Methodology

The Social Progress Index goes beyond GDP, and with extensive research, it pinpoints the social and environmental factors of a country’s performance. We take a systematic and comprehensive approach, using three key elements: dimensions, components, and indicators, to measure social progress effectively.

Methodology of the Global Social Progress Index®

The Global Social Progress Index is built on 12 components and 57 unique indicators. This structure not only offers an overall country score and ranking but also enables benchmarking on specific areas of strength, weakness and areas that may need improvement.

Basic Needs

It shows how well a country provides for its people’s essential needs. It assesses a population’s capacity to survive with adequate nourishment and basic medical care, clean water, sanitation, adequate shelter, and personal safety.

Foundations of Wellbeing

It highlights the extent to which a country’s residents can gain a basic education, obtain information and communicate freely, benefit from a modern healthcare system, and live in a healthy environment conducive to a long life. 

Foundations of Wellbeing also measures environmental quality which is critical for current and future wellbeing.

Opportunity

Measures the degree to which a country’s citizens have the freedom and opportunity to make their own choices and pursue higher education. People’s rights, freedom and choice, inclusive society and advanced education all contribute to the level of opportunity within a given society. The Social Progress Index stands out by incorporating Opportunity—an aspect of human wellbeing frequently overlooked or isolated when contemplating social progress. Unlike conventional approaches that focus only on foundational needs, our framework embraces the broader spectrum of factors that contribute to true societal advancement.

Framework

Global Social Progress Index
Social Progress index framewrok

Our Design Principles 

design principle exclusively social and environmental indicators

Exclusively social and environmental indicators

Our aim is to measure social progress directly, rather than utilize economic proxies or outcomes. By excluding economic indicators, we can, for the first time, rigorously and systematically analyze the relationship between economic development (measured for example by GDP per capita) and social development. Prior efforts to move “beyond GDP” have commingled social and economic indicators, making it difficult to disentangle cause and effect.

design principle outcomes

Holistic and relevant to all countries

We strive to create a holistic measure of social progress that encompasses the many aspects of the health of societies. Most previous efforts have focused on the poorest countries, for understandable reasons. But knowing what constitutes a successful society for any country, including higher-income countries, is indispensable for charting a course for all societies.

design principle relevant to all countries

Outcomes not inputs

Our purpose is to measure the outcomes that matter to the lives of real people, not the inputs. For example, we want to measure a country’s health and wellness achieved, not how much effort is expended nor how much the country spends on healthcare.

design principle actionability

Actionable

The Social Progress Index® aims to be a practical tool that helps leaders and practitioners in government, business, and civil society to implement policies and programs that will drive faster social progress. To achieve that goal, we measure outcomes in a granular way that focuses on specific areas that can be implemented directly.

By Definition

The design principles are the foundation for our conceptual framework and shape our definition of social progress. The Social Progress Index® uses the following working definition:

"Social progress is the capacity of a society to meet the basic human needs of its citizens, establish the building blocks that allow citizens and communities to enhance and sustain the quality of their lives, and create the conditions for all individuals to reach their full potential."

This definition is the result of a thorough review and synthesis of both academic and practitioner literature covering various development topics. The framework of the Social Progress Index centers around three distinct though related questions that, taken together offer insight into the level of social progress:

Does a country provide for its people’s most essential needs?
Are the building blocks in place for individuals and communities to enhance and sustain wellbeing?
Is there opportunity for all individuals to reach their full potential?

Drivers of Social Progress

COMPONENTS

INDICATORS

DEFINITION

COMPONENTS

INDICATORS

DEFINITION

Undernourishment

The prevalence of undernourishment expresses the probability that a randomly selected individual from the population consumes an amount of calories that is insufficient to cover her/his energy requirement for an active and healthy life. The indicator is computed by comparing a probability distribution of habitual daily dietary energy consumption with a threshold level called the minimum dietary energy requirement. Both are based on the notion of an average individual in the reference population.

