Wellbeing Analysis Tool

The Wellbeing Analysis Tool works by segmenting NS Quality of Life data to show deviations from the average of one population segment (e.g., females living in Truro with disabilities) and another population segment (e.g., the province overall). What used to take us months to do, now takes us minutes – and it’s impactful to see live. It also maps those quality of life indicators onto the eight domains of wellbeing and the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Wellbeing Analysis Tool was built by researchers at Dalhousie University in partnership with us. The work was supported by Mitacs through the Mitacs Accelerate program.

With over 230 questions comprising the NS Quality of Life Survey, there are a lot of ways to segment the data, including by personal characteristic and quality of life indicator — the Wellbeing Analysis Tool can combine any and all of them.

The following are four examples, of thousands, that illustrate possible layers and what you can learn about:

• Older adults’ feelings of social isolation and sense of community.

• Residents’ perceptions of re-skilling opportunities by income.

• Housing affordability for newcomers to communities.

• Younger adults’ self-perceived mental health.

Tables: The tool produces tables that make it easy to see patterns in the data — we call them 'spotlight tables.’ This is what you need to know about them:

The extent to which a quality of life indicator deviates from the provincial average is visualized by a yellow to purple gradient.

The darker the yellow, the greater the asset; the darker the purple, the greater the concern.

We can share tables as Excel spreadsheets.

Lists: The Wellbeing Analysis Tool generates lists of notable assets and concerns so you can see them at a glance. Quality of life indicators are colour-coded for each of the eight domains of wellbeing.

Statements: The tool produces concise statements about survey findings that you can easily cite in your work. For example, “Compared to the provincial average, single parent households with children/youth living at home are three times more likely to have eaten less at least once in the last year because there was not enough food or money for food.”

The tool has been used in countless presentations, keynote speeches, and conversations. It’s attracting national and international attention and is being relied on by provincial government departments, municipalities, and community organizations alike.

Case Study: Cape Breton Regional Municipality
A presentation to Cape Breton Regional Municipal Council illustrated the quality of life of younger adults, older adults, families with incomes less than $40,000, lone-parent families, and people with disabilities in their community.

The insights generated by the Wellbeing Analysis Tool led councillors to take action that explicitly addresses inequities in the community they serve — they’ve since struck committees to address affordability of housing, transportation, and recreation.

This is the momentum we’re building and the impact we’re having.