Older adults in the United States are happier than younger adults, according to a survey by Gallup-Healthways.
Adults older than 55 were reviewed according to their state of residence, resulting in a comprehensive ranking of the states where the elderly are happier. To measure the level of happiness, Gallup-Healthways asked the participants if they felt they had a purpose, how they were feeling with their social relationships, their overall physical health, and how the interacted with their near community.
Are you happy? In Hawaii, of course
To measure the level of happiness according to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index of 2015, participants were asked if they had enough money to do the things they wanted to do, if they had things planned for the future, if they worried about money and their standard of living, among other things concerning a comprehensive level of comfort.
Gallup-Healthways chooses participants at random using random-digit-dial methods to select people whose birthday has been on the past few days; the survey also includes Spanish-speaking people, to which Gallup provides a Spanish-speaking surveyor. The daily interviews include at least 500 adults aged 18 or older, adding up to 175,000 per year. The interviews have not stopped being performed every day since 2008, where its workers survey the well-being index of the American population 350 days a year. For 2016, the organization reached at least 115,000 older Americans.
“The 55 and over crowd in those top states…report always making time for regular trips and vacations with family and friends, reaching their goals in the last 12 months, using their strengths and aptitudes as a human being, in other words, doing things that are a natural right fit for them,” stated Dan Witters, research director for Gallup-Healthways to the Washington Post.
The list of states is as follows:
1 to 10: Hawaii 67.0, Arizona 65.2, New Hampshire 65.2, North Dakota 65.2, Colorado 65.1, Alaska 64.9, Minnesota 64.9, Wisconsin 64.9, Iowa 64.7, South Dakota 64.7.
11 to 20: Florida 64.5, Oregon 64.3, Montana 64.2, Nebraska 64.0, Rhode Island 63.9, South Carolina 63.9, Idaho 63.9, Pennsylvania 63.9, Connecticut 63.9, Maine 63.8.
21 to 30: Utah 63.8, North Carolina 63.8, Mississippi 63.8, California 63.7, Virginia 63.7, Washington 63.7, Texas 63.7, New Mexico 63.6, Kansas 63.6. Delaware 63.6.
31 to 40: Nevada 63.6, Massachusetts 63.6, Wyoming 63.5, Michigan 63.5, Maryland 63.4, Louisiana 63.3, Alabama 63.2, Illinois 63.2, New York 63.0, Tennessee 63.0.
41 to 50: New Jersey 62.9, Arkansas 62.9, Missouri 62.9, Georgia 62.9, Vermont 62.7, Indiana 62.7, Ohio 62.5, Oklahoma 62.0, Kentucky 61.2, West Virginia 59.9.
“Older residents of Mississippi, Georgia and Louisiana have the lowest financial well-being, while those living in New Jersey, West Virginia, and Maryland report the lowest community well-being,” the report reads.