WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Gallup in 2011 published nearly 100 unique articles about
Americans' health and wellbeing. Through its daily surveys, conducted
year-round, the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index uncovers new insights into
and provides the most up-to-date data available on Americans' mental state,
exercise and eating habits, healthcare coverage, physical health, and financial
wellbeing. The following list comprises Gallup editors' picks for the top 10
most compelling findings from this year.
Read all of our 2011 wellbeing discoveries.
The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index tracks wellbeing in the U.S., U.K.,
and Germany and provides best-in-class solutions for a healthier world. To learn
more, please visit well-beingindex.com.
Survey
Methods
Results are based on telephone interviews conducted as part of the
Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index survey each day, with a random sample of at
least 1,000 adults, or roughly 30,000 adults per month, aged 18 and older,
living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, selected using
random-digit-dial sampling.
Interviews are conducted with respondents on landline telephones and cellular
phones, with interviews conducted in Spanish for respondents who are primarily
Spanish-speaking. Each sample includes a minimum quota of 400 cell phone
respondents and 600 landline respondents per 1,000 national adults, with
additional minimum quotas among landline respondents by region. Landline
telephone numbers are chosen at random among listed telephone numbers. Cell
phone numbers are selected using random-digit-dial methods. Landline respondents
are chosen at random within each household on the basis of which member had the
most recent birthday.
Samples are weighted by gender, age, race, Hispanic ethnicity, education,
region, adults in the household, and phone status (cell phone only/landline
only/both, cell phone mostly, and having an unlisted landline number).
Demographic weighting targets are based on the March 2010 Current Population
Survey figures for the aged 18 and older non-institutionalized population living
in U.S. telephone households. All reported margins of sampling error include the
computed design effects for weighting and sample design.
In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in
conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public
opinion polls.
For more details on Gallup's polling methodology, visit www.gallup.com.