New global survey says Americans are some of the most stressed out, negative people in the world

LOS ANGELES - If you’re feeling stressed out today, you’re not alone. According to Gallup’s annual Global Emotions Report, Americans are some of the most stressed out people in the entire world. 

Gallup’s 2019 report consists of data from the previous year surveying 1,000 adults in countries around the world regarding the emotions the individuals experienced the day before the survey. The individuals were 15 years and older and the interviews were conducted over the phone and face-to-face. 

When asked about their feelings the previous day, more than half of Americans (55 percent) in 2018 said they had experienced stress during much of their day, 45 percent said they felt worried and one in five (22 percent) said they felt anger, according to the study.

These stress numbers were higher than people interviewed in Chad, which was one of the 10 countries worldwide where the majority of people said they were in a lot of physical pain the previous day, according to the report.  

The only countries that had higher stress rates than the U.S. were Greece, the Philippines and Tanzania.

Greeks remained the most stressed out population for the third consecutive year, with 59 percent saying they experienced a lot of stress the day before the survey. 

The study also found that younger Americans between the ages of 15 and 49 were among the most stressed. Roughly two in three of those younger than 50 said they experienced stress a lot, about half said they felt worried a lot and at least one in four or more felt anger a lot.

Money also played a big role when it came to people's worry and stress levels. 56 percent of Americans in the poorest group said they worried a lot, compared with 41 percent in the richest group. Gallup found that the more money Americans make, the higher they rate their life. 

In 2017, global levels of negativity hit new highs, and the U.S. kept this trend going into 2018. According to the report, higher levels of stress, anger and worry nudged Americans’ overall Negative Experience Index to 35, which is the highest it’s been in recent years. Chad had an overall Negative Experience Index of 54.

The only countries with a higher Negative Experience Index were countries entangled in some form of political strife, whether humanitarian, or economic.

However, Latin American countries led the world in positive experiences, with Paraguay and Panama tying for first. African countries tended to have the most negative experiences, led by Chad, Niger and Sierra Leone.