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

DEFINITION

Maternal mortality

Maternal mortality ratio is the number of women (15-49) who die from pregnancy-related causes while pregnant or within 42 days of pregnancy termination per 100,000 live births.

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

DEFINITION

Child mortality

Probability of dying between birth and exactly 5 years of age, expressed per 1,000 live births.

Source: UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation

DEFINITION

Child stunting

Stunting prevalence among children under 5 years of age (% height-for-age <-2 SD), model-based estimates.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

DEFINITION

Infectious diseases

Age-standardized Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) rate caused by HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, diarrhea, intestinal infections, respiratory infections, otitis media, meningitis, encephalitis, diptheria, whooping cough, tetanus, measles, varicella, herpes zoster, malaria, Chagas disease, leishmaniasis, typanosomiasis, schistosomiasis, cysticercosis, cycstic echinococcosis, lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, trachoma, dengue, yellow feber, rabies, intestinal nematode infections, food-borne trematodiases, leprosy, ebola, zika virus, guinea worm disease, sexually transmitted diseases (excluding HIV), hepatitis, and other infectious diseases per 100,000 people.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

DEFINITION

Diet low in fruits and vegetables

Risk-weighted, age-standardized prevalence of nutrition low in fruits and vegetables as measured by the summary exposure value (SEV).

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

INDICATORS

Basic water service

The percentage of people using at least basic water services.  This indicator encompasses both people using basic water services as well as those using safely managed water services.  Basic drinking water services is defined as drinking water from an improved source, provided collection time is not more than 30 minutes for a round trip.  Improved water sources include piped water, boreholes or tubewells, protected dug wells, protected springs, and packaged or delivered water.

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

Basic sanitation service

The percentage of people using at least basic sanitation services, that is, improved sanitation facilities that are not shared with other households. This indicator encompasses both people using basic sanitation services as well as those using safely managed sanitation services. Improved sanitation facilities include flush/pour flush to piped sewer systems, septic tanks or pit latrines; ventilated improved pit latrines, compositing toilets or pit latrines with slabs.

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

Unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene

Age-standardized Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) rate attributable to unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene per 100,000 people.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Satisfaction with water quality

The proportion of respondents answering 'satisfied' to the question, "In the city or area where you live, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the quality of water?"

Source: Gallup World Poll

INDICATORS

Access to electricity

The percentage of the population with access to electricity.

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

Household air pollution

Age-standardized Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) rate caused by household air pollution from solid fuels per 100,000 people. Household air pollution includes exposure to particulate matter less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5) due to the use of solid fuels for cooking, including coal, charcoal, wood, agricultural residue, and animal dung.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Dissatisfaction with housing affordability

The proportion of respondents answering 'dissatisfied' to the question, “In the city or area where you live, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the availability of good, affordable housing?”.

Source: Gallup World Poll

Usage of clean fuels and technology for cooking

The proportion of  population primarily using clean cooking fuels and technologies for cooking.

Source: World Health Organization

INDICATORS

Interpersonal violence

Age-standardized Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) per 100,000 people from interpersonal violence. Interpersonal violence is defined as death or disability from intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, from another person or group not including military or police forces.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Intimate partner violence

Age-standardised prevalence of ever-partnered women aged 15 years and older who experienced physical or sexual violence by a current or former intimate partner in the last 12 months (%)

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Money stolen

The proportion of respondents answering 'yes' to the question, "Within the last 12 months, have you had money or property stolen from you or another household member?"

Source: Gallup World Poll

Feeling safe walking alone

The proportion of respondents answering 'yes' to the question, "Do you feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area where you live?".

Source: Gallup World Poll

Transportation related injuries

Age-standardised death rate due to road injuries (per 100,000 population)

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

COMPONENTS

INDICATORS

DEFINITION

Population with no schooling

Proportion of population (age-standardized) with no schooling.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Primary school enrollment

Total number of students of official primary school age who are enrolled in any level of education, expressed as a percentage of the total population of official primary school age. Statistic is termed 'total net primary enrollment rate.'

