WEST VIRGINIA LOWEST IN US GALLUP'S WELL BEING POLL - Seventh Year Running

(01/30/2016)
West Virginians, according to a longtime national poll, are those without a sense of well-being.

Hawaii residents had the highest well-being of any state in the nation in 2015, reaching the top spot for the fifth time since Gallup and Healthways began tracking well-being in 2008.

Alaska, which was the top state for well-being in 2014, slipped to second place.

Residents of West Virginia and Kentucky have the lowest and second-lowest well-being, respectively, for the seventh consecutive year.

The state-level data are based on more than 177,000 interviews with U.S. adults across all 50 states, conducted across 350 days from January-December 2015.

The Well-Being Index is calculated on a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 represents the lowest possible well-being and 100 represents the highest possible well-being.

The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index score for the nation and for each state comprises metrics affecting overall well-being and each of the five essential elements of well-being:

-Purpose: liking what you do each day and being motivated to achieve your goals

-Social: having supportive relationships and love in your life

-Financial: managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security

-Community: liking where you live, feeling safe and having pride in your community

-Physical: having good health and enough energy to get things done daily