Capability Approach
Sen and Nussbaum's framework evaluating well-being by what people can do and be.
Amartya Sen's framework, substantially developed in collaboration with Martha Nussbaum, evaluates individual wellbeing and social arrangements by what people are actually able to do and be — their capabilities — rather than by resources, utility, or preference satisfaction. The approach distinguishes between functionings (achieved doings and beings) and capabilities (the freedom to achieve various functionings) and provides foundational philosophy for the UN Human Development Index. Nussbaum extends Sen's framework with a list of central capabilities she argues are universally required for human dignity, while Sen resists settling on a fixed list, treating the choice of capabilities as itself a democratic question.
Core components
- Functionings (achieved doings and beings)
- Capabilities (freedoms to achieve functionings)
- Conversion factors (personal, social, environmental)
- Agency
- Nussbaum's list of central capabilities (in her variant)
Primary use case
Development economics and policy evaluation; foundation of the UN Human Development Index; philosophical basis for justice theory; product and service design centered on capability expansion.
Common criticisms
- Operationalization for measurement is contested — which capabilities and how to weight them
- tension between Sen's procedural openness and Nussbaum's substantive list
- difficulty distinguishing capability from preference in practice
- resource-intensive to measure compared to GDP-style indicators.
Lineage
- Siblings
- Veil of Ignorance, Utilitarianism, Care Ethics