Source: UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization Institute for Statistics

Secondary school attainment

Population with at least some secondary education (% ages 25 and older)

Source: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Data

Gender parity in secondary attainment

The absolute deviation from parity (=1) in secondary education attainment of women and men.

Source: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Data

Equal access to quality education

Country experts' aggregated evaluation of the question, "To what extent is high quality basic education guaranteed to all, sufficient to enable them to exercise their basic rights as adult citizens?"

Source: Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem), Dataset Version 13

Mobile telephone subscriptions

Subscriptions to a public mobile telephone service using cellular technology, including the number of pre-paid SIM cards active during the past three months, expressed as the number of mobile telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants.

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

Internet users

The estimated number of Internet users out of the total population, using the Internet from any device (including mobile phones) in the last 12 months.

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

Access to online governance

The availability of e-participation tools on national government portal for of the following uses: e-information – provision of information on the Internet; e-consultation – organizing public consultations online; and e-decision-making – involving citizens directly in decision processes. E-participation is defined as the process of engaging citizens through ICTs in policy, decision-making, and service design and delivery in order to make it participatory, inclusive, and deliberative.

Source: UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs E-Government Survey

World Press Freedom Index

Expert assessment of press freedom, which is defined as "the ability of journalists as individuals and collectives to select, produce, and disseminate news in the public interest independent of political, economic, legal, and social interference and in the absence of threats to their physical and mental safety". The Index is scaled from 0 to 100, with 100 representing the highest possible level of press freedom and 0 the worst.

Source: Reporters without borders

Life expectancy at 60

The average number of years that a person of 60 years of age could expect to live, both sexes.

Source: United Nations Population Division

Mortality 15-50

Mortality between age 15 and 50, both sexes (deaths under age 50 per 1,000 alive at age 15).

Source: United Nations Population Division

Access to essential health services

Coverage of essential health services defined as the average coverage of essential services based on tracer interventions that include reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health, infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases and service capacity and access, among the general and the most disadvantaged population. The indicator is an index reported on a unitless scale of 0 to 100, which is computed as the geometric mean of 14 tracer indicators of health service coverage. The tracer indicators are organized by four components of service coverage: 1. Reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health 2. Infectious diseases 3. Noncommunicable diseases 4. Service capacity and access.

Source: World Health Organization

Equal access to quality healthcare

Country experts' aggregated evaluation of the question, "To what extent is high quality basic healthcare guaranteed to all, sufficient to enable them to exercise their basic political rights as adult citizens?"

Source: Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem), Dataset Version 13

Satisfaction with availability of quality healthcare

The proportion of respondents answering 'satisfied' to the question, In the city or area where you live, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with the availability of quality healthcare?

Source: Gallup World Poll

Outdoor air pollution

Age-standardized Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) per 100,000 people resulting from ambient particulate matter pollution, including emissions from industrial activity, households, cars and trucks.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Species protection

An index of how well a country's terrestrial protected areas overlap with the ranges of its vertebrate, invertebrate, and plant species. The Species Protection Index is calculated using remote sensing data, global biodiversity informatics, and integrative models to map suitable habitat for over 30,000 terrestrial species at high resolutions. A score of 100 indicates full coverage of all species' ranges by a country's protected areas, and a score of 0 indicates no overlap.

Source: Environmental Performance Index

Particulate matter pollution

Population-weighted mean levels of fine particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns in aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5), which are capable of penetrating deep into the respiratory tract and causing severe health damage.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Lead exposure

Age-standardized Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) per 100,000 people attributable to lead exposure. Lead exposure is defined as acute exposure, measured by micrograms of lead per decilitre of blood, and chronic exposure, measured by micrograms of lead per gram of bone.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Recycling

A measure of how well a country recycles all recyclable post-consumer materiarecycling. Recycling rate is measured as the proportion of recyclable materials (metal, plastic, paper, and glass) recycled in each country. A score of 100 indicates a country recycles all recyclable post-consumer material, while a score of 0 indicates a country recycles no recyclable post-consumer material.

