Editor's Note: °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹Ù·½ÍøÖ· re-estimated its °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹Ù·½ÍøÖ·-Healthways Well-Being Index and Life Evaluation Index data from January 2008 to April 2009 to address context effects that °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹Ù·½ÍøÖ· discovered after the data were originally published.
In every world region, people who say their employer is letting workers go are less likely to be "thriving" and report less favorable moods than those who say their employer is hiring. The effects are most dramatic in the Americas.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy is encouraging world leaders to consider ways to assess their society's wellbeing beyond their gross domestic product (GDP). °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹Ù·½ÍøÖ·'s global surveys underscore the extent to which life quality relates to a range of factors beyond classical economic measures.
Residents of Hawaii and North Dakota had the lowest stress levels in the nation in the first half of 2009, while Kentucky and West Virginia residents had the highest stress levels. States with residents that are less stressed tend to have happier residents, but this is not always the case.