Personal Well-Being and Education

Abstract

The concept of personal well-being has been crucial in a wide range of fields from economics to health policies, as well as education. Yet, in most uses the phrase "flourishing life" denotes rather a fuzzy notion upon which it is hardly possible to raise a deliberate decision-making experience. Then, what personal well-being is and to what extent education should aim at promoting pupils' well-being need to be clarified. These two questions are the main concern of this essay. In tackling with these questions, the concept of well-being is first clarified, a new argument for the possibility of a strong subjectivist account of well-being is developed, and then the relationship between education and this particular account of personal well-being is critically examined.