Our stress is higher than people think is healthy
On a scale of 1 to 10 (where 1 is “little
or no stress” and 10 is “a great deal
of stress”), adults report their stress
level is 4. 9, compared with 5. 2 in 2011,
5. 4 in 2010 and 2009, 5. 9 in 2008 and
6. 2 in 2007. Comparatively, Americans
believe 3. 6 is a healthy level of stress.
Almost three-quarters ( 72 percent)
of respondents say that their stress
level has increased or stayed the same
over the past five years, and 80 percent
say their stress level has increased or
stayed the same in the past year. Only
20 percent said their stress level has
decreased in the past year.
The number of Americans reporting
extreme stress continues to be high
— 20 percent said their stress is an 8,
9 or 10 on a 10-point scale, which is
comparable to the numbers reporting
extreme stress in 2011 ( 22 percent),
2010 (24 percent) and 2009 ( 23
percent).
Over the past five years, 60 percent
of adults have tried to reduce their
stress. More than half ( 53 percent) are
still trying to meet this goal.
Only 37 percent of Americans feel
they are actually doing an excellent or
very good job of managing their stress.
Most frequent cited stressors include:
• Money ( 69 percent).
• Work ( 65 percent).
• The economy ( 61 percent).
American’s stress levels since 2007
On a scale of 1 to 10 where 1 means you have little or no stress and 10
means you have a great deal of stress, how would you rate
your average level of stress during the past month?
On a scale of 1 to 10 where 1 means little or no stress and 10 means a
great deal of stress, what would you consider a healthy level
of stress?
Personal assessment
of stress level
Personal healthy
level of stress
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
6. 2
4. 4
5. 9
4. 2
5. 4
3. 7
5. 4
3. 7
5. 2
3. 6
4. 9
3. 6
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
BASE: All respondents 2007 (n=1848); 2008 (n=1791); 2009 (n=1568);
2010 (n=1134); 2011 (n=1226); 2012 (n=2020)
• Family responsibilities ( 57 percent).
• Relationships ( 56 percent).
• Family health problems ( 52 percent).
• Personal health concerns ( 51 percent).