EU-SILC 2023: Well-being, Social and Health Indicators
Introduction
The European Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) survey is an annual exercise undertaken by the National Statistics Office (NSO) among persons residing in private households in Malta and Gozo. The survey collects several indicators related to general health and well-being.
Health indicators
In 2023, 79.5 per cent of the persons living in private households perceived their general health as being good (Chart 1). Males were more likely to perceive their general health as being good (82.2 per cent), when compared to their female counterparts (76.5 per cent) (Table 1). A little under a third of respondents (29.6 per cent) stated that they suffer from chronic illnesses or conditions¹ (Chart 2, Table 2). Most individuals reported that they did not have any limitations in their daily activities because of health problems, with only 13.8 per cent indicating otherwise (Chart 3, Table 3). The majority of individuals requiring some form of medical or dental examination or treatment did not report having unmet needs for these services, with only 1.1 per cent of individuals reporting otherwise. This was a decrease when compared to 2022 (2.8 per cent) and 2021 (4.3 per cent) (Table 4).
¹ Chronic illnesses or conditions may include arthritis, allergies, high blood pressure, recurring migraine, chronic anxiety or depression, diabetes, and asthma.
Chart 1. Self-perceived general health status
Reference period: 2021-20232
No Data Found
2 Break-in-series: refer to methodological note 6.
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
Chart 2. Share of persons suffering from chronic illnesses or conditions by sex
Reference period: 2021-20232
No Data Found
2 Break-in-series: refer to methodological note 6.
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
Chart 3. Share of persons with limited activities because of health problems by sex
Reference period: 2021-20232
No Data Found
2 Break-in-series: refer to methodological note 6.
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
Chart 4. Share of persons who reported unmet needs for medical or dental examination/treatment by sex
Reference period: 2021-20232
No Data Found
2 Break-in-series: refer to methodological note 6.
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
The at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion rate (AROPE) defines the proportion/number of people who are at-risk-of-poverty, or severely materially and socially deprived, or living in households with very low work intensity. In 2023, people who were at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion were less likely to perceive their general health as being good. In fact, only 67.4 per cent of the persons who were at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion perceived their general health as good, compared to 82.4 per cent of those respondents who were not at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion (Table 1).
When considering the main predictors of ill health and chronic illness, females, individuals over 65 years of age, and individuals at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion were more likely to report suffering from chronic illnesses or conditions, and to experience limitations because of health problems. Such trends were also observed in 2022 and 2021 (Tables 2 and 3).
Well-being indicators
On a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 represents not satisfied at all, and 10 represents completely satisfied, an average score of 8.6 was reported by respondents with regard to their satisfaction with their personal relationships with family and friends. A mean score of 7.7 was reported with regard to their satisfaction with their current job, and a mean score of 7.4 was reported with regard to their satisfaction with their overall life. The lowest average scores were reported with regard to respondents’ satisfaction with their time use and financial situation, at 6.7 and 6.9 respectively. Respondents aged 16 and 17 reported the highest mean score with regard to overall life satisfaction (7.6), while respondents aged 65 years and over reported the lowest mean score in this category at just 7.3. The highest mean score with regard to personal relationship satisfaction was reported by respondents aged 65 years and over (8.8). Respondents who were at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion reported lower average scores with regard to their satisfaction with overall life, financial situation, current job, and personal relationships, when compared to those not at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion. On the other hand, a higher average score with regard to their satisfaction with time use was reported by these respondents.
The National Equivalised Income (NEI) of a household is defined as the household’s total disposable income divided by its ‘equivalent size’ (also referred to as consumption units). The NEI considers the size and age distribution of household members. In 2023, people within the highest equivalised income bracket reported higher mean values for satisfaction with overall life, financial situation, current job, and personal relationships. Conversely, a higher mean value for satisfaction with time use was reported by people within the lowest equivalised income bracket (Table 5a).
Chart 5. Perceived levels of satisfaction for certain well-being characteristics
Reference period: 2023
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
In general, over half of respondents reported feeling happy most of the time (60.2 per cent) while around half of respondents reported feeling calm or peaceful most of the time (48.2 per cent). When it comes to negative feelings, 34.0 per cent of respondents stated that they rarely felt nervous or agitated while 26.9 per cent reported they felt these emotions sometimes (Chart 6).
