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Lifestyle Stats: compare key data on United Kingdom & United States

Definitions

  • Amphetamine use: Percentage of people who have used amphetamines, generally for ages 15 and over. Spain and Greece: data for ages 15-64. Netherlands: data for ages 15-59. United Kingdom: data for ages 16-59. Germany: data for ages 18-59. Belgium: data for ages 18-65. France: data for ages 18-69. Data generally for 1999 or 1998. Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden: data for 1997. Austria: data for 1996. Denmark, France: data for 1995. Belgium: data for 1994. Canada: data for 1993.
  • Cannabis use: Percentage share of people who have used cannabis, generally including people 15 and above. Different nations have, however, focussed their studies on different age groups. United States and Netherlands: data for years 12 and above. Greece: Data for ages 12 to 64. Australia: data for ages 14 and above. United Kingdom: data for ages 16 to 59. Germany: data for ages 18-59. Denmark and France: data for ages 18 to 69. Data for 1998 or 1999 in most cases. Germany, Poland, and Spain: data for 1997. Austria: data for 1996. Denmark, France and Ireland: data for 1995.
  • Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > Current: Alcohol consumption - Litres per capita by population aged above 15. (Data for 2003).
  • Food and drink > Beer > Consumption: Litres of beer consumed per person per year (2002).
  • Food and drink > Coffee > Consumption: Kilograms of coffee consumed per person per year, 2002.
  • Food and drink > Exports: Food comprises the commodities in SITC sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and SITC division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels)."
  • Food and drink > Pork > Consumption per capita: Measures taken in 1997 and based on carcass weight. Selected Nations only.
  • Food and drink > Soft drink > Consumption: Consumption of carbonated soft drinks. Litres per person per year, 2002.
  • Food and drink > Tea > Consumption: Kilograms of tea consumed per person per year, 2002.
  • Happiness level > Very happy: Proportion of people who answered the survey question: "Taking all things together, would you say you are: very happy, quite happy, not very happy, or not at all happy?" by stating that they were "Very happy".
  • Happiness net: This statistic is compiled from responses to the survey question: "Taking all things together, would you say you are: very happy, quite happy, not very happy, or not at all happy?". The "Happiness (net)" statistic was obtained via the following formula: the percentage of people who rated themselves as either "quite happy" or "very happy" minus the percentage of people who rated themselves as either "not very happy" or "not at all happy".
  • Life satisfaction: Most scores are based on responses to the following question: "All things considered, how satisfied or dissatisfied are you with your life-as-a-whole now? 1 dissatisfied to10 satisfied" (item code O-SLW/c/sq/n/10/a). Scores of ten nations are based on responses to a somewhat different question: "Suppose the top of the ladder represents the best possible life for you and the bottom of the ladder the worst possible life. Where on this ladder do you feel you personally stand at the present time?" The response was rated on a ladder scale ranging from 0 to 10 (item code O-BW/c/sq/l/11/c). We transformed the scores using the information of nations in which both this item and the above question on life-satisfaction had been used in about the same years.
  • Quality of life index: Quality of Life Index is an estimation of overall quality of life by using empirical formula (the formula is an our opinion and it's based on experiments). The actual formula might be changed. Currently, we put the highest weight to pollution - if the environment is polluted too much, the economy or safety cannot fulfill it. We put the second highest importance to safety, since it is more important to feel safe rather than wealthy, in our opinion. etc. The number 65 is added so that the numbers are in such range so it rarely goes under zero (65 is a range modifier).
  • Roller coasters: Number of roller coasters in each country. Includes both wooden and steel constructions.
  • Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Depression: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Food and drink > Fruit juice > Consumption: Consumption of fruit juices. Litres per person per year, 2002.
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across activities > Sports: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Very proud of their nationality: Percentage responding in 1990s surveys that they were very proud of their nationality.
  • Life satisfaction inequality: This data is indicative of how much citizens differ in enjoyment of their life-as-a-whole.Life-satisfaction assessed by means of surveys in samples of the general population. Scores may be too low in some countries, due to under sampling of rural and illiterate population. In this ranking the focus is not on the level of happiness in the country, but on inequality in happiness among citizens.Inequality in happiness can be measured by the dispersion of responses to survey-questions. The degree of dispersion can be expressed statistically in the standard deviation and surveys items rated on a 10 step numerical scale are particularly usefull for that purpose. Most scores are based on responses to the following question: "All things considered, how satisfied or dissatisfied are you with your life-as-a-whole now? 1 dissatisfied to10 satisfied".
  • Roller coasters per million: Number of roller coasters in each country. Includes both wooden and steel constructions. Figures expressed per million population for the same year.
  • Society > Volunteering and social support > Volunteering > Volunteered your time: A tool for valuing volunteering is provided by the new Handbook on Nonprofit Institutions in the System of National Accounts, developed by the Johns Hopkins Center for Civic Society Studies in co-operation with the United Nations Statistics Division. The Handbook recommends that countries regularly produce “satellite accounts” of the non-profit sector, providing a comprehensive picture of its size and operation. So far, eight OECD countries have implemented this handbook, with data referring to a year between 1999 and 2004, and four additional countries are committed to do so in the future.

