Regional economic welfare: a comparative approach between Spanish and Italian regions

This paper proposes a revised view of regional economic wellbeing. Recent papers on regional studies have expressed concern about the notion of regional well-being that considers only per-capita income indicators. Comparing Italian and Spanish regions and using Data Envelopment Analysis, this paper suggests a synthetic indicator of regional economic wellbeing based on Osberg’s (1985) four components: consumption capacity, accumulation, inequality, and economic insecurity. The indicator does not impose a pre-defined view of well-being in the comparison between regions which may have different perceptions about it. The results show that distinct regions can reach the same level of well-being through different paths. We conclude by reflecting on how future studies of economic well-being should explain the principles underlying the geographical distribution of regional economic well-being.