Table Of ContentINFRASTRUCTURE, WELL- BEING AND
THE MEASUREMENT OF HAPPINESS
This book takes an interdisciplinary approach to our understanding of infrastruc-
ture, and its infuence on happiness and well-b eing, by examining the concept
from economic, human development, architectural, urban planning, psycho-
logical, and ethical points of view. Providing insights from both research and
practice the volume discusses how to develop happier cities and improve urban
infrastructure for the well- being of the whole population.
The book puts forth the argument that it is only in understanding the true
nature of infrastructure’s reach – how it connects, supports, and enlivens human
b eings – t hat we can truly begin to understand infrastructure’s possibilities. It
connects infrastructure to that most elusive of human qualities – happiness –
e xamining the way infrastructure is fundamentally tied to human values and hu-
man well-b eing. The book seeks to suggest novel approaches, identify outmoded
undertakings, and defne new possibilities in order to maximize infrastructure’s
impact for all p eople – w ith a focus on diversity, inclusion, and equity.
In seeking to defne infrastructure broadly and examine its possibilities sys-
tematically this book brings together theory and evidence from multiple discipli-
nary perspectives, sociology, urban studies, architecture, economics, and public
health in order to advance a startling c laim – t hat our lives, and the lives of
others, can be substantively improved by greater adhesion to the principles and
practices of infrastructure design for happiness and w ell-b eing.
Hoda Mahmoudi has held The Bahá’í Chair for World Peace at the Univer-
sity of Maryland, College Park since 2012. As Director of this endowed aca-
demic program, Professor Mahmoudi collaborates with a wide range of scholars,
researchers, and practitioners to advance interdisciplinary analysis and open
discourse on global peace. Before joining the University of Maryland faculty,
Professor Mahmoudi served as the coordinator of the Research Department at
the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa, Israel. Prior to that, Dr. Mahmoudi was Dean
of the College of Arts and Sciences at Northeastern Illinois University, where she
was also a faculty member in the Department of Sociology. Professor Mahmoudi
is co- editor of Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Human Dignity and Human Rights
( Emerald, 2019) and of Children and Globalization; Multidisciplinary Perspectives
( Routledge, 2019). Professor Mahmoudi is also co- author of A World without
War ( Bahá’í Publishing, 2020), c o- editor of The Changing Ethos of Human Rights
( Elgar, 2021), and most recently co- editor of Fundamental Challenges to Peace and
Security: The Future of Humanity ( Palgrave Macmillan, 2022).
Jenny Roe is Professor and Director of the Center for Design and Health in the
School of Architecture, University of Virginia and Honorary Professor in the
Urban Institute, Heriot- Watt University, UK. An environmental psychologist
and former head of Landscape Architecture for an international architectural
practice, she writes and lectures on relationships between the built environment
and our health and well- being. She has over 15 years’ experience in the use of
‘ restorative environments’ to build healthier urban societies and communities
including a vital role for urban parks and green space. Her publications include
Restorative Cities: Urban Design for Mental Health and Wellbeing (R oe and McCay,
2021) which explores a new way of designing cities, one which places health
equity and mental health at the forefront. She also advises various stakeholders
on strategies for promoting and implementing healthy and h uman- centered city
design.
Kate Seaman is Assistant Director of The Bahá’í Chair for World Peace at the
University of Maryland. Dr. Seaman previously held positions at the University
of Baltimore, the University of Bath and was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Uni-
versity of East Anglia. Dr. Seaman received her PhD from Lancaster University.
She is the author of UN- tied Nations; The UN, Peacekeeping and the Development
of Global Security Governance (A shgate, 2014). Dr. Seaman is the co- editor of
The Changing Ethos of Human Rights ( Elgar, 2021), and c o-e ditor of Fundamental
Challenges to Global Peace and Security: The Future of Humanity (P algrave Macmil-
lan, 2022). Her research has been published in Global Governance and Politics and
Governance.