    Beyond the comprehensive information available through these handbooks, information on the size of volunteering and social support is available for a larger number of countries through household surveys. The data presented here are drawn from the Gallup World Poll. Data on volunteering are based on the two following questions: “Have you donated money to an organization in the last month?” and “Have you volunteered your time to an organization in the last month?”. Data on social support from the same survey are based on the questions: “If you were in trouble, do you have relatives or friends you can count on to help you whenever you need them?” and “Have you helped a stranger or someone you didn’t know who needed help in the last month?”. Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various questions.
  • Not proud of their nationality: Percentage responding in 1990s surveys that they were not proud of their nationality.
  • Food and drink > Bottled water > Consumption: Consumption of bottled water. Litres per person per year, 2002.
  • Food and drink > Wine > Consumption: Litres of wine consumed per person per year (2002).
  • Food and drink > Subway resturants: Number of Subway resturants by country
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Total: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Will fight for country: Percentage in 1990s surveys responding that they are willing to fight for their country.
  • Trust people: Percentage in 1990s surveys agreeing that people can be trusted.
  • Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Carbohydrates: Grams of carbohydrates in a McDonald's Big Mac in each country. Results are from the McDonald's website in each country.
  • Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Fat:

    Grams of fat in a McDonald's Big Mac in each country. Results are from the McDonald's website for each country.

  • Amateur radio operators: International Amateur Radio Union (2000). "Status Summary of Radio Amateurs & Amateur Stations of the World 2000".
  • Society > Suicides > Suicide rates and per capita GDP > Suicide rate: Data on suicide rates are based on official registers on causes of death based on international conventions surrounding the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD). The rates shown here are standardised using the OECD population structure of 1980, so as to allow controlling for differences in the age structure of the population across countries and over time. Suicide rates are expressed as deaths per 100 000 individuals.
  • Amphetamine use per million: Percentage of people who have used amphetamines, generally for ages 15 and over. Spain and Greece: data for ages 15-64. Netherlands: data for ages 15-59. United Kingdom: data for ages 16-59. Germany: data for ages 18-59. Belgium: data for ages 18-65. France: data for ages 18-69. Data generally for 1999 or 1998. Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden: data for 1997. Austria: data for 1996. Denmark, France: data for 1995. Belgium: data for 1994. Canada: data for 1993. Figures expressed per million population for the same year.
  • Food and drink > Subway resturants per million: Number of Subway resturants by country. Figures expressed per million population for the same year.
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across activities > TV or radio at home: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Food and drink > Total spirit > Consumption: Litres of spirits consumed per person per year, 2002.
  • Society > Subjective well-being > Negative experience index: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Ages 15-24: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Boredom: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Salt equivalent:

    Milligrams of salt in a McDonald's Big Mac in each county.  Results are from the McDonald's website for each country.   

  • Society > Subjective well-being > Positive experience index: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across activities > Visiting or entertaining friends: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Protein: Grams of protein in a McDonald's Big Mac in each country. Results are from the McDonald's website for each country.
  • Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting positive experiences > Enjoyment: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Society > Volunteering and social support > Social support > Helped a stranger: A tool for valuing volunteering is provided by the new Handbook on Nonprofit Institutions in the System of National Accounts, developed by the Johns Hopkins Center for Civic Society Studies in co-operation with the United Nations Statistics Division. The Handbook recommends that countries regularly produce “satellite accounts” of the non-profit sector, providing a comprehensive picture of its size and operation. So far, eight OECD countries have implemented this handbook, with data referring to a year between 1999 and 2004, and four additional countries are committed to do so in the future.

