Awareness of the Concept of ‘Well-being’ among Business Administration Students in an Islamic University in Malaysia

Abstract

The concept of well-being, known as sejahtera in Malay, has deep roots in Malaysian society, influencing politics, economics, social life, and particularly education. Thus, this study is justified to explore current awareness of this concept among the younger generation whilst answering the increasing calls to nurture well-being and sustainability mindedness among university students through educational interactions. An exploratory qualitative study was conducted among Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) students at an Islamic university in Malaysia on the notion of ‘well-being’, with the aim of increasing students’ awareness of the global sustainability agenda. Using in-depth, self-reported interviews with open-ended questions, the researchers captured the students’ natural perceptions. Content analysis of the responses revealed two key findings: first, all participants were aware of the concept of well-being; second, they expressed a wide range of interpretations and meanings related to well-being. These findings suggest that while awareness is high, the understanding of the well-being concept is diverse and shaped by individual perspectives and levels of awareness.