title: Mental well-being and mental illness: findings from the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey for England 2007.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Mental well-being underpins many aspects of health and social functioning, and is economically important.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe mental well-being in a general population sample and to determine the extent to which mental well-being and mental illness are independent of one another.
  
  
  METHODS
  Secondary analysis of a survey of 7293 adults in England. Nine survey questions were identified as possible indicators of mental well-being. Common mental disorders (ICD-10) were ascertained using the Revised Clinical Interview Schedule (CIS-R). Principal components analysis was used to describe the factor structure of mental well-being and to generate mental well-being indicators.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A two-factor solution found eight out of nine items with strong loadings on well-being. Eight items corresponding to hedonic and eudaemonic well-being accounted for 36.9% and 14.3% of total variance respectively. Separate hedonic and eudaemonic well-being scales were created. Hedonic well-being (full of life; having lots of energy) declined with age, while eudaemonic well-being (getting on well with family and friends; sense of belonging) rose steadily with age. Hedonic well-being was lower and eudaemonic well-being higher in women. Associations of well-being with age, gender, income and self-rated health were little altered by adjustment for symptoms of mental illness.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In a large nationally representative population sample, two types of well-being were distinguished and reliably assessed: hedonic and eudaemonic. Associations with mental well-being were relatively independent of symptoms of mental illness. Mental well-being can remain even in the presence of mental suffering.
authors: Health Sciences Research Institute, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK. s.weich@warwick.ac.uk
authors: Scott
authors: S
authors: Weich
authors: Traolach
authors: T
authors: Brugha
authors: Michael
authors: M
authors: King
authors: Sally
authors: S
authors: McManus
authors: Paul
authors: P
authors: Bebbington
authors: Rachel
authors: R
authors: Jenkins
authors: Claudia
authors: C
authors: Cooper
authors: Orla
authors: O
authors: McBride
authors: Sarah
authors: S
authors: Stewart-Brown
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006240:Happiness; D006306:Health Surveys / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D038801:International Classification of Diseases; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D008603:Mental Health / Q000145:classification / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009017:Morbidity; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011594:Psychometrics; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*; D055815:Young Adult