Survey: Americans’ Mental Health Declined 20 Percent in the Last 18 Years

The mental health of Americans is descending, a Wednesday Gallup survey found.

The Gallup survey, which features self-assessments of 1,020 adults, found just short of one-third, 31 percent, describing their mental health as “excellent.” Gallup describes that as the “worst rating by three percentage points.”

Indeed, in 2020 and 2021, 34 percent identified their mental health as “excellent,” down from 45 percent in 2017. However, 2012 had 48 percent identifying their mental health as “excellent,” and over half, 51 percent, described it as such in 2004. 

In other words, there has been a 20-point drop in the last 18 years in terms of Americans who describe their mental health as “excellent.”

Forty-four percent rated their mental health as “good,” but the 75 percent combination of the good and excellent ratings are still “the lowest on record and 10 points shy of the average since 2001,” per the survey. 

Another 17 percent said their mental health is “only fair,” and seven percent identified it as poor — the “highest” the survey has ever seen. 

Younger people are more likely to give negative reports on their mental health. Forty-six percent of adults 18-34 described their mental health as either fair or poor, compared to 18 percent of those 35-54 who said the same. The figure is even smaller among those 55 and older, with 16 percent rating their mental health as either fair or poor. 

Further, nearly one quarter of adults said they have visited a mental health professional in the past year.

According to Gallup:

Data from the same poll show that nearly one-quarter of U.S. adults, 23%, report having visited a psychologist, therapist, psychiatrist or some other mental health professional in the past 12 months. This marks a sizable uptick in mental health visits since the question was last asked in 2004, when 13% of U.S. adults said they had seen a mental health professional. At that time, a record-high 51% of Americans rated their mental health as excellent — 20 points higher than today. In 2001, the only other year Gallup asked about mental health visits, 10% reported seeing a professional and 43% described their mental health as excellent.

Younger people, again, are more likely to say that they have visited a mental health expert in the last year — 34 percent, compared to 24 percent for individuals 35-54 and 13 percent of those 55 and older. 

The figures are not much better when it comes to Americans’ physical health either, as just 26 percent consider their physical health “excellent.” Once again, this is the “lowest on record by one point.”

The survey notes that mental health ratings are lower than pre-coronavirus levels, while “physical health ratings have been less affected by the pandemic,” contrary to popular belief. 

The survey was taken November 9 to December 2, 2022, among 1,020 adults and has a +/- 4 percent margin of error.