - Tania Burchardt, Deputy Director, Centre for the Analysis of Social Exclusion, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK 'Is adaptation of deprived people to their often abysmal circumstances a healthy reaction which improves the quality of their lives?

Or does it inhibit action to improve the situation - by them and by others? This fascinating book explores such issues conceptually and empirically, and is especially pertinent today when 'happiness' is being promoted as the new metric of development.' - Frances Stewart, University of Oxford, UK '...covers interesting themes that are of importance to those interested in the dynamics of subjective well-being (SWB), whether from a theoretical, empirical or policymaking perspective, which is a great achievement indeed...There is no doubt that anyone can learn a lot from reading this book.

The range of topics covered is so broad that even experts in the field can enhance their knowledge as they also add new insights and open up novel perspectives for future research...the editor is certainly to be lauded for having succeeded in publishing a book that may also be read by non-specialists.

For all these reasons, I expect Adaptation, Poverty and Development. The Dynamics of Subjective Well-Being to be well received by its readers.' - Claudia Tello, University of Barcelona, European Journal of Development Research