    Beyond the comprehensive information available through these handbooks, information on the size of volunteering and social support is available for a larger number of countries through household surveys. The data presented here are drawn from the Gallup World Poll. Data on volunteering are based on the two following questions: “Have you donated money to an organization in the last month?” and “Have you volunteered your time to an organization in the last month?”. Data on social support from the same survey are based on the questions: “If you were in trouble, do you have relatives or friends you can count on to help you whenever you need them?” and “Have you helped a stranger or someone you didn’t know who needed help in the last month?”. Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various questions.
  • Leisure > Recreation and culture > Government expenditure on recreation and culture: Household expenditure on recreation and culture includes purchases of audio-visual, photographic and computer equipment; CDs and DVDs; musical instruments; camper vans; caravans; sports equipment; toys; domestic pets and related products; gardening tools and plants; newspapers; tickets to sporting matches, cinemas and theatres; and spending on gambling (including lottery tickets) less any winnings. It excludes expenditures on restaurants, hotels, and travel and holiday homes but includes package holidays.

    Government expenditures include administration of sporting, recreational and cultural affairs as well as the maintenance of zoos, botanical gardens, public beaches and parks; support for broadcasting services and, where present, support for religious, fraternal, civic, youth and other social organisations (including the operation and repair of facilities and payment to clergy and other officers.) Also included are grants to artists and arts companies. Capital outlays such as the construction of sports stadiums, public swimming pools, national theatres, opera houses and museums are included.
  • Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Anger: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Society > Volunteering and social support > Volunteering > Donated money: A tool for valuing volunteering is provided by the new Handbook on Nonprofit Institutions in the System of National Accounts, developed by the Johns Hopkins Center for Civic Society Studies in co-operation with the United Nations Statistics Division. The Handbook recommends that countries regularly produce “satellite accounts” of the non-profit sector, providing a comprehensive picture of its size and operation. So far, eight OECD countries have implemented this handbook, with data referring to a year between 1999 and 2004, and four additional countries are committed to do so in the future.

    Beyond the comprehensive information available through these handbooks, information on the size of volunteering and social support is available for a larger number of countries through household surveys. The data presented here are drawn from the Gallup World Poll. Data on volunteering are based on the two following questions: “Have you donated money to an organization in the last month?” and “Have you volunteered your time to an organization in the last month?”. Data on social support from the same survey are based on the questions: “If you were in trouble, do you have relatives or friends you can count on to help you whenever you need them?” and “Have you helped a stranger or someone you didn’t know who needed help in the last month?”. Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various questions.
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Ages 65 and over: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Worry: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Ages 25-44: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Women: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Energy: Amount of kilocalories in a McDonald's Big Mac in each county. Results are from the McDonald's website for each county.
  • Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > 2000: Alcohol consumption - Litres per capita by population aged above 15 in 2000.
  • Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Sadness: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Pain: Measures of life satisfaction reflect the cognitive evaluation of life as a whole, now and five years from now, made by each person. The measures shown here are based on ladder-of-life questions, which ask respondents to rate their life from the worst (0) to the best (10) level, and refer to the share of people who rate their life (today and in the future) at step 7 or higher.

    Measures of positive and negative experiences and feelings refer to people who declared having experienced six different forms of negative and positive experiences during the previous day. Also shown are two composite indexes of positive and negative experiences, calculated at the individual record level. For each person, the 6 items are recoded so that positive answers are scored as 1 and negative answers (including “don’t know” and “refused to answer”) a 0; an individual record has an index calculated if it has at least 5 out of 6 valid scores. Each person’s composite index is the mean of valid items multiplied by 100, and the country level score shown in the table is the mean of all individual records for which an index was calculated.

