Providence, Warwick Ranked Among Most Unhappy Cities in U.S.
GoLocalProv News Team
Providence, Warwick Ranked Among Most Unhappy Cities in U.S.
According to a recent study completed by WalletHub, Providence ranks as the 158th happiest city in the country while Warwick ranks 123rd out of 182 ranked cities.
“Location plays a hand in how bright or gloomy our days are. For years, researchers have studied the science of happiness and found that its key ingredients include a positive mental state, healthy body, strong social connections, job satisfaction, and financial well-being. However, money can only make you so happy – people who make $75,000 a year won’t get any higher satisfaction from more money,” said WalletHub.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTProvidence’s Rankings
- 169th Best - Emotional & Physical Well-Being
- 115th Best - Income & Employment
- 122nd Best - Community & Environment
Warwick’s Rankings
- 136th Best - Emotional & Physical Well-Being
- 44th Best - Income & Employment
- 151st Best - Community & Environment
The Rankings
Providence is ranked behind Tulsa, Oklahoma and Wilmington, Delaware, who rank 156th and 157th respectively.
Providence is ranked ahead New Haven, Connecticut, and Montgomery, Alabama, who rank 159th and 160th respectively.
Warwick is ranked behind Richmond, Virginia, and Tacoma, Washington, who rank 121st and 122nd.
Warwick is ranked ahead of Lubbock, Texas, and Casper, Wyoming, who rank 124th and 125th respectively.
Plano, Texas is ranked as the happiest city in the U.S., while Detroit, Michigan is ranked as the most unhappy.
See the full rankings in the map below
The Method
In order to determine the happiest cities in America, WalletHub compared 182 of the largest cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across three key dimensions: 1) Emotional & Physical Well-Being, 2) Income & Employment and 3) Community & Environment.
They evaluated these categories using 31 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale.
WalletHub then determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.
Emotional & Physical Well-Being - Total Points: 50
- Life-Satisfaction Index: Full Weight (~3.39 Points)
- Emotional-Health Index: Full Weight (~3.39 Points)
- Depression Rate: Double Weight (~6.78 Points)
- Suicide Rate: Full Weight (~3.39 Points)
- Adequate-Sleep Rate: Double Weight (~6.78 Points)
- Physical-Health Index: Full Weight (~3.39 Points)
- Sports-Participation Rate: Double Weight (~6.78 Points)
- Share of People Aged 12 or Older Who Used Marijuana in the Past Month: Half Weight (~1.69 Points)
- Retail Opioid Prescriptions Dispensed per 100 Persons: Quarter Weight (~0.85 Points)
- Illness & Disability Index: Double Weight (~6.78 Points)
- Life Expectancy: Full Weight (~3.39 Points)
- Food-Insecurity Rate: Full Weight (~3.39 Points)
Income & Employment - Total Points: 25
- Income-Growth Rate: Double Weight (~3.33 Points)
- Share of Households Earning Annual Incomes Above $75,000: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
- Poverty Rate: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
- Job Satisfaction: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
- 4+ Star Job Opportunities per Total People in the Labor Force: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
- Job Security: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
- Unemployment Rate: Double Weight (~3.33 Points)
- Underemployment Rate: Double Weight (~3.33 Points)
- Bankruptcy Rate: Double Weight (~3.33 Points)
- Weekly Work Hours: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
- Commute Time: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
Community & Environment - Total Points: 25
- Strength of Social Ties: Full Weight (~3.57 Points)
- WalletHub’s Most Caring Cities Ranking: Full Weight (~3.57 Points)
- Separation & Divorce Rate: Full Weight (~3.57 Points)
- Hate-Crime Incidents per Capita: Full Weight (~3.57 Points)
- Ideal Weather: Half Weight (~1.79 Points)
- Acres of Parkland per 1,000 Residents: Half Weight (~1.79 Points)
- Average Leisure Time Spent per Day*: Full Weight (~3.57 Points)
- Well-Being “Community” Rank: Full Weight (~3.57 Points)
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