Skip main navigation

Introducing the wellbeing lens

We identify the main ways in which a 'wellbeing lens' can make a difference: positivity; empathy; and integrative thinking about the whole person

This short film introduces the idea that wellbeing is better understood as a kind of ‘lens’ that influences how we perceive the world around us, and hence shapes how we think and talk about our activities, our objectives, and the outcomes of our work.

We group the differences that a wellbeing lens can make into three areas::

positivity (exploring, appreciating, and learning from successes and enjoyments, and planning aspirationally),

empathy (considering, listening to, respecting, and responding other people’s subjective experience of the matters at hand), and

integration (considering how wellbeing is derived from interactive processes, and looking at how the various parts of people’s lives ‘fit’ together or ‘harmonize’ through the life course).

The following three steps explore each of these three aspects of the wellbeing lens in more detail.

This article is from the free online

Social Wellbeing

Created by
FutureLearn - Learning For Life

Reach your personal and professional goals

Unlock access to hundreds of expert online courses and degrees from top universities and educators to gain accredited qualifications and professional CV-building certificates.

Join over 18 million learners to launch, switch or build upon your career, all at your own pace, across a wide range of topic areas.

Start Learning now