Workbook 16

Activity 1: Factors That Affect My Quality of Life

Get Focused

As a consumer, you have needs and wants and you require goods and services. You make purchases for yourself and others. Think about the things that you have purchased in the last two days. Perhaps you bought a drink and a snack at the corner store, purchased and downloaded some music from the Internet, or rented a recently released movie or video game that was highly recommended by your friends.

Deciding which products or services you want and purchasing the products or services is the act of a consumer. All these purchases contribute to your quality of life.

Consider what you would buy if you had $1 million - something that most people dream of at one time or another.

With $1 million, you are well on your way to a quality of life in which you may be able to buy all your needs as well as your wants. However, does money equal a good quality of life? Is money the only thing in life that is important in making people happy?

Images ©Thinkstock

©Thinkstock

Quality of life is much more than material possessions. What makes you content and satisfied? In Unit 1, you were introduced to the concept of quality of life. You identified both the material and non-material things that make you happy. Is there anything you would like to add to your graphic organizer now?

Reflect on your quality of life; record your thoughts in a journal entry. Think about how well you and your family live. What changes would make the biggest impact on improving your quality of life?

Go beyond superficial factors, such as having a lot of money and nice clothes. Instead, consider your rights and freedoms, your beliefs and values, and your individual and collective identities as well as your needs.

Place your journal entry into your Activities folder.

In this activity, you will examine this question:

What factors affect my quality of life?