Exercise and well-being

In 2011, theOrganization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) launched the Better Life Index, which consists of 11 dimensions essential to well-being (health and education, local environment, life satisfaction, etc.; OECD, 2013). The national well-being index was also released in Canada in 2011 and in Great Britain in 2012. In the United States, several cities and states have launched community well-being initiatives, and the U.S. government has explored developing a federal happiness index (Rao, 2013; Walt, 2012). Recent well-being studies have sought to address the concern that standard economic indicators, such as GDP, do not account for all factors that contribute to the quality of life (OECD, 2013; Walt, 2012). Traditionally, most government policies and interventions have focused on economic benefits because economic growth is assumed to increase people’s quality of life. Yet economic indicators omit much of what the society values (e.g., increasing life satisfaction, reducing distress), and noneconomic indicators, such as well-being, are critical to assess the effects of government interventions (Diener & Seligman, 2004). Assessing people’s well-being has become even more important as economies and societies around the world have been stricken by the global financial crisis (OECD, 2013). It is important for policy makers to understand how they can develop successful government policies and programs that promote people’s well-being.