quality of life vs standard of living

English translation: Avoid

15:22 Jun 20, 2019
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
Social Sciences - Education / Pedagogy / Heritage and education
English term or phrase: quality of life vs standard of living
I'm considering using "standard of living" as a synonym for "quality of life", mainly for stylistic reasons, to avoid the repetition of "quality of…" twice in the same sentence in close proximity.
I'd appreciate hearing some opinions about this decision, for example, whether it is justified or not, and to what extent the two expressions are synonymous.
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 13:15
Selected answer:Avoid
Explanation:
I suppose linguistically they could be used interchangeably, but in practice they have gained rather specific connotations, and are likely to feel out of place if used outside of their typical usage scenarios.

Quality of life is typically used in a health & well-being context, and is associated with how the subject feels.
Standard of living is typically used in an economic context, and is associated with the subject's environment.

I'm sure they are used outside of these contexts, but the use of 'quality of life' in healthcare and 'standard of living' in an economic sense is so pervasive that I actually have a hard time thinking of other scenarios.

In fact, the Wikipedia article of "Standard of Living" discusses its relation with quality of life. The article isn't great in terms of sources, but the logic holds up. They can be related, but they are not synonymous.
Selected response from:

Lincoln Hui
Hong Kong
Local time: 20:15
Grading comment
Your initial explanation confirmed my own musings. Cheers:-)
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
4 +7see explanation
Mark Robertson
3 +3Avoid
Lincoln Hui
5quality of life or standard of living
Anush Vardazaryan


Discussion entries: 7





  

Answers


26 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +3
Avoid


Explanation:
I suppose linguistically they could be used interchangeably, but in practice they have gained rather specific connotations, and are likely to feel out of place if used outside of their typical usage scenarios.

Quality of life is typically used in a health & well-being context, and is associated with how the subject feels.
Standard of living is typically used in an economic context, and is associated with the subject's environment.

I'm sure they are used outside of these contexts, but the use of 'quality of life' in healthcare and 'standard of living' in an economic sense is so pervasive that I actually have a hard time thinking of other scenarios.

In fact, the Wikipedia article of "Standard of Living" discusses its relation with quality of life. The article isn't great in terms of sources, but the logic holds up. They can be related, but they are not synonymous.

Lincoln Hui
Hong Kong
Local time: 20:15
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in ChineseChinese, Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 8
Grading comment
Your initial explanation confirmed my own musings. Cheers:-)

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Charles Davis
1 hr

agree  Tina Vonhof (X): So why would you suggest we avoid using them?
3 hrs
  -> The poster asked whether he could replace one with the other.

agree  JohnMcDove: Merriam-Webster seems to corroborate this - https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quality of life https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/standard of livin...
11 hrs

disagree  Daryo: these two terms can not be used interchangeably - zillion of repetitions or none, makes no difference.
12 hrs

agree  D. I. Verrelli: The answer given here doesn't propose using the terms interchangeably, but correctly identifies the fact that the constituent elements look — prima facie — like they could be synonyms.
4 days
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27 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
quality of life or standard of living


Explanation:
I think that the same term should be kept in both places no matter how close they are.
The terms are synonymous but if you refer to one and the same thing it's better to use one term. I do so.

Anush Vardazaryan
Armenia
Local time: 16:15
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in ArmenianArmenian

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  JohnMcDove: I agree on keeping the consistency. Not that these are synonymous, even if they are closer than "an egg and a chestnut" (as we say in Spanish). However, not knowing the full context and amount of repetition, I would consider the anaphoric value here.
11 hrs

disagree  Daryo: these terms are nowhere near synonymous
12 hrs
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39 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +7
see explanation


Explanation:
The terms are not synonymous.

QOL includes qualitative factors such as happiness. SOL is purely quantitative and concerns wealth and material comfort.

Mark Robertson
Local time: 12:15
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  jccantrell: This is my understanding. QOL includes work-life balance, how rewarding (in a non-monetary sense) your job is and other such difficult to quantify factors.
17 mins

agree  Charles Davis
1 hr

agree  Tina Vonhof (X)
3 hrs

agree  JohnMcDove: Even if Oxford does't elaborate much on these nuances. https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/quality_of_life https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/standard_of_living
10 hrs

agree  Daryo: exactly!
12 hrs

agree  Christine Andersen: For me they are very different in meaning: standard of living means affluence, technology, quantity, but not always quality. It may bring stress and other disadvantages. Quality of life is just that, and includes being satisfied with simple things.
3 days 16 hrs

agree  D. I. Verrelli
4 days
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