Shchekotin E.V. The Concept of “Life” in Quality of Life Research
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15688/lp.jvolsu.2020.3.5
Evgeniy V. Shchekotin
Сandidate of Sciences (Philosophy), Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, Novosibirsk State University of Economics and Management
Kamenskaya St, 56, 630099 Novosibirsk, Russian Federation
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https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7377-0645
Abstract. The article analyzes the meaning of the concept "life" in relation to research on the quality of life. It is shown that the quality of life is a complex transdisciplinary concept, which significantly complicates the formation of a generalized and conventional interpretation of this concept. The concept of "life", which plays a decisive role in the interpretation of the quality of life, has a different meaning in various scientific fields involved in the study of the quality of life. The article deals with the philosophical, linguistic and religious-sacred content of the concept "life". There are three main semantic centers that reflect the biological, social and transcendental levels of "life". Life as a designation of biological existence ("organism") is revealed through a complex of meanings associated with all the properties inherent in a living organism (duration of existence in time, integrity, activity, activeness, completeness of the manifestation of vital forces, etc.). Life as a metaphor for human social existence ("life in society») is characterizes the activity of social groups and individuals in the social space – in everyday life, in various spheres of society, etc. Life as the transcendental basis of biological and social existence ("eternal life") is revealed through the value dimension and has a rich semantic religious symbolism. The symbolic difference in the meanings of the concept "life" is demonstrated in the form of distinguishing three different words of the Russian language that constitute this concept – zhivot, zhitiye (living) and zhizn' (life). Considered projection of these semantic centres on the concept of quality of life and the interpretation of quality of life depending on the interpretation of the concept "life" on the example of two disciplines – medicine and economics. In medical research, the focus is on the bodily and biological aspects of life: the impact of diseases on various body functions that affect the physiological, mental, emotional and social functioning of a person. In economics, the concept of "life" is considered as a designation of a certain activity of society and people in various fields and spheres.
Key words: life, quality of life, concept, health status, needs, happiness, well-being.
The Concept of “Life” in Quality of Life Research by Shchekotin E.V. is licensed under Attribution 4.0 International
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