Chart 6. Share of persons by frequency of feelings regarding certain quality-of-life characteristics
Reference period: 2023
No Data Found
Note: Refers to persons aged 16 and over, living in private households.
Females were more likely to report that they experienced feelings of nervousness and agitation (12.6 per cent), being down in the dumps (3.4 per cent), downheartedness and depression (4.7 per cent) and loneliness (2.6 per cent) most of the time. Conversely, males were more likely to report experiencing positive feelings such as calmness and peacefulness (49.3 per cent) and happiness (61.0 per cent) most of the time. Respondents aged 65 years and over were most likely to feel negative emotions most of the time such as being down in the dumps (5.5 per cent), downhearted and depressed (6.1 per cent) or lonely (5.3 per cent). On the other hand, 61.8 per cent of respondents aged 30 to 64 reported feeling happy most of the time which is the highest out of all age groups. Over half of respondents aged 16 and 17 stated they felt calm and peaceful most of the time (52.8 per cent).
Respondents at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion were more likely to report experiencing negative feelings most of the time compared to those not at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion. Negative feelings felt by this group most of the time include nervousness and agitation (14.1 per cent), feeling down in the dumps (4.8 per cent), downheartedness and depression (6.0 per cent) and loneliness (5.0 per cent). Respondents who were not-at-risk-of-poverty or social exclusion were most likely to report experiencing positive feelings such as calmness and peacefulness (49.2 per cent) and happiness (62.4 per cent) most of the time (Table 6a).
In 2023, most individuals (93.5 per cent) felt that, if needed, they would receive material or non-material help3 from family, friends, colleagues, or other persons they knew (Table 7).
On a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 represents do not trust at all, and 10 represents trust completely, on average, the extent to which people trust others was reported at 5.1. On a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 represents not at all excluded, and 10 represents completely excluded, individuals seemed to perceive themselves as not being excluded from society. In fact, the mean score with regard to feelings of exclusion from society was reported at 2.0 (Table 8).
3 Material help includes money, loan or objects, whereas non-material help includes someone to talk to, help with doing something or collecting something.
Tables
Tables
Methodological Notes
The EU-SILC sample follows a rotational design whereby every household is surveyed for four consecutive years. This sampling methodology enhances consistency and thus allows for high quality cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis.
In 2023 the gross sample size was 5,077 households. Of these, 96 households were ineligible for the survey (i.e. addresses that did not actually exist, could not be located, non-residential addresses, permanently vacant dwellings or institutional households). Consequently, 4,981 households were approached for the interview. Of these, 4,515 completed the survey, resulting in a household response rate of 91 per cent. These households comprised 10,993 residents, of whom 9,565 were aged 16 and over.
The population figure used to gross up and to calibrate EU-SILC data refers to one calendar year prior to the survey year. Consequently, the population in EU-SILC 2023 refers to the number of persons living in private households as at end of 2022 which was estimated at 532,186.
Equivalised disposable income (referred to also as national equivalised income) is defined as the household’s total disposable income divided by its “equivalent household size”, to take into account of the size and composition of the household, and is attributed to each household member. For example, a household with two adults and two children aged less than 14 would have an equivalised household size of 2.1, which is calculated as follows:
● First Person = 1;
● Every other adult (14+) = 0.5; and
● Every child (less than 14) = 0.3.
If the total disposable income earned by the household is €20,000, then the household equivalised income would result in (€20,000/2.1) = €9,523.
The at-risk-of-poverty threshold is also referred to as the at-risk-of-poverty line or, simply, the poverty line. This is equivalent to 60 per cent of the median national equivalised income of persons living in private households.
The at-risk-of-poverty rate refers to the share of persons with an equivalised disposable income below the at-risk-of-poverty threshold.
5. Material and Social Deprivation
● have an internet connection.
Persons lacking at least five items out of the 13 material and social deprivation items are considered to be materially and socially deprived.
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EU-SILC 2023: Well-being, Social and Health Indicators
- The majority of persons living in private households perceived their general health as being good (79.5 per cent), with 29.6 per cent of people stating that they suffer from a chronic illness or condition.
- On a scale from 0 (not satisfied at all) to 10 (completely satisfied), average scores of 8.6 and 6.7 were reported by respondents regarding their personal relationships and time use, respectively.
- Feelings of happiness were reported most of the time (60.2 per cent), whilst feelings of nervousness and agitation were rarely experienced (34.0 per cent).