INFRASTRUCTURE,
W ELL-B EING AND THE
MEASUREMENT OF
HAPPINESS
Edited by
Hoda Mahmoudi, Jenny Roe, and Kate Seaman
Cover image: Kasa Maruyama
First published 2023
by Routledge
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© 2023 selection and editorial matter, Hoda Mahmoudi, Jenny Roe, and
Kate Seaman; individual chapters, the contributors
The right of Hoda Mahmoudi, Jenny Roe, and Kate Seaman to be
identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for
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77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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Library of Congress C ataloging-i n-P ublication Data
Names: Mahmoudi, Hoda, editor. | Roe, Jenny, editor. | Seaman, Kate, editor.
Title: Infrastructure, wellbeing and the measurement of happiness / edited by
Hoda Mahmoudi, Jenny Roe, and Kate Seaman.
Description: New York, NY: Routledge, 2023. | Includes bibliographical
references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022020898 (print) | LCCN 2022020899 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781032024011 (hbk) | ISBN 9781032024004 (pbk) | ISBN
9781003183242 (ebk)
Subjects: LCSH: Cities and towns—Growth. | City planning—Economic
aspects. | Well-being—Economic aspects. | Happiness—Economic aspects. |
Equality—Economic aspects.
Classification: LCC HT371.I5465 2023 (print) | LCC HT371 (ebook) | DDC
307.76—dc23/eng/20220606
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022020898
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022020899
ISBN: 9781032024011 ( hbk)
ISBN: 9781032024004 ( pbk)
ISBN: 9781003183242 ( ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9 781003183242
Typeset in Bembo
by codeMantra
CONTENTS
List of Figures vii
List of Tables ix
List of Contributors xi
Acknowledgments xv
Introduction: Infrastructure, W ell-b eing, and the
Measurement of Happiness 1
Hoda Mahmoudi
SECTION ONE
Measuring W ell-b eing 7
1 Building Happier Cities 9
Aubrilyn Reeder
2 The Geography of Desperation in America: Labor Force
Participation, Mobility, Place, and Well- being 40
Carol Graham and Sérgio Pinto
3 Racism and US Urban Planning 63
June Manning Thomas
vi Contents
SECTION TWO
Happiness, Infrastructure, and Development 87
4 Realization of Human Potential in Urban Contexts:
Impediments and Promoters 89
Carol D. Ryf
5 The Renewed Importance of Happiness as a Goal of
Development 110
Rodrigo Márquez Arellano
SECTION THREE
Incorporating Well- being and Happiness Metrics in
Infrastructure Design 131
6 The Urban Nature Happiness Hypothesis 133
Jenny Roe and Naomi A. Sachs
7 Cultivation: A Model for Responsive, Complex Planning
to Rigorously Implement the Infrastructure of Well- being 151
Tristan Cleveland and Houssam Elokda
Conclusion: Infrastructure as a Means of Inspiring a
New Future 167
Kate Seaman, Hoda Mahmoudi, and Jenny Roe
Index 171
FIGURES
1.1 UWI Happiness and Well- being Index around nine domains
( UWI, 2016) 30
4.1 Core dimensions of psychological well- being and their
theoretical foundations 93
6.1 Urban nature happiness hypothesis: an integrated framework
( adapted from Fredrickson and Cohn, 2008, Fig 48.1) 136
TABLES
1.1 Sample domains of happiness ( SWB) with sample survey questions 14
1.2 Predictors for average national happiness scores ( modified from
Helliwell, Layard, and Sachs, 2015) 18
1.3 Sample point considerations for a community walk, bike, and
public transit score ( Walk Score, 2021) 22
1.4 UWI sample survey questions for assessing physical happiness
and well- being related to physical activity ( UWI, 2016) 30
1.5 UWI sample urban development recommendations for
improving happiness through the physical w ell- being domain
( UWI, 2016) 31
2.1 Labor market status and w ell- being in the US ( full sample, 2 010– 2016) 48
2.2 Gender w ell- being heterogeneities across labor market status
( prime- age sample, 2010– 2016) 50
2.3 Race well- being heterogeneities across labor market status in
the US, 2010– 2016 ( prime- age male sample) 52
2.4 Well- being and county- level characteristics ( 2011– 2015) 56
4.1 Definitions of theory- guided dimensions of eudaimonic well- being 90
