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Protocol - General Well-being

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Description

The General Well Being Schedule (GWB) is an 18-item, self-administered questionnaire that was developed for the U.S. Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HANES I). The GWB includes positive and negative questions across six dimensions: positive well-being, self-control, vitality, depression, anxiety, and general health. Each item has the time frame "during the last month," and the first 14 questions use 6-point response scales representing intensity or frequency. The remaining four questions use 0-10 rating scales defined by adjectives at each end. The polarity of items 1, 3, 6, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, and 16 is reversed for scoring, and items within each subscale are added together. Lower scores reflect distress and higher scores reflect positive well-being.

Specific Instructions

None

Availability

Available

Protocol

The General Well-Being Schedule

Read: This section of the examination contains questions about how you feel and how things have been going with you. For each question, mark (X) beside the answer which best applies to you.

1. How have you been feeling in general? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]In excellent spirits

2[ ]In very good spirits

3[ ]In good spirits mostly

4[ ]I have been up and down in spirits a lot

5[ ]In low spirits mostly

6[ ]In very low spirits

2. Have you been bothered by nervousness or your "nerves"? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]Extremely so-to the point where I could not work or take care of things

2[ ]Very much so

3[ ]Quite a bit

4[ ]Some-enough to bother me

5[ ]A little

6[ ]Not at all

3. Have you been in firm control of your behavior, thoughts, emotions, or feelings? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]Yes, definitely so

2[ ]Yes, for the most part

3[ ]Generally so

4[ ]Some-enough to bother me

5[ ]A little

6[ ]Not at all

4. Have you felt so sad, discourages, hopeless, or had so many problems that you wondered if anything was worthwhile? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]Extremely so-to the point that I have just about given up

2[ ]Very much so

3[ ]Quite a bit

4[ ]Some-enough to bother me

5[ ]A little bit

6[ ]Not at all

5. Have you been under or felt you were under any strain, stress, or pressure? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]Yes-almost more than I could bear or stand

2[ ]Yes-quite a bit of pressure

3[ ]Yes-some, more than usual

4[ ]Yes-some, but about usual

5[ ]Yes-a little

6[ ]Not at all

6. How happy, satisfied, or pleased have you been with your personal life? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]Extremely happy-could not have been more satisfied or pleased

2[ ]Very happy

3[ ]Fairly happy

4[ ]Satisfied-pleased

5[ ]Somewhat dissatisfied

6[ ]Very dissatisfied

7. Have you had any reason to wonder if you were losing your mind, or losing control over the way you act, talk, think, feel, or of your memory? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]Not at all

2[ ]Only a little

3[ ]Some-but not enough to be concerned or worried about

4[ ]Some, and I have been a little concerned

5[ ]Some, and I am quite concerned

6[ ]Yes, very much so, and I am very concerned

8. Have you been anxious, worried, or upset? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]Extremely so-to the point of being sick or almost sick

2[ ]Very much so

3[ ]Quite a bit

4[ ]Some-enough to bother me

5[ ]A little bit

6[ ]Not at all

9. Have you been waking up fresh and rested? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]Every day

2[ ]Most every day

3[ ]Fairly often

4[ ]Less than half the time

5[ ]Rarely

6[ ]None of the time

10. Have you been bothered by any illness, bodily disorder, pains, or fears about your health? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]All the time

2[ ]Most of the time

3[ ]A good bit of the time

4[ ]Some of the time

5[ ]A little of the time

6[ ]None of the time

11. Has your daily life been full of things that were interesting to you? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]All the time

2[ ]Most of the time

3[ ]A good bit of the time

4[ ]Some of the time

5[ ]A little of the time

6[ ]None of the time

12. Have you felt down hearted and blue? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]All the time

2[ ]Most of the time

3[ ]A good bit of the time

4[ ]Some of the time

5[ ]A little of the time

6[ ]None of the time

13. Have you been feeling emotionally stable and sure of yourself? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]All the time

