CivicNZ · wellbeing

Wellbeing group gaps

Raw official gaps sit beside any official adjusted gap. CivicNZ does not invent an explained share. Every comparison is labelled as association, not causation.

Dimensions on this desk: income, region, ethnicity, household_type.

Back to wellbeing

income

Overall life satisfaction (mean /10)

Disabled people aged 15–64 compared with Total population (7.6). Period GSS 2023.

Raw gap

1.3 points lower

6.3 vs 7.6 points on a 0–10 scale

Official adjusted gap

Not published

An explained share is not published — CivicNZ does not invent one.

Stats NZ reports the group mean as significantly lower than the total. It does not publish a residual after income, employment, or health status.

Measured factors

Stratified
Household income
A separate official mean for household income $30,000 or less is 7.2.
Stratified
Household / family type
One-parent families: 7.0. One-way, not a joint model.
Not published
Region
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Ethnicity
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Age group
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Stratified
Disability status
Washington Group Short Set – Enhanced, aged 15–64.
Not published
Labour-force status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Migrant status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Stratified
Gender / LGBT+
LGBT+ mean 6.9. One-way.

Official 2023 life-satisfaction means

Group	Mean /10
Total population	7.6
Household income $30,000 or less	7.2
One parent with child(ren)	7.0
LGBT+	6.9
Disabled people 15–64	6.3

Each row is a one-way official mean. They are not mutually exclusive.

What this does not tell us

A gap is an association in the official table. It is not evidence that culture, policy, or personal choice caused the difference.
CivicNZ does not invent an official adjusted gap or an explained share when Stats NZ did not publish one.
GSS estimates have sampling error. Small groups move more.
A lower disabled-people mean is not a finding about the health system or about individual resilience.

Official source (opens in a new tab) · Data as of 25 Sept 2024

region

Felt lonely most or all of the time (last four weeks)

Taranaki compared with Canterbury. Period GSS 2023.

Raw gap

2.5 percentage points higher

5.2 vs 2.7 percentage points

Official adjusted gap

Not published

An explained share is not published — CivicNZ does not invent one.

GSS regional estimates are one-way. Stats NZ does not publish an age- or income-adjusted regional loneliness residual in this extract.

Measured factors

Not published
Household income
Regional × income cells are not in this extract.
Not published
Household / family type
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Stratified
Region
Official regional estimates.
Not published
Ethnicity
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Stratified
Age group
A separate never-lonely table by age is published. Younger adults are less likely to say they were never lonely.
Not published
Disability status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Labour-force status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Migrant status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Gender / LGBT+
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.

Most/all-of-the-time loneliness by region, 2023

Region	%
Taranaki	5.2
Bay of Plenty	4.7
Wellington	4.6
New Zealand	4.0
Canterbury	2.7

Sampling error is larger in smaller regions.

What this does not tell us

A gap is an association in the official table. It is not evidence that culture, policy, or personal choice caused the difference.
CivicNZ does not invent an official adjusted gap or an explained share when Stats NZ did not publish one.
GSS estimates have sampling error. Small groups move more.
Regional differences are not a finding about community character.

Official source (opens in a new tab) · Data as of 25 Sept 2024

ethnicity

Sense of belonging to New Zealand

Māori compared with Total population. Period GSS 2023.

Raw gap

0.3 points higher

8.5 vs 8.2 points on a 0–10 scale

Official adjusted gap

Not published

An explained share is not published — CivicNZ does not invent one.

Official one-way ethnicity means. No residual after age or region.

Measured factors

Not published
Household income
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Household / family type
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Region
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Stratified
Ethnicity
People can belong to more than one ethnicity. Official note from Stats NZ.
Not published
Age group
Ethnicity × age cells are not in this extract.
Not published
Disability status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Labour-force status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Migrant status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Gender / LGBT+
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.

Sense of belonging, 2023

Group	Mean /10	Change vs 2021
Māori	8.5	Similar to 2021
Total	8.2	Down from 8.6
Pacific peoples	8.2	Down from 8.6
European	8.2	Down from 8.6
Asian	7.8	Down from 8.3

The 2021–2023 fall is an association across most groups. It is not a causal claim.

What this does not tell us

A gap is an association in the official table. It is not evidence that culture, policy, or personal choice caused the difference.
CivicNZ does not invent an official adjusted gap or an explained share when Stats NZ did not publish one.
GSS estimates have sampling error. Small groups move more.

Official source (opens in a new tab) · Data as of 25 Sept 2024

household_type

Mean institutional trust (0–10)

Parliament compared with Police. Period GSS 2023.

Raw gap

2.5 points lower

4.9 vs 7.4 points on a 0–10 scale

Official adjusted gap

Not published

An explained share is not published — CivicNZ does not invent one.

These are different institutions, not population groups. The official table does not age-standardise either series.

Measured factors

Not published
Household income
Not in the 2014–2023 institutional-trust table.
Not published
Household / family type
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Region
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Ethnicity
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Age group
The published institutional-trust table is national means only.
Not published
Disability status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Labour-force status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Migrant status
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.
Not published
Gender / LGBT+
The official table for this comparison does not apply or stratify this factor.

Institutional trust, mean /10

Institution	2014	2018	2021	2023
Police	7.7	7.9	7.7	7.4
Health system	7.0	6.9	6.6	6.1
Parliament	5.3	5.7	5.7	4.9
Media	4.9	4.9	4.7	4.3

The 2021–2023 fall in trust in parliament is the largest move in this official table.

What this does not tell us

A gap is an association in the official table. It is not evidence that culture, policy, or personal choice caused the difference.
CivicNZ does not invent an official adjusted gap or an explained share when Stats NZ did not publish one.
GSS estimates have sampling error. Small groups move more.
A fall in trust is an association with the survey year. It is not a verdict on any party or minister.

Official source (opens in a new tab) · Data as of 25 Sept 2024