WASHINGTON & NASHVILLE, Tenn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Global well-being improvement leader Healthways, Inc. (NASDAQ: HWAY) and world-leading management consulting firm Gallup have released their comprehensive analysis of well-being around the world, the Gallup-Healthways State of Global Well-Being: 2014 Country Well-Being Rankings Report. According to the report, Panama was the nation with the highest well-being for the second year in a row, while Afghanistan was the nation with the lowest overall well-being. The United States ranked 23rd in the 2014 global rankings, down from 12th in 2013.

The analysis is based on data from the Gallup-Healthways Global Well-Being Index, a definitive measure and empiric database of real-time changes in well-being throughout the world. More than 146,000 interviews in 145 countries fueled the 2014 analysis, which serves as a global barometer of individuals’ perceptions of their well-being across five elements: purpose, social, financial, community and physical. The Global Well-Being Index captures important aspects of how people feel about and experience their daily lives, including topics that span how much they like what they do, their social relationships, their financial security and their relationship to their community, as well as their physical health.

The Americas have the highest percentages thriving in three or more elements and lead other regions in their purpose, social, community and physical well-being. Latin Americans in particular have higher levels of well-being than any other regional group. European countries dominated in financial well-being, representing nine of the top ten countries. Globally, overall well-being remained unchanged from 2013, with only 17 percent of residents in the 145 countries surveyed thriving in three or more elements.

“For the second year, only one in six adults worldwide are considered thriving in at least three of the five elements of well-being, which underscores that many countries are not maximizing their human potential,” said Dan Witters, research director of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. “Measurements of national performance typically focus on income-related metrics, such as GDP, but those economic indicators do not always directly align with citizens’ daily perceptions of their lives. There is growing awareness that internally subjective indicators such as what are found in the Global Well-Being Index offer a more complete picture of progress toward specific development goals.”

The ten countries or areas with the highest overall well-being in the world, as assessed by the percentage of their populations thriving in three or more elements of well-being are:

• Panama (53.0%)
• Costa Rica (47.6%)
• Puerto Rico (45.8%)
• Switzerland (39.4%)
• Belize (38.9%)
• Chile (38.7%)
• Denmark (37.0%)
• Guatemala (36.3%)
• Austria (35.6%)
• Mexico (35.6%)

The ten countries or areas with the lowest overall well-being in the world, as assessed by the percentage of their populations thriving in three or more elements of well-being are:

• Afghanistan (0.0%)
• Bhutan (3.0%)
• Cameroon (3.1%)
• Togo (3.9%)
• Tunisia (4.0%)
• Congo Kinshasa (4.1%)
• Ivory Coast (4.5%)
• Benin (4.8%)
• Haiti (5.3%)
• Ghana (5.6%)

“Through scientific and peer-reviewed research, we know that improving a population’s well-being has a significant impact on increasing performance and lowering healthcare costs,” said Peter Choueiri, president of Healthways International. “The fact that only 17 percent of the world’s population is thriving in three or more elements of well-being represents a huge opportunity for country and community leaders, employers, insurers and any population health stakeholder. There are proven interventions that these leaders can and should leverage to improve the health and well-being of their population and, at the same time, create measurable economic value.”

Research by Gallup and Healthways shows that people worldwide with higher well-being have higher employee engagement and productivity, incur lower healthcare costs, and are more resilient in the face of challenges such as unemployment. Globally, higher well-being has been associated with outcomes indicative of stability and resilience — for example, healthcare utilization, intent to migrate, trust in elections and local institutions, daily stress, food/shelter security, volunteerism, and willingness to help others.

“Global leaders are becoming increasingly focused on truly understanding the health and productivity of their populations,” said Arnaud Bernaert, senior director, head of global health and healthcare industries, World Economic Forum. “We need standardized global measurements and comparative data to help nations identify their biggest opportunities for improving the lives of the people within their borders. These insights will guide future investments in health and well-being.”

To access the complete report, “Gallup-Healthways State of Global Well-Being: 2014 Country Well-Being Rankings,” visit http://www.well-beingindex.com/2014-global-report. Earlier this year, Gallup and Healthways also released reports on state and community well-being rankings for the United States.

About the Gallup-Healthways Global Well-Being Index

In 2008, Gallup and Healthways initiated a 25-year partnership merging decades of clinical research and development expertise, health leadership and behavioral economics research to track and understand the key factors that drive well-being. Together, the partnership has built the world’s largest data set on well-being, with over 2.2 million surveys to date of people and their perceptions of their well-being.