2[ ]Most of the time

3[ ]A good bit of the time

4[ ]Some of the time

5[ ]A little of the time

6[ ]None of the time

14. Have you felt tired, worn out, used-up, or exhausted? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

1[ ]All the time

2[ ]Most of the time

3[ ]A good bit of the time

4[ ]Some of the time

5[ ]A little of the time

6[ ]None of the time

For each of the four scales below, note that the words at each end of the 0 to 10 scale describe opposite feelings. Circle any number along which seems closest to how you have generally felt? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

15. How concerned or worried about your HEALTH have you been? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

0[ ]Not concerned at all

1[ ] 

2[ ] 

3[ ] 

4[ ] 

5[ ] 

6[ ] 

7[ ] 

8[ ] 

9[ ] 

10[ ]Very concerned

16. How RELEAXED or TENSE have you been? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

0[ ]Very relaxed

1[ ] 

2[ ] 

3[ ] 

4[ ] 

5[ ] 

6[ ] 

7[ ] 

8[ ] 

9[ ] 

10[ ]Very tense

17. How much ENERGY, PEP, and VITALITY have you felt? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

0[ ]No energy AT ALL listless

1[ ] 

2[ ] 

3[ ] 

4[ ] 

5[ ] 

6[ ] 

7[ ] 

8[ ] 

9[ ] 

10[ ]Very ENERGETIC, dynamic

18. How DEPRESSED or CHEERFUL have you been? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)

0[ ]Very depressed

1[ ] 

2[ ] 

3[ ] 

4[ ] 

5[ ] 

6[ ] 

7[ ] 

8[ ] 

9[ ] 

10[ ]Very cheerful

Scoring:

Items 1, 3, 6, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, and 16 are reverse scored. Because these items are reverse scored, 14 is subtracted from the total score to give a range of 0-110. There are three proposed cut-points: total scores of 0-60 reflect "severe distress," 61-72 "moderate distress," and 73-110 "positive well-being".

Six sub-scores can be derived.

Subscore Label

Question topics

Anxiety

2. nervousness

5. strain, stress, or pressure

8. anxious, worried, upset

16. relaxed, tense

Depression

4. sad, discouraged, hopeless

12. down-hearted, blue

18. depressed

Positive well-being

1. feeling in general

6. happy, satisfied with life

11. interesting daily life

Self-control

3. firm control of behavior, emotions

7. afraid losing mind, or losing control

13. emotionally stable, sure of self

Vitality

9. waking fresh, rested

14. feeling tired, worn out

17. energy level

General health

10. bothered by illness

15. concerned, worried about health

Personnel and Training Required

None

Equipment Needs

None

Requirements
Requirement CategoryRequired
Major equipment No
Specialized training No
Specialized requirements for biospecimen collection No
Average time of greater than 15 minutes in an unaffected individual No
Mode of Administration

Self-administered questionnaire

Lifestage

Adult

Participants

Adults, ages 18 and older

Selection Rationale

The General Well-Being Schedule (GWB) is a brief, reliable, valid, and widely used self-administered questionnaire that addresses subjective well-being. Traumatic events, with or without subsequent post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), can affect the sense of well-being, and the GWB addresses this important dimension of post-traumatic adjustment.

Language

English

Standards
StandardNameIDSource
caDSR Form PhenX PX630701 - General Wellbeing 6231661 caDSR Form
Derived Variables

None

Process and Review

Not applicable.

Protocol Name from Source

The General Well Being Schedule (GWB)

Source

Fazio, A. F. (1977). A concurrent validational study of the NCHS General Well-Being Schedule. Hyattsville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, National Center for Health Statistics.

General References

Dupuy, H. J. (1978). Self-representations of general psychological well-being of American adults. Paper presented at American Public Health Association Meeting, Los Angeles, CA..

Poston, W. S. C. II, Olvera, N. E., Yanez C., et al. (1998). Evacuation of the factor structure and psychometric characteristics of the General Well-Being Schedule (GWB) with Mexican American women. Women Health, 27, 51-64.