    Population shares are calculated as a percentage of all respondents excluding those who refused or didn’t’ know how to answer the various survey questions.
  • Security > Victimisation rates > Victimisation by type of crime > All conventional victimisation: Crime statistics shown here are based on the 2005 International Crime Victim Survey (ICVS), run by a consortium coordinated by the United Nations Interregional Criminal Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). ICVS data for European countries are drawn from the European Survey on Crime and Safety, organised by a consortium led by Gallup Europe. Previous waves of this survey were conducted in 1989, 1992, 1996 and 2000, and most results can be compared across waves.
  • Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Dietary fiber: Grams of dietary fiber in a McDonald' Big Mac in each country. Results are from the McDonald's website for each country.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Church: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Men: The measures of the quantity of leisure time presented here are based on information drawn from national and International Time Use Surveys. Participants to these surveys fill diaries over a number of days. Information from these diaries is then aggregated into a standard activity classification, with the sum of minutes spent in various (primary) activities summing to 24 hours per day.

    Time-use data from national surveys have been re-coded by the OECD to a common classification based on the five main categories of “paid work and study”; “home production”; “personal care”; “leisure activities”; and “other activities not classified elsewhere”. Adjustments have been made to account for cross-country differences in the age of people covered by the various national surveys. Finally, to account for differences across countries in time devoted to personal care, this has been set equal to the amount devoted to this activity in the country where this is lowest (Norway); the excess of daily time that residents of some countries devote to personal care has been added to leisure.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Armed forces: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Legal system: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Press: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Police: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Members of voluntary organisations > Charity: Proportion saying they are active members of voluntary organisations in this category, 1990s surveys.
  • Society > Suicides > Suicide rates by gender > Women: Data on suicide rates are based on official registers on causes of death based on international conventions surrounding the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD). The rates shown here are standardised using the OECD population structure of 1980, so as to allow controlling for differences in the age structure of the population across countries and over time. Suicide rates are expressed as deaths per 100 000 individuals.
  • Discuss politics frequently: Proportions in 1990s surveys responding that they discuss politics frequently.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Legal system per million: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution. Figures expressed per million population for the same year.
  • Political action > Attended a demonstration: Proportion of respondents in 1990s surveys who have ever attended a demonstration.
  • Political action > Joined a boycott: Proportion of respondents in 1990s surveys who have ever joined a boycott.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Parliament: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > 1980: Alcohol consumption - Litres per capita by population aged above 15 in 1980. Data not available for South Korea.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Civil service: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Police per million: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution. Figures expressed per million population for the same year.
  • Political action > Signed a petition: Proportion of respondents in 1990s surveys who have ever signed a petition.
  • Society > Suicides > Suicides rates and subjective life-evaluations > Suicide rates: Data on suicide rates are based on official registers on causes of death based on international conventions surrounding the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD). The rates shown here are standardised using the OECD population structure of 1980, so as to allow controlling for differences in the age structure of the population across countries and over time. Suicide rates are expressed as deaths per 100 000 individuals.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Trade unions: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Members of voluntary organisations > Parties: Proportion saying they are active members of voluntary organisations in this category, 1990s surveys.
  • Somewhat interested in politics: Proportions in 1990s surveys responding that they are somewhat interested in politics.
  • Confidence in social institutions > Companies: Proportion of people in 1990s surveys expressing confidence in this social institution.
  • Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > 1990: Alcohol consumption - Litres per capita by population aged above 15 in 1990.
  • Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > 1970: Alcohol consumption - Litres per capita by population aged above 15 in 1970. Data not available for Greece, South Korea or Mexico.
  • Food and drink > Exports > % of merchandise > Exports: Food comprises the commodities in SITC sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and SITC division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels).
  • Members of voluntary organisations > Unions: Proportion saying they are active members of voluntary organisations in this category, 1990s surveys.
  • Members of voluntary organisations > Education: Proportion saying they are active members of voluntary organisations in this category, 1990s surveys.
  • Members of voluntary organisations > Professional: Proportion saying they are active members of voluntary organisations in this category, 1990s surveys.
  • Members of voluntary organisations > Environmental: Proportion saying they are active members of voluntary organisations in this category, 1990s surveys.
  • Food and drink > Beverages and tobacco > % of value added in manufacturing: Value added in manufacturing is the sum of gross output less the value of intermediate inputs used in production for industries classified in ISIC major division 3. Food, beverages, and tobacco comprise ISIC division 31.
  • Food and drink > Imports > % of merchandise imports: Food comprises the commodities in SITC sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and SITC division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels)."
STAT United Kingdom United States HISTORY
Amphetamine use 3%
Ranked 2nd. 4 times more than United States
0.7%
Ranked 6th.
Cannabis use 9%
Ranked 4th.
12.3%
Ranked 3rd. 37% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > Current 11.2 litres per capita
Ranked 9th. 35% more than United States
8.3 litres per capita
Ranked 20th.
Food and drink > Beer > Consumption 97 litres
Ranked 6th. 14% more than United States
85 litres
Ranked 8th.
Food and drink > Coffee > Consumption 1.2 kgs
Ranked 16th.
3 kgs
Ranked 12th. 3 times more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Exports 6.58
Ranked 89th.
10.24
Ranked 72nd. 56% more than United Kingdom

