Australia’s Wellbeing Framework: Is It Really ‘Measuring What Matters?’

Abstract

Australia’s newly established wellbeing framework, ‘Measuring What Matters’ (MWM), seeks to measure social progress and influence policy by reporting on 50 wellbeing indicators within five “themes”. In this paper, we assess whether the MWM framework adequately measures what people in Australia value for their wellbeing by examining both the process of the framework’s development and its content. Firstly, we consider whether the consultation process undertaken was adequate. Secondly, we examine whether the MWM indicators align with existing research on what people in Australia value for their wellbeing. We identified limitations across all aspects of the consultation examined: its comprehensiveness, reach, transparency, and extent to which it genuinely incorporated community feedback into the framework. While the MWM framework was found to broadly align with existing research on what Australians value for their wellbeing, there were some notable divergences. We urge the Australian Government to undertake a comprehensive, wide-reaching, transparent, and genuine consultation across Australia. Furthermore, we recommend that the Australian Government develop new indicators in consultation with the public. Enhancing the MWM framework will help establish it as a cornerstone of government decision-making, and importantly, ensure that it does what it purports to do: measure what Australians value for their wellbeing.