Taylor, J. E., Poston, W. S. C. II, Haddock, C. K., et al. (2003). Psychometric characteristics of the General Well-Being Schedule (GWB) with African-American women. Quality of Life Research, 12, 31-39.

Protocol ID

630701

Variables
Export Variables
Variable Name Variable IDVariable DescriptiondbGaP Mapping
PX630701_Anxious_Worried_Upset
PX630701080000 Have you been anxious, worried, or upset? more
(DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Bothered_Illness_HealthFears
PX630701100000 Have you been bothered by any illness, more
bodily disorder, pains, or fears about your health? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Bothered_Nerves
PX630701020000 Have you been bothered by nervousness or more
your "nerves”? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
Variable Mapping
PX630701_Control_Behavior_Feelings
PX630701030000 Have you been in firm control of your more
behavior, thoughts, emotions, or feelings? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
Variable Mapping
PX630701_Daily_Life_Interesting
PX630701110000 Has your daily life been full of things that more
were interesting to you? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Depressed_Or_Cheerful
PX630701180000 How DEPRESSED or CHEERFUL have you been? more
(DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Energy_Vitality
PX630701170000 For each of the four scales below, note that more
the words at each end of the 0 to 10 scale describe opposite feelings. Circle any number along which seems closest to how you have generally felt? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) How much ENERGY, PEP, and VITALITY show less
Variable Mapping
PX630701_Feeling_Emotionally_Stable
PX630701130000 Have you been feeling emotionally stable and more
sure of yourself? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Feeling_General
PX630701010000 How have you been feeling in general? more
(DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Felt_Downhearted_Blue
PX630701120000 Have you felt down hearted and blue? (DURING more
THE PAST MONTH) show less
Variable Mapping
PX630701_Felt_Sad_Problems
PX630701040000 Have you felt so sad, discourages, hopeless, more
or had so many problems that you wondered if anything was worthwhile? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Felt_Tired_Exhausted
PX630701140000 Have you felt tired, worn out, used-up, or more
exhausted? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
Variable Mapping
PX630701_Happy_Personal_Life
PX630701060000 How happy, satisfied, or pleased have you more
been with your personal life? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
Variable Mapping
PX630701_Losing_Mind
PX630701070000 Have you had any reason to wonder if you more
were losing your mind, or losing control over the way you act, talk, think, feel, or of your memory? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Relaxed_Or_Tense
PX630701160000 For each of the four scales below, note that more
the words at each end of the 0 to 10 scale describe opposite feelings. Circle any number along which seems closest to how you have generally felt? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) How RELEAXED or TENSE have you bee show less
N/A
PX630701_Stress_Pressure
PX630701050000 Have you been under or felt you were under more
any strain, stress, or pressure? (DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
Variable Mapping
PX630701_Waking_Up_Fresh
PX630701090000 Have you been waking up fresh and rested? more
(DURING THE PAST MONTH) show less
N/A
PX630701_Worried_Health
PX630701150000 For each of the four scales below, note that more
the words at each end of the 0 to 10 scale describe opposite feelings. Circle any number along which seems closest to how you have generally felt? (DURING THE PAST MONTH)How concerned or worried about your show less
N/A
Post-traumatic Stress Psychopathology (including PTSD)
Measure Name

General Well-being

Release Date

November 21, 2014

Definition

A questionnaire to measure subjective feelings of psychological well-being and distress.

Purpose

This measure is used to assess "inner personal state" on a dimension ranging from positive well-being to distress. It complements instruments that assess external resources and conditions such as income, work environment, or neighborhood.

Keywords

Nervousness, behavior, stress, Hopeless, post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, Strain, anxiety, pain, Fear, well-being, distress, trauma

Measure Protocols
Protocol ID Protocol Name
630701 General Well-being
Publications

There are no publications listed for this protocol.