1. Introduction

What makes a place a good place to live? This was the main question that drove the creation of the “great municipalities to live in Portugal” initiative. Since 2008, INTEC, the behavioral technology institute, has been measuring quality of life at the municipal level. There are several international measures of quality of

life that compare different countries. However much of the public policies and public government that impacts citizens life is done at the local level. As such, it becomes relevant to have a framework to measure and compare the quality of life in different municipalities.

Measuring quality of life at the local level brings relevant information for social political and economic actors and ultimately for society in general. citizens can become aware of the features of different places to live and work and make more informed choices about their lives. Local government authorities are provided with a blueprint of indicators that can evaluate the progress of their government and provide the accountability about their action. economic agents can guide their investments.

In the following pages we will describe the great municipalities to live in Portugal initiative and present the real results of a past edition of this initiative. We first present the theoretical and conceptual roots of our framework and methodology to measure quality of life at the local level, including the 10 domains of our quality-of-life assessment. We then provide examples of specific indicators for each of the quality-of-life domains. We finish with a presentation of the main results of the quality-of-life assessment for a sample of Portuguese municipalities.

2. A framework for assessing quality of life at the municipal level

Before outlining a framework to measure quality of life one needs first to define what quality of life is. For some quality of life is in the eye of the beholder. This means that ultimately quality of life is a subjective matter and can only be assessed by asking citizens to provide their opinion about their lives. this is the case of the European survey on quality of life that is run each few years by the European foundation for the improvement of living and working conditions (EUROFOUND).

However, some authors have questions whether there should also be considered the more objective perspective of quality of life sometimes also named living conditions. For instance, the objective availability of cultural facilities medical treatment or educational establishments are also relevant indicators about the quality of life of a place even if quality of life is ultimately how citizens feel about their lives. Objective and infrastructure indicators of quality of life are also of particular importance if one wants to assess quality of life for public policy purposes since it can guide local government investments.

Since both subjective and objective issues are relevant in defining and measuring quality of life at the municipal level the framework developed by INTEC for the great municipalities to live initiative considers both types of indicators. For example, we consider both the number of doctors per 1000 inhabitants in each municipality and the subjective evaluation of those citizens regarding the availability and quality of health services. We consider both the number of students per teacher as well as the quality of the learning system according to citizens evaluations.

Based on the previous work of international institutions such as the European foundation for the improvement of living and working conditions and the OECD, our framework considers 10 quality of life domains, namely: environment, economy and jobs, education and training, culture and leisure, mobility, health, security, urbanism and housing, end well-being (Figure 1). For each of these domains we collect and measure a series of indicators. Objective indicators are collected from public institutions databases whereas subjective indicators are collected from a big national telephone questionnaire survey that inquires about 4000 citizens (3961 inquired people in the 2022 edition). Examples of objective indicators for each of the dimensions are presented in Table 2. Examples of subjective questionnaire indicators are presented in Table 3.

Figure 1 The 10 Dimensions of Quality of Life 

Figure 2 Examples of Objective Indicators 

Figure 3 Examples of Subjective Indicators 

3. The quality of life in Portuguese municipalities in 2022: A snapshot

In this last section, we present a snapshot of the main features of quality of life in Portugal from the data of the 2022 edition.

During this study, we aimed to identify the indicators which are most predictive of well-being in each dimension studied, i.e., to identify which indicators have the greatest influence on the well-being perceived by the public in general.

Based on the results of this study conducted by INTEC in the context of “The Great Municipalities to Live in Portugal 2022”, which surveyed 4053 Portuguese, revealed the following indicators as the most predictive of well-being: (i) Satisfaction with the professional situation is the factor that most explains the well-being of the Portuguese; (ii) The evaluation of the purchasing power in relation to the cost of living is the second factor that best explains the well-being of the Portuguese; (iii) The evaluation of the quality of housing is the third best factor that explains the well-being of the Portuguese. The most predictive items of each dimension are shown in Figure 4.

Model explained in 35%

Figure 4 Well-being predictive items of each dimension 

The results of the indicators that have the greatest influence on well-being are particularly interesting considering the current Portuguese economic situation, which is experiencing the highest inflation rate in the last 30 years (^{Banco de Portugal, 2022}; ^{PORDATA, 2022}a), as well as the high valuation of homes in Portugal, which have increased by 70% over the past 12 years (^{Eurostat, 2022}). Considering that job satisfaction is one of the most predictive measures of well-being in Portugal, and there are no official Portuguese statistics on this indicator, it is of vital importance to measure and monitor it as a tool for public measures and policies designed to enhance citizen’s well-being. It is interesting to note that the financial and material factors play a significant role in determining respondents’ perception of well-being. According to data produced by the National Institute of Statistics (Instituto Nacional de Estatística [INE], 2022), Portugal’s Wellbeing Index decreased in 2020 and 2021, with material living conditions being the most affected (^{PORDATA, 2022}a). In addition, data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) shows that the average rating of general satisfaction with life made by Portuguese citizens is 6.7, lower than the average rating of the OECD, which is 7.4. (^{OECD, 2020}).

These results allow us to reflect on the question: “What can increase the well-being of the Portuguese at the present time?”. The data answers: (i) Professional fulfilment; (ii) Greater purchasing power and lower inflation; (iii) Better and affordable housing.