Gallup is out with its 2011 global rankings of "thriving" and "suffering" -- encompassing 146 countries. Those who are thriving tend to have higher incomes, more education, good health, and social support. Those who are suffering often have lower incomes, less education, and less access to basic needs such as food, shelter, and healthcare.
Gallup classifies respondents as "thriving," "struggling," or "suffering" according to how they rate their current and future lives on a ladder scale with steps numbered from 0 to 10 based on the Cantril Self-Anchoring Striving Scale. Gallup considers people to be thriving if they rate their current lives a 7 or higher and their lives in five years an 8 or higher, and classifies people as suffering if they rate their current lives a 4 or lower and their lives in five years a 4 or lower.
Nearly one-quarter of adults worldwide (24%) are "thriving," while 13% are "suffering." Here is a summary of who is thriving, suffering, making progress, and falling behind worldwide:
Thriving
Bests
- Denmark had the largest percentage of thriving adults (74%), trailed by other wealthy and developed countries such as Canada and the Netherlands, both at 66%.
- Wellbeing was generally highest again in the Americas, where a median of 39% were thriving.
- Ghana had the largest gain in thriving in 2011 (29%), increasing 19 percentage points from 2010.
Worsts
- Cambodia ranked last for thriving, with only 2% of its population thriving.
- African countries generally dominate the list of countries where thriving is lowest, accounting for more than half of the 28 countries where thriving was 10% or lower.
- Fewer than one in 10 were thriving in Egypt (9%) and Yemen (8%), where unrest continued throughout much of 2011.
- El Salvador had the largest loss in thriving in 2011 (17%), decreasing 22 percentage points from 2010.
Suffering
Bests
- Suffering was as low as 1% or less in the United Arab Emirates, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Canada, Thailand, and Brazil.
- Median suffering was lowest in the Americas at 6%.
- Suffering declined the most in Macedonia, falling 25 percentage points last year from 38% in 2010.
Worsts
- Bulgaria had the negative distinction of leading the "suffering" list with 45% of its population suffering, followed by Yemen (38%) and Armenia (35%).
- Suffering spiked in places such as Iran, Afghanistan, and El Salvador in 2011 -- earning them a spot near the top of the world's most suffering list.
- Suffering increased the most in El Salvador, climbing to 33% in 2011 from 9% in 2010.
To see wellbeing metrics for more than 150 countries, visit Gallup's Worldwide Tracking interactive.