Foundations & Measurement
External framework or theory · Foundational · 2020
Capacity and environment are related, but distinct
WHO defines intrinsic capacity as the mental and physical capacities a person can draw on, while functional ability also depends on the environment and the interaction between person and environment.
Research basis
WHO healthy-aging framework. Global public-health framework focused on healthy aging.
What it supports
Treating capacity as multidimensional and keeping personal capacity conceptually distinct from environmental conditions and functional outcomes.
Boundary
The BOL three-dimension architecture, a leader-specific measure, or any claim that intrinsic capacity determines leadership performance.
BOL relevance
Provides an important adjacent scientific lineage for Biological Capacity without making the constructs equivalent.
Source class
Official institutional source
Role in BOL
Foundational
Population context
Policy or conceptual
Evidence basis
Conceptual or synthesized
Full source review pending. Status last assessed 26 July 2026.