General Well-Being Schedule – GWB
A self-report instrument designed to assess subjective general well-being and psychological distress during the past month.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The General Well-Being Schedule – GWB was developed by Harold J. Dupuy (1977). It is designed to measure Psychological General Well-Being. The scale is intended for use with Adults.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 18 items organized into 6 factors/subscales: Anxiety, Depression, Positive well-being, Self-control, Vitality, General health.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Anxiety | 2,5,8,16 | 4 |
| Depression | 4,12,18 | 3 |
| Positive well-being | 1,6,11 | 3 |
| Self-control | 3,7,13 | 3 |
| Vitality | 9,14,17 | 3 |
| General health | 10,15 | 2 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1-6 = Varies per item (6-point scale), 0-10 = Varies per item (11-point scale).
The scale includes 8 reverse-scored items to reduce acquiescence bias.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 0 to 110. Interpretation guidelines:
- Severe distress: 0 – 60
- Moderate distress: 61 – 72
- Positive well-being: 73 – 110
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of 0.91 – 0.95.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.