Challenges for Quality of Life in the Contemporary World

The theme of the Fifth International Conference, organized by the International Society for Quality of Life Studies, was "challenges for the quality of life in the contemporary world". There are new threats and new prospects with regard to the quality of life in each generation, and securing and improving the quality of life constitute a never-ending task. Research related to these problems is of interest to specialists in science and politics as well as to a broader public consisting of those who are concerned with questions of the quality of life, happiness, life satisfaction, life domains, social quality, well-being, societal goals, cultural and economic challenges.§The first set of contributions to this volume offers a discussion about the goal of the quality of life. This discussion is currently held in modernized as well as in developing countries. The second section focuses on scientific institutions and procedures, which are necessary for monitoring the quality of life in a valid and reliable manner. The third part deals with challenges for the quality of life in the economy and working life. The fourth section presents a series of contributions on cultural challenges for the quality of life; family, divorce, the well-being of children and the significance of values are considered. The fifth section is devoted to fundamental options and restrictions for the quality of life and answers the question of what we can do to improve our satisfaction with life.