‘Operationalizing’ the Capability Approach as a Basis for Equality and Human Rights Monitoring in Twenty‐first‐century Britain

Abstract

This article examines a new capability‐based measurement framework that has been developed as a basis for equality and human rights monitoring in twenty‐first‐century Britain. We explore the conceptual foundations of the framework and demonstrate its practical application for the purposes of monitoring equality (in terms of the distribution of substantive freedoms and opportunities among individuals and groups) and human rights (in terms of the achievement of substantive freedoms and opportunities below a minimum threshold) in England, Scotland and Wales. The article challenges the sceptical position by suggesting that ‘operationalizing’ the capability approach is both ‘feasible’ and ‘workable’. A new two‐stage procedure for deriving a capability list is proposed. This combines human rights and deliberative consultation and strikes a balance, we contend, between internationally recognized human rights standards and principles on the one hand, and direct deliberation/participation on the other, in the development and agreement of capability lists.Capabilities, Functionings, Treatment, Autonomy, Equality, Human rights, Indicator,

Why do people with mental distress have poor social outcomes? Four lessons from the capabilities approach

“…The questions in the first interview were framed with implicit regard to the CA, enabling capabilities concepts to be induced. The second interviews were explicitly structured using the CA by devising an original diagram of threshold capabilities domains, adapted from the work of Nussbaum (2000Nussbaum ( , 2006 and Burchardt and Vizard (2011), to guide the conversation. Participants were encouraged to discuss the 'ingredients', or domains, in the diagram (Fig.…”

“…2006), has been operationalised for other social groups experiencing poor outcomes (e.g. Dean et al, 2005;Wolff and De-Shalit, 2007;Burchardt and Vizard, 2011). Hopper (2007) has argued that in principle the CA offers a framework for analysis of agency/structure relations, diversity, personal experience, normativity and the role of resources which interact to shape social outcomes for people with mental distress.…”

PBI: Entre el fetiche y ser uno de los mayores inventos del siglo XX

“…Anand et al (2009) indican que esto representa el set de capacidades de un individuo. De este enfoque parten algunas formalizaciones (Burchardt y Vizard, 2011;Anand et al, 2009;Anand y van Hees, 2006;Robeyns, 2011) que intentan medir las capacidades de los individuos y cómo efectivamente gozan o no de sus libertades. En este sentido, el enfoque de las capacidades suele presentar una marcada diferencia respecto a otras mediciones del bienestar, incluso multidimensional, debido a que aquel valora la libertad como algo efectivo pero también potencial.…”

“…Burchardt y Vizard (2011), por ejemplo, toman una lista de diez capacidadesfruto de un complejo proceso deliberativo llevado adelante por The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC)-para fiscalizar y monitorear la equidad y los derechos humanos en Gran Bretaña, concretamente: vida; salud; seguridad física; seguridad legal; educación y aprendizaje; estándar de vida; actividades productivas; participación; voz e influencia; vida individual, familiar y social; identidad; expresión y autorrespeto (p. 99). A su vez, son muchas las variables que componen cada uno de estos diez dominios, o los indicadores que pueden ser utilizados para definir si efectivamente un individuo goza de dichas capacidades.…”

A Philosophical Examination of Social Justice and Child Poverty

“…A no less influential document than the Human Development Report, which is published annually by the United Nations and monitors human development on a global level, explicitly draws on the capability approach, even if some have questioned how accurately the report represents its theoretical and normative background (Pogge 2002). On the national level, too, governments are interested in the approach and apply it for diverse purposes; the reports on poverty and wealth in Germany (Arndt and Volkert 2006) and the reports of the United Kingdom's National Equalities Commission, for example, apply the capability approach as part of their theoretical background for their respective concerns (Burchardt and Vizard 2011). And last but not least, it has been inspiring and guiding the work of NGOs and local development initiatives in many different countries and cultural contexts (Deneulin and Shahani 2009).…”