American Idea of Well-Being Differs Across Regions

NEW YORK - Despite sharing a language, an economy, a culture and a can-do belief in the "American Dream," researchers have found that the way US residents gauge their own sense of well-being varies by region.

"When it comes to defining the 'good life,' place matters," said study lead author Victoria C. Plaut of Stanford University in California. "Our cultural environments give us important ideas about how to be a person and how to be well, and well-being requires embracing these ideas."

Plaut and her colleagues conducted a mail and telephone poll across five regions in the US, asking more than 3,000 men and women aged 25 to 75 questions about their psychological, physical and social well-being.

In the current issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, the authors note that US residents do share many opinions on lifestyle issues.

No regional differences were seen in the value survey participants placed on having a purpose in life and feeling they could do whatever they decide they want to do. Most thought these qualities were reflected in their own lives.

And most people surveyed felt a similar level of satisfaction with their lives and physical health. Almost 60% graded their level of satisfaction at the highest possible level, while about 55% said they were generally healthy.

More than two-thirds agreed that being friendly was very important, and most said it was important to be helpful, sympathetic and warm.

Across regions, 72% of those surveyed called themselves "hardworking" and "responsible." And people also felt the same way across the US about the importance of family and spouse and obligation to the community at large.

But altruism did not appear to figure highly in the US consciousness, with just over one third of those throughout the country saying they highly valued the act of helping others at their own expense.

The investigators did find that there is such a thing as a distinct "regional consciousness" in the US.

They had initially constructed hypotheses about each region based on its demographic qualities and cultural aspects. For example, the researchers expected that those living in the Mountain region--"the land of 'Don't fence me in,"'--would value autonomy, while residents of the part of the Midwest the researchers dubbed West North Central would value "averageness," in the sense of "being moderate and not too extreme and resisting self-preoccupation."

In many cases, Plaut and her colleagues found, these regional personas were accurate. For example, Mountain region dwellers placed greater value on focusing on oneself, being open to experience and being assertive. They also considered mastery over the environment to be an important aspect of well-being. This area includes Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico.

And in New England--home to New Hampshire, with its "Live Free or Die" license plates--survey participants said that not being constrained by others was an important aspect of well-being. They also valued broadmindedness, curiosity and organization. Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont and Maine make up the rest of the region.

Those living in the East South Central region, encompassing Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi, viewed the notions of contributing to others and being caring and softhearted as critical to a sense of well-being. Autonomy was not important for this region's residents' sense of well-being. They were also the most likely to say they felt little control over the things that happened to them.

Only West South Central inhabitants--those living in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana--placed a premium on being lively, while also valuing self-confidence and outspokenness.

West North Central dwellers shared an appreciation for being outspoken, but also deemed curiosity to be a virtue. Residents of this region, which includes North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri, also valued "feeling calm, peaceful and satisfied."

Plaut told Reuters Health that it is important to view the survey not as a reinforcement of regional stereotypes, but rather as an assessment of the impact which a local cultural identity can have on an individual's idea of well-being.

"Despite the cultural homogenization that appears to come with the proliferation of 'The Gap' and 'Starbucks,' there are still many different ways of achieving well-being in America," she said.

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SOURCE: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2002;83:160-184.