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General Well-Being Schedule
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About General Well-Being Schedule
Scale Name
General Well-Being Schedule
Author Details
Harold J. Dupuy
Translation Availability
English
Background/Description
The General Well-Being Schedule (GWB) is a widely used instrument developed by Harold J. Dupuy in 1977 for the U.S. Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HANES I). Unlike measures focusing on external circumstances such as work or income, the GWB emphasizes an individual’s subjective psychological state—how people perceive their inner sense of well-being and distress. It reflects the theoretical influence of Kurt Lewin, assessing both positive and negative emotional states.
The GWB consists of 18 items that examine well-being over the past month, including both intensity/frequency ratings and 0–10 scales for key aspects of emotional health. The instrument yields a total score (0–110), with cutoff points indicating:
In addition to the total score, six subscores may be derived: positive well-being, self-control, vitality, anxiety, depression, and general health. This multidimensional structure makes the GWB a powerful tool for both community surveys and clinical research, offering insights into emotional resilience, mood disorders, and quality of life.
Administration, Scoring and Interpretation
- Obtain a Copy: Access through the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) or relevant academic publications.
- Explain the Purpose: Inform participants that the questionnaire measures psychological well-being and distress during the past month.
- Provide Instructions: Respondents complete 18 items using Likert-type and rating scales, indicating their experiences of vitality, control, depression, anxiety, and health.
- Approximate Time: Takes 10–12 minutes to complete.
- Administer the Scale: Can be self-administered or interviewer-administered in clinical or survey settings.
Reliability and Validity
The General Well-Being Schedule demonstrates excellent psychometric properties:
- Internal Consistency: High reliability, with Cronbach’s alpha values ranging from 0.88 to 0.95 across diverse populations (e.g., community, clinical, and cross-cultural samples). Large-scale studies such as HANES I (N = 6,913) reported α = 0.93.
- Test-Retest Reliability: Three-month coefficients range from 0.68 to 0.85, indicating stable measurement over time.
- Factor analyses confirm three to four major dimensions: depressive mood, health concern, and life satisfaction.
- Strong convergent validity with established depression and anxiety scales (e.g., correlations of 0.66–0.80 with Zung’s Self-Rating Depression Scale; 0.70 with Lubin Depression Checklist).
- Discriminant validity shown by its ability to differentiate psychiatric patients from community samples and detect clinical change after treatment.
- Cross-cultural validation in 18 countries confirms alpha coefficients above 0.70 for all six subscales, indicating robust international applicability.
Available Versions
18-Items
Reference
Dupuy, H. J. (1977). A current validational study of the NCHS general well-being schedule (DHEW Publication No. HRA 78-1347). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics, US Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.
Important Link
Scale File:
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. What does the General Well-Being Schedule measure?
It measures subjective well-being and distress across six domains: positive well-being, self-control, vitality, anxiety, depression, and general health.
Q2. Who can use the GWB?
It is designed for adults in community and clinical settings, often used in epidemiological studies and mental health research.
Q3. How long does it take to complete?
Typically 10–12 minutes, depending on literacy and familiarity with self-report questionnaires.
Q4. How is the GWB scored?
Scores range from 0–110, with higher scores indicating greater well-being and lower scores indicating distress. Cutoffs classify respondents into severe distress, moderate distress, or positive well-being.
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