Food and drink > Pork > Consumption per capita 54.3
Ranked 13th.
62.8
Ranked 12th. 16% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Soft drink > Consumption 96.5 litres
Ranked 7th.
216 litres
Ranked 1st. 2 times more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Tea > Consumption 2.3 kgs
Ranked 1st. 11 times more than United States
0.2 kgs
Ranked 13th.
Happiness level > Very happy 38%
Ranked 10th.
39%
Ranked 8th. 3% more than United Kingdom
Happiness net 87%
Ranked 9th. 4% more than United States
84%
Ranked 14th.
Life satisfaction 7.2
Ranked 16th.
7.4
Ranked 13th. 3% more than United Kingdom
Quality of life index 149.05
Ranked 15th.
191.27
Ranked 2nd. 28% more than United Kingdom
Roller coasters 160
Ranked 3rd.
624
Ranked 1st. 4 times more than United Kingdom
Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Depression 11.25%
Ranked 9th. 10% more than United States
10.27%
Ranked 11th.
Food and drink > Fruit juice > Consumption 29.3 litres
Ranked 8th.
42.8 litres
Ranked 2nd. 46% more than United Kingdom
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across activities > Sports 3.83%
Ranked 17th.
5.45%
Ranked 13th. 43% more than United Kingdom
Very proud of their nationality 53%
Ranked 5th.
77%
Ranked 1st. 45% more than United Kingdom
Life satisfaction inequality 2.2
Ranked 68th. 5% more than United States
2.1
Ranked 73th.
Roller coasters per million 2.64
Ranked 6th. 26% more than United States
2.09
Ranked 10th.
Society > Volunteering and social support > Volunteering > Volunteered your time 28.65%
Ranked 10th.
41.9%
Ranked 1st. 46% more than United Kingdom
Not proud of their nationality 11%
Ranked 12th. 6 times more than United States
2%
Ranked 16th.
Food and drink > Bottled water > Consumption 25.4 litres
Ranked 10th.
46.8 litres
Ranked 7th. 84% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Wine > Consumption 20 litres
Ranked 9th. 3 times more than United States
7 litres
Ranked 18th.
Food and drink > Subway resturants 564
Ranked 4th.
19,467
Ranked 1st. 35 times more than United Kingdom
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Total 25.42%
Ranked 8th. 3% more than United States
24.57%
Ranked 12th.
Will fight for country 74%
Ranked 7th.
78%
Ranked 5th. 5% more than United Kingdom
Trust people 38%
Ranked 12th.
44%
Ranked 8th. 16% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Carbohydrates 41 g
Ranked 18th.
46 g
Ranked 1st. 12% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Fat 24 g
Ranked 34th.
29 g
Ranked 3rd. 21% more than United Kingdom
Amateur radio operators 58,426
Ranked 8th.
679,864
Ranked 2nd. 12 times more than United Kingdom
Society > Suicides > Suicide rates and per capita GDP > Suicide rate 6.3 Per 100 000 persons, 2004
Ranked 26th.
10.2 Per 100 000 persons, 2004
Ranked 21st. 62% more than United Kingdom
Amphetamine use per million 0.0511%
Ranked 9th. 20 times more than United States
0.00251%
Ranked 24th.
Food and drink > Subway resturants per million 9.31
Ranked 15th.
65.24
Ranked 4th. 7 times more than United Kingdom
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across activities > TV or radio at home 40.71%
Ranked 6th.
44.07%
Ranked 3rd. 8% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Total spirit > Consumption 3.9 litres
Ranked 9th.
4.8 litres
Ranked 6th. 23% more than United Kingdom
Society > Subjective well-being > Negative experience index 22.56 2008 or latest available
Ranked 18th.
24.57 2008 or latest available
Ranked 14th. 9% more than United Kingdom
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Ages 15-24 26.94%
Ranked 12th.
27.09%
Ranked 11th. 1% more than United Kingdom
Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Boredom 27.13%
Ranked 6th.
29.78%
Ranked 3rd. 10% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Salt equivalent 2,100 mg
Ranked 30th.
2,426 mg
Ranked 5th. 16% more than United Kingdom
Society > Subjective well-being > Positive experience index 73.51 2008 or latest available
Ranked 11th.
78.41 2008 or latest available
Ranked 4th. 7% more than United Kingdom
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across activities > Visiting or entertaining friends 6.83%
Ranked 11th.
16.22%
Ranked 4th. 2 times more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Protein 28
Ranked 3rd. 12% more than United States
25
Ranked 35th.
Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting positive experiences > Enjoyment 82.4%
Ranked 13th.
88.99%
Ranked 2nd. 8% more than United Kingdom
Society > Volunteering and social support > Social support > Helped a stranger 58.49%
Ranked 8th.
65.47%
Ranked 2nd. 12% more than United Kingdom
