Three-fourth of Connecticut adults feel they are happy. Yet that contrasts with a third feeling they are barely getting by or worse economically, according to the results of a new statewide survey.
The DataHaven Community Wellbeing Survey, which backers believe is the largest survey of its kind in the United States, creates neighborhood-level measures of well-being, happiness, financial security, employment, health, safety and quality of life throughout the state for the first time. DataHaven said the power of the survey results was greatly enhanced both by the number of respondents, approximately 16,200, as well as by having the same questions being asked of respondents in many different areas.
Among the survey’s findings:
- 66 percent of residents say they are either doing alright or living comfortably when asked how they are managing financially these days. However, 11 percent are finding it difficult or very difficult, and an additional 21 percent say that they are just getting by.
- One out of every 10 adults identifying as white or Asian-American, and one out of every four adults identifying as African-American or Latino, reported that they did not have enough money to buy food for themselves or their family at some point during the past 12 months – in some cases, facing this situation almost every month of the year.
- 74 percent of men and 75 percent of women in Connecticut report feeling mostly or completely happy during the previous day. However, this measure varied widely by income, ranging from 53 percent among adults earning less than $15,000 per year to 89 percent among adults earning $200,000 or more.
- Nearly one out of every 20 Connecticut adults (4.9 percent) continue to lack health insurance.
- Although official unemployment rates have fallen substantially since 2012, 14 percent of Connecticut workers are still considered “under-employed,” meaning that they have no job and would like to work or they are currently working part-time but would prefer to have a full-time job.
The 20-minute survey, conducted by the Siena College Research Institute in Loudonville, N.Y., involved landline and cellphone interviews with randomly-selected adults throughout Connecticut and adjacent sections of Westchester County between April and October 2015.
