Cited by 246Psychological Well-being and Life SatisfactionPsychometric Methodologies and TestingHealth, psychology, and well-being

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Well-being measurement and the WHO health policy Health 2010: systematic review of measurement scales

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Lindert, Jutta, Bain, Paul A., Kubzansky, Laura D., Stein, Claudia·2015·The European Journal of Public Health

DOI 10.1093/eurpub/cku193

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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Subjective well-being (SWB) contributes to health and mental health. It is a major objective of the new World Health Organization health policy framework, 'Health 2020'. Various approaches to defining and measuring well-being exist. We aimed to identify, map and analyse the contents of self-reported well-being measurement scales for use with individuals more than 15 years of age to help researchers and politicians choose appropriate measurement tools. METHODS: We conducted a systematic literature search in PubMed for studies published between 2007 and 2012, with additional hand-searching, to identify empirical studies that investigated well-being using a measurement scale. For each eligible study, we identified the measurement tool and reviewed its components, number of items, administration time, validity, reliability, responsiveness and sensitivity. RESULTS: The literature review identified 60 unique measurement scales. Measurement scales were either multidimensional (n = 33) or unidimensional (n = 14) and assessed multiple domains. The most frequently encountered domains were affects (39 scales), social relations (17 scales), life satisfaction (13 scales), physical health (13 scales), meaning/achievement (9 scales) and spirituality (6 scales). The scales included between 1 and 100 items; the administration time varied from 1 to 15 min. CONCLUSIONS: Well-being is a higher order construct. Measures seldom reported testing for gender or cultural sensitivity. The content and format of scales varied considerably. Effective monitoring and comparison of SWB over time and across geographic regions will require further work to refine definitions of SWB. We recommend concurrent evaluation of at least three self-reported SWB measurement scales, including evaluation for gender or cultural sensitivity.

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Authors: Lindert, J., Bain, P. A., Kubzansky, L. D., & Stein, C.
Affiliations: Brandeis University (US)
Harvard University (US)
ORCID: Lindert, Jutta
Bain, Paul A.
Kubzansky, Laura D.
Venue: The European Journal of Public Health
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Published: 2015-01-22
Volume: 25
Issue: 4
Pages: 731-740
ISSN: 1101-1262 (ISSN-L)
1464-360X
DOI: 10.1093/eurpub/cku193
OpenAlex: W2160933378
Cited by: 246
References: 35
Citations by year: 2026: 14 · 2025: 22 · 2024: 18 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 25 · 2021: 34 · 2020: 76 · 2019: 14 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 2
FWCI: 1.04
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: bronze
doi.org
Locations: European Journal of Public Health (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders: World Health Organization
Topics: Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Management Science and Operations Research › Psychometric Methodologies and Testing
Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Health, psychology, and well-being
Keywords: subjective well-being, self-report measures, health policy, life satisfaction, affect, interpersonal relationships, spirituality, scale reliability and validity, intercultural sensitivity, gender sensitivity
MeSH terms: Female, Health Status, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Male, Mental Health, Personal Satisfaction, Surveys and Questionnaires, World Health Organization, Reproducibility of Results, Spirituality

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Well-being measurement and the WHO health policy Health 2010: systematic review of measurement scales

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