Leisure > Recreation and culture > Government expenditure on recreation and culture 0.886%
Ranked 19th. 3 times more than United States
0.324%
Ranked 25th.
Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Anger 17.88%
Ranked 10th. 9% more than United States
16.43%
Ranked 15th.
Society > Volunteering and social support > Volunteering > Donated money 72.23%
Ranked 3rd. 9% more than United States
66.26%
Ranked 9th.
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Ages 65 and over 35.83%
Ranked 11th.
37.21%
Ranked 8th. 4% more than United Kingdom
Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Worry 26.76%
Ranked 24th.
33.65%
Ranked 10th. 26% more than United Kingdom
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Ages 25-44 21.6%
Ranked 8th. 11% more than United States
19.53%
Ranked 13th.
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Women 24.93%
Ranked 6th. 3% more than United States
24.1%
Ranked 10th.
Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Energy 490 kcal
Ranked 33th.
550 kcal
Ranked 2nd. 12% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > 2000 10.4 litres per capita
Ranked 12th. 25% more than United States
8.3 litres per capita
Ranked 23th.
Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Sadness 20.87%
Ranked 7th. 16% more than United States
17.91%
Ranked 15th.
Society > Subjective well-being > People reporting negative experiences > Pain 24.85%
Ranked 8th. The same as United States
24.84%
Ranked 9th.
Security > Victimisation rates > Victimisation by type of crime > All conventional victimisation 21%
Ranked 4th. 20% more than United States
17.5%
Ranked 10th.
Food and drink > Big Mac nutritional values > Dietary fiber 4 g
Ranked 1st. 33% more than United States
3 g
Ranked 26th.
Confidence in social institutions > Church 45%
Ranked 11th.
72%
Ranked 1st. 60% more than United Kingdom
Leisure > Leisure Time > Leisure time across demographic groups > Men 25.83%
Ranked 8th. 3% more than United States
25.08%
Ranked 11th.
Confidence in social institutions > Armed forces 81%
Ranked 1st. 25% more than United States
65%
Ranked 5th.
Confidence in social institutions > Legal system 53%
Ranked 12th. 10% more than United States
48%
Ranked 13th.
Confidence in social institutions > Press 15%
Ranked 17th.
44%
Ranked 3rd. 3 times more than United Kingdom
Confidence in social institutions > Police 77%
Ranked 6th. 5% more than United States
73%
Ranked 8th.
Members of voluntary organisations > Charity 5%
Ranked 9th.
15%
Ranked 2nd. 3 times more than United Kingdom
Society > Suicides > Suicide rates by gender > Women 2.8 Per 100 000 persons, 2004
Ranked 26th.
3.9 Per 100 000 persons, 2004
Ranked 22nd. 39% more than United Kingdom
Discuss politics frequently 13%
Ranked 12th.
15%
Ranked 9th. 15% more than United Kingdom
Confidence in social institutions > Legal system per million 0.926%
Ranked 13th. 5 times more than United States
0.192%
Ranked 17th.
Political action > Attended a demonstration 14%
Ranked 14th.
16%
Ranked 13th. 14% more than United Kingdom
Political action > Joined a boycott 14%
Ranked 6th.
19%
Ranked 4th. 36% more than United Kingdom
Confidence in social institutions > Parliament 44%
Ranked 7th. 16% more than United States
38%
Ranked 12th.
Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > 1980 9.4 litres per capita
Ranked 21st.
10.5 litres per capita
Ranked 19th. 12% more than United Kingdom
Confidence in social institutions > Civil service 46%
Ranked 8th.
56%
Ranked 2nd. 22% more than United Kingdom
Confidence in social institutions > Police per million 1.35%
Ranked 11th. 5 times more than United States
0.292%
Ranked 16th.
Political action > Signed a petition 68%
Ranked 5th.
72%
Ranked 4th. 6% more than United Kingdom
Society > Suicides > Suicides rates and subjective life-evaluations > Suicide rates 6.3 10.2
Confidence in social institutions > Trade unions 27%
Ranked 16th.
34%
Ranked 13th. 26% more than United Kingdom
Members of voluntary organisations > Parties 2%
Ranked 12th.
12%
Ranked 1st. 6 times more than United Kingdom
Somewhat interested in politics 47%
Ranked 12th.
62%
Ranked 3rd. 32% more than United Kingdom
Confidence in social institutions > Companies 47%
Ranked 11th.
52%
Ranked 6th. 11% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > 1990 9.8 litres per capita
Ranked 19th. 5% more than United States
9.3 litres per capita
Ranked 21st.
Food and drink > Alcohol > Consumption > 1970 7.1 litres per capita
Ranked 20th.
9.5 litres per capita
Ranked 14th. 34% more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Exports > % of merchandise > Exports 5.18%
Ranked 83th.
6.85%
Ranked 72nd. 32% more than United Kingdom

