What Has Florida So Stressed Out?

I just learned that April is Stress Awareness Month. So what has Florida stressed out? A lot of different things, actually. According to Wallethub, 83% of adults are stressed out from inflation. But there's so many other things to worry about, too. Like Fort Myers traffic. Or Naples insane rent prices. And hurricanes. Taking a look at the overall state, let's see how Florida stacks up against the others.

To determine the states with the highest stress levels, WalletHub compared all 50 states across 41 key metrics. The diverse data set ranges from average hours worked per week, the personal bankruptcy rate, to the share of adults getting adequate sleep. A lot of these factors can compound each other. Here's how Florida ranks against the other states. It seems like we aren't worried about losing our jobs, but we are worried about our spouse and whether or not we can pay rent!

Stress Levels in Florida (1=Most Stressed, 25=Avg.):

22^nd – Avg. Hours Worked per Week
19^th – Share of Adults Getting Adequate Sleep
34^th – % of Adults in Fair/Poor Health
49^th – Job Security
15^th – Median Credit Score
7^th – Housing Affordability
18^th – % of Population Living in Poverty
5^th – Divorce Rate
26^th – Crime Rate per Capita
16^th – Psychologists per Capita

The job security part actually makes sense as Florida has a very low unemployment rate of 2.6%, and forecasted faster-than-national average economic growth rate. I think if they just polled Southwest Florida, 'driving in traffic' would rank high on the stress test. So how do we rank up against everyone else? Middle of the pack, actually.

Source: WalletHub

Most Stressed States

Overall Rank*	State	Total Score	Work-Related Stress	Money-Related Stress	Family-Related Stress	Health- & Safety-Related Stress
1	Mississippi	58.80	4	1	9	7
2	Louisiana	58.32	3	4	18	3
3	New Mexico	58.24	26	3	1	17
4	West Virginia	57.58	15	6	6	2
5	Nevada	57.17	12	10	2	12
6	Arkansas	55.23	9	5	26	1
7	Alabama	54.55	27	2	15	6
8	Kentucky	53.41	22	8	19	5
9	Texas	53.34	5	23	5	11
10	Oklahoma	52.76	13	12	14	8
11	Tennessee	52.70	18	9	29	4
12	Arizona	49.38	39	11	10	20
13	Alaska	49.08	1	40	37	16
14	South Carolina	48.55	23	27	12	10
15	Georgia	48.03	11	15	36	13
16	Wyoming	48.02	2	31	43	14
17	North Carolina	47.38	38	21	4	25
18	Oregon	46.73	37	7	24	23
19	Indiana	45.67	40	18	31	15
20	New York	45.46	21	35	3	44
21	Michigan	45.31	42	29	11	18
22	California	45.26	36	22	8	30
23	Ohio	45.14	29	24	27	19
24	Florida	43.58	46	20	7	36
25	Washington	43.20	32	30	16	27
26	Montana	43.12	48	16	28	21
27	Illinois	43.01	19	37	13	37
28	Maine	42.69	33	13	34	31
29	Delaware	42.00	10	34	20	41
30	Colorado	41.64	34	28	23	29
31	Pennsylvania	41.64	20	33	32	32
32	Kansas	41.50	25	36	41	22
33	Missouri	41.32	41	32	46	9
34	Maryland	40.31	7	46	17	45
35	Wisconsin	39.60	30	38	33	33
36	Idaho	39.14	47	14	45	24
37	Rhode Island	38.40	43	26	21	48
38	Nebraska	38.23	24	41	40	40
39	Hawaii	37.66	8	25	44	50
40	Vermont	37.64	49	19	25	39
41	Virginia	37.53	14	45	30	46
42	North Dakota	37.28	6	44	48	34
43	Connecticut	37.17	31	43	22	47
44	New Jersey	36.59	17	48	39	42
45	Iowa	36.59	28	49	42	35
46	Massachusetts	36.55	16	39	38	49
47	South Dakota	35.15	35	42	50	26
48	New Hampshire	34.97	45	47	35	38
49	Utah	34.36	50	17	49	28
50	Minnesota	30.42	44	50	47	43

Notes: *No. 1 = Most Stressed
With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that state, where a rank of 1 represents the worst conditions for that metric category.

Avg. Hours Worked per Week

Most

1. Texas
2. Alaska
T-3. North Dakota
T-3. Wyoming
5. Louisiana

Fewest

T-45. Connecticut
T-45. Massachusetts
47. Oregon
48. Rhode Island
49. Vermont
50. Utah

Avg. Hours of Sleep per Night

Fewest

1. West Virginia
2. Hawaii
3. Alabama
4. Kentucky
5. Pennsylvania

Most

46. South Dakota
47. Nebraska
48. Vermont
49. Minnesota
50. Colorado

% of Adults in Fair/Poor Health

Highest

1. Kentucky
2. Mississippi
3. West Virginia
4. Arkansas
5. Louisiana

Lowest

46. Minnesota
47. Vermont
T-48. Massachusetts
T-48. New Hampshire
50. Hawaii

Job Security

Lowest

1. Maine
2. Wisconsin
3. Kansasa
4. Mississippi
5. Nebraska

Highest

46. California
47. Nevada
48. North Carolina
49. Florida
50. Connecticut

Credit Score

Lowest

1. Mississippi
2. Louisiana
T-3. Alabama
T-3. Arkansas
T-3. Oklahoma

Highest

T-46. Massachusetts
T-46. North Dakota
48. Vermont
49. New Hampshire
50. Minnesota

