The basic elements for measuring human development indicators

What are human development indicators

The human development index is a statistical measure and one of the composite indicators developed by the United Nations to assess the social and economic development of many countries around the world. There are basic elements for measuring human development indicators such as life expectancy, education, per capita income and purchasing power parity.

Dimensions of human development indicators

A human development index has three main dimensions with which to assess the development of a country:

• The Long and Healthy Life Dimension measures life expectancy at birth Life expectancy at birth is a statistical measure that the average individual is expected to live based on certain demographic factors such as year of birth and current age.
• Education is the second dimension in the human development indicators and through it the expected years of schooling and the average years of schooling are studied. The maximum average years of schooling is 18 years, and the average maximum years of schooling is 15 years.
• Standard of living is usually measured by gross national income per capita and gross national income refers to the total domestic and foreign product generated by the residents of a particular country.

Other dimensions such as job opportunities and a sense of security can be added to the human development indicators calculation for a more accurate analysis.

Components of human development indicators

There are four main components of human development and they are considered the four pillars of human development and they are:

• concepts of fairness
• and sustainability
• and productivity
• and empowerment.

The basic elements for measuring human development indicators

Human development indicators reflect the social and economic reality of a country and the real needs of the population, and are used to classify countries according to the degree of “human development”, but some variables such as life expectancy, education and standard of living must be taken into account.

These indicators measure well-being and can determine whether the country is developed, developing, or underdeveloped, and also measure the impact of social and economic policies on the quality of life.

Among the most important basic elements that measure human development indicators are:

• Differentiate between economic growth and human development: as economic growth refers to an increase in income and wealth in the country, and this increase is linked to factors of income, capital and labor. As for human development, the issue is related to improving human and social conditions that focus on meeting basic needs.
• Developing the Human Development Report This report includes the human development index and constitutes a turning point in the idea of ​​development in general.
• The Human Development Index was developed as a measure of development in three dimensions, namely health, education and the economy. These three dimensions were combined year after year, with the aim of measuring average “achievements” in relation to basic human development classified by country.
• The fourth dimension, which is well-being, becomes more important in measuring human development indicators, and this element gains importance with the passage of time.
• Wealth and the Human Development Index may not always align with each other, although there is always a relationship between material wealth and people's well-being, but wealth is an imperfect measure of human development.

The importance of the human development index

Human development indicators work on expansive measures as they work to provide more preferences for people, and provide more opportunities for empowerment, health care and education while covering all preferences from the physical environment to social, political and economic freedom. Human development indicators are necessary for the following reasons:

• Human development indicators emphasize improving people's lives rather than assuming that economic growth will automatically lead to greater opportunity for all.
• Human development indicators are about providing people with more opportunities as well as the freedom to live the life they value, for example we find this evident in the education of individuals, especially girls.
• Human development indicators create the right conditions for all. For example, environmental sustainability shapes equality between women and men alike.
• Once the basics of human development are achieved, this opens up opportunities for development or advancement in other areas of life.
• Human development indicators help create awareness among individuals regarding their responsibilities as a citizen and a human being to form an opinion on many issues.

strengths in human development indicators

The strengths of the Human Development Indicators are their transparency, simplicity, and resonance with their popularity around the world. They have also achieved great success. In fact, the Human Development Index has attracted more media than policy response, and the Human Development Indicators have helped highlight important issues.

In addition to the strengths, human development indicators have met with many criticisms, as some suggested expanding them to include more dimensions, and human development remains the process of expanding people's choices. The most important thing is that individuals live a long and healthy life, learn and enjoy a decent standard of living. Other additional options may include freedom Guaranteed political and human rights and self-respect.

How do nature and nurture affect the Human Development Index?

Our personalities and traits may be the product of our genetic make-up and biological factors. Human development indicators determine how these personalities are shaped by the environment. For example, most children may sometimes behave like their parents. What we do not know is that there is a deep interaction between our genes and our Environment. Unique experiences in the environment may influence these indicators.

In the end, people may be the real wealth of the nation and the primary goal of development is to create an enabling environment for people to live a long, healthy and creative life. Human development indicators are a statistical tool used to measure the overall achievement of a country in its social and economic dimensions. The human development index was created from the ground up to emphasize That individuals and their capabilities should be the final criteria for evaluating a country's development.