Members of voluntary organisations > Unions 1%
Ranked 17th.
6%
Ranked 4th. 6 times more than United Kingdom
Members of voluntary organisations > Education 3%
Ranked 17th.
16%
Ranked 2nd. 5 times more than United Kingdom
Members of voluntary organisations > Professional 2%
Ranked 12th.
13%
Ranked 2nd. 7 times more than United Kingdom
Members of voluntary organisations > Environmental 2%
Ranked 7th.
6%
Ranked 2nd. 3 times more than United Kingdom
Food and drink > Beverages and tobacco > % of value added in manufacturing 12.01%
Ranked 62nd.
12.09%
Ranked 61st. 1% more than United Kingdom

Food and drink > Imports > % of merchandise imports 10.86%
Ranked 69th. Twice as much as United States
5.45%
Ranked 110th.

SOURCES: OECD; OECD Health Data 2005; Global Market Information Database, published by Euromonitor; World Bank staff estimates from the Comtrade database maintained by the United Nations Statistics Division.; USDA Census of Agriculture; World Values Survey 2005; World Database of Happiness, Happiness in Nations, Rank Report 2004/1  Average happiness in 90 nations 1990-2000; quality of life; The Roller Coaster Database, 2006.; OECD Country statistical profiles 2009; World Values Survey; World Database of Happiness, Happiness in Nations, Rank Report 2004/3b. Equality of  happiness in 90 nations 1990-2000. How much citizens differ in enjoyment of their life as a whole; The Roller Coaster Database, 2006. Population figures from World Bank: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects, (2) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), (3) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (4) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (5) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme, and (6) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database.; Subway, 2006.; Wikipedia>Big Mac; Wikipedia>Big Mac ; Wikipedia: Amateur radio operator; OECD. Population figures from World Bank: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects, (2) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), (3) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (4) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (5) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme, and (6) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database.; Subway, 2006. Population figures from World Bank: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects, (2) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), (3) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (4) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (5) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme, and (6) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database.; Wikipedia> Big Mac; World Values Survey. Population figures from World Bank: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects, (2) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), (3) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (4) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (5) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme, and (6) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database.; World Development Indicators database

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