Affordable Housing

Least

1. California
2. Hawaii
3. New York
4. Oregon
5. Massachusetts

Most

46. Ohio
47. Indiana
48. Kansas
49. Nebraska
50. Iowa

% of Population Living in Poverty

Highest

1. Mississippi
2. Louisiana
3. New Mexico
4. West Virginia
5. Kentucky

Lowest

46. Hawaii
T-47. Maryland
T-47. Minnesota
49. Utah
50. New Hampshire

Divorce Rate

Highest

1. New Mexico
2. Nevada
3. Louisiana
4. Mississippi
5. Florida

Lowest

46. Nebraska
47. Hawaii
48. New Jersey
49. North Dakota
50. Utah

Crime Rate per Capita

Fewest

1. Louisiana
2. Alabama
3. Nevada
4. South Carolina
5. Georgia

Most

46. Wisconsin
47. New York
48. Rhode Island
49. Illinois
50. Massachusetts

Methodology

In order to determine the most and least stressed states, WalletHub compared the 50 states across four key dimensions: 1) Work-Related Stress, 2) Money-Related Stress, 3) Family-Related Stress, 4) Health- & Safety-Related Stress.

We evaluated those dimensions using 41 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the highest level of stress.

We then determined each state’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order the states.

Work-Related Stress – Total Points: 25

Average Hours Worked per Week: Double Weight (~5.26 Points)
Average Commute Time: Half Weight (~1.32 Points)
Average Leisure Time Spent per Day: Full Weight (~2.63 Points)
Job Security: Full Weight (~2.63 Points)
Unemployment Rate: Double Weight (~5.26 Points)
Underemployment Rate: Full Weight (~2.63 Points)
Income Growth Rate (2021 vs. 2020): Double Weight (~5.26 Points)

Money-Related Stress – Total Points: 25

Median Income: Double Weight (~3.57 Points)
Note: Adjusted for cost of living.
Debt per Median Earnings: Full Weight (~1.79 Points)
Median Credit Score: Full Weight (~1.79 Points)
Personal Bankruptcy Rate: Double Weight (~3.57 Points)
Share of Adults with Financial Anxiety: Double Weight (~3.57 Points)
Note: This metric measures the percentage of adults who agree that thinking about their personal finances makes them feel anxious.
Economic Security Score: Full Weight (~1.79 Points)
Notes: This metric is based on Sharecare’s “Community Well-Being Index", particularly the “Economic Security” element, defined as “community members who are employed, insured, and otherwise stable financially.”
Share of People Unable to Save for Children’s College: Full Weight (~1.79 Points)
Share of Adults Paying Only Minimum on Credit Card(s): Full Weight (~1.79 Points)
Share of Population Living in Poverty: Full Weight (~1.79 Points)
Housing Affordability: Double Weight (~3.57 Points)
Note: This metric was calculated as follows: Housing Costs (accounts for both rental and sale prices) / Median Annual Household Income.

Family-Related Stress – Total Points: 25

Separation and Divorce Rate: Full Weight (~2.78 Points)
Share of Single Parents: Full Weight (~2.78 Points)
Cost of Childcare: Triple Weight (~8.33 Points)
Note: Adjusted for median household income.
“Parental-Leave Policy” Score: Full Weight (~2.78 Points)
Parental Stress: Full Weight (~2.78 Points)
Note: This composite metric considers the percentage of parents who felt angry with their child, felt the child does things to bother them or felt the child is difficult to care for.
Share of Parents Without Emotional Support: Full Weight (~2.78 Points)
Note: This metric measures the percentage of parents who do not have someone they can turn to for day-to-day emotional support with parenting or raising children.
Share of Parents Who Changed /Quit Jobs Due to Problems with Child Care: Full Weight (~2.78 Points)

Health- & Safety-Related Stress – Total Points: 25

Percentage of Residents 5+ Who Are Fully Vaccinated Against COVID-19: Quadruple Weight (~4.26 Points)
Share of Adults in Fair or Poor Health: Double Weight (~2.13 Points)
Share of Adults Diagnosed with Depression: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Mental Health: Double Weight (~2.13 Points)
Suicide Rate: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Unaffordability of Doctor Visits: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Note: Measures percentage of adults aged 18 and older who reported not seeing a doctor in the past 12 months due to cost.
Share of Parents Frustrated in Efforts to Get Health Services for Their Child: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Note: This metric measures the share of parents frustrated in their efforts to get health services for their child in the past 12 months.
Increase in Annual Health Insurance Premiums: Double Weight (~2.13 Points)
Share of Insured Population: Double Weight (~2.13 Points)
Note: “Population” includes noninstitutionalized civilians aged 16 and older.
Psychologists per Capita: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Physical Activity Rate: Half Weight (~0.53 Points)
Share of Adults Getting Adequate Sleep: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Note: Measures percentage of adults aged 18 and older who reported getting seven or more hours of sleep per 24-hour period.
Bullying Incidents Rate: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Note: Measures both the percentage of high school students who were bullied on school property and the percentage of high school students who were bullied electronically/online.
Crime Rate per Capita: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Hate-Crime Incidents per Capita: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Well-Being Index: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Quality of Infrastructure: Full Weight (~1.06 Points)
Note: “Infrastructure” refers to roads and bridges.

Sources:

Data used to create this ranking were collected from U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, FINRA Investor Education Foundation, Council for Community and Economic Research, Administrative Office of the United States Courts, TransUnion, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Child Care Aware of America, National Partnership for Women & Families, Sharecare’s “Community Well-Being Index”, Child and Adolescent Health Measurement Initiative, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Kaiser Family Foundation and The Road Information Program.