Source: Environmental Performance Index

COMPONENTS

INDICATORS

DEFINITION

Political rights

An evaluation of three subcategories of political rights: electoral process, political pluralism and participation, and functioning of government on a scale from 0 (no political rights) to 40 (full political rights). Some countries and territories score below zero on the questions used to compose the indicator.

Source: Freedom House

Freedom of peaceful assembly

Country experts' aggregated evaluation of the question, "To what extent do state authorities respect and protect the right of peaceful assembly?".

Source: Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem), Dataset Version 12

Equality before the law and individual liberty index

Country experts' aggregated evaluation of the question, "To what extent are laws transparent and rigorously enforced and public administration impartial, and to what extent do citizens enjoy access to justice, secure property rights, freedom from forced labor, freedom of movement, physical integrity rights, and freedom of religion? "

Source: Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem), Dataset Version 13

Equal protection index

Country experts' aggregated evaluation of the question, "How equal is the protection of rights and freedoms across social groups by the state?"

Source: Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem), Dataset Version 13

Vulnerable employment

Contributing family workers and own-account workers as a percentage of total employment.

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators

Early marriage

The percentage of women aged 15-19 years who are married or in-union.

Source: United Nations Population Division

Satisfied demand for contraception

The percentage of total demand for family planning among married or in-union women aged 15 to 49 that is satisfied with modern methods.

Source: United Nations Population Division

Perception of corruption

The perceived level of public sector corruption based on expert opinion, measured on a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).

Source: Transparency International

Freedom over life choices

The proportion of respondents answering 'dissatisfied' to the question, “In this country, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with your freedom to choose what you do with your life?”

Source: Gallup World Poll

Young people not in education, employment or training

The proportion of youth who are not in employment and not in education or training. Youth are defined as persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years. The series is part of the ILO modelled estimates.

Source: International Labor Organization

Acceptance of gays and lesbians

The proportion of respondents answering a good place to the question, “Is the city or area where you live a good place or not a good place to live for gay or lesbian people?”

Source: Gallup World Poll

Discrimination and violence against minorities

Group Grievance indicator: discrimination, powerlessness, ethnic violence, communal violence, sectarian violence, and religious violence.

Source: Fund for Peace Fragile States Index

Equal access index

Country experts' aggregated evaluation of the question, "How equal is access to power?"

Source: Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem), Dataset Version 13

Count on help

The proportion of respondents answering 'yes' to the question, “If you were in trouble, do you have relatives or friends you can count on to help you whenever you need them, or not?”

Source: Gallup World Poll

Expected years of tertiary schooling

Number of years a person of tertiary school entrance age can expect to spend within tertiary education. For a child of a certain age a, the school life expectancy is calculated as the sum of the age specific enrollment rates for the levels of education specified. The part of the enrollment that is not distributed by age is divided by the school-age population for the level of education they are enrolled in, and multiplied by the duration of that level of education. The result is then added to the sum of the age-specific enrollment rates. The indicator seeks to show the overall level of development of an educational system in terms of the average number of years of schooling that the education system offers to the eligible population, including those who never enter school.

Source: UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization Institute for Statistics

Women with advanced education

Proportion of females (age-standardized) with 12–18 years of education.

Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Quality weighted universities

The number of universities in a country weighted by the quality of universities, measured by university rankings on any of the three most widely used international assessments. Three categories were created: top 400 universities on any of the three lists, listed and non-listed universities. Weights are assigned in such way that no number of universities in the lower category can compensate a university in the higher category.

Source: Times Higher Education World University Rankings, QS World University Rankings, Academic Ranking of World Universities, UniRank, Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Dataset Version 13, Social Progress Imperative's calculations

Citable documents

Citable documents - articles, reviews and conference papers - per 1,000 population.

Source: Scimago Journal & Country Rank

Academic freedom

Country experts' aggregated evaluation of the question, "To what extent is academic freedom respected?"

Source: Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem), Dataset Version 13

Methodology report

Methodology Report 

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