View in Vital Signs- Vibrant Human Quality of Life
- Good Governance
- Indicator
- Good Governance Index
- Vital Sign Indicator
- Index Value (index value)
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No targets are currently set for this indicator.
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Kelly Biedenweg
- Contributing Partners
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- Last Updated
- 8/7/2023 2:54:43 PM
The Good Governance Index tells us how Puget Sound residents perceive the way decisions are made regarding management of the natural environment. Components of the Index offer insights for improving our overall decision-making processes, strengthening communication strategies, and strengthening the engagement of our partners and community.
Mean Good Governance response on a seven-point scale (where 1 is strongly disagree and 7 is strongly agree).
Good Governance tells us whether people agree with how the environment around them is managed and whether they feel heard in decision-making. It is an indicator of wellbeing as it contributes to people's sense of satisfaction and control over the fate of their resources. It is also fundamental in contributing to people's support for current and future restoration actions.
- We measure Good Governance by asking survey respondents to rate their agreement or disagreement with statements about the governance of natural resources.
- 4.05 was the average response in 2022, which equates to a “neutral” response on a seven-point scale. This is consistent with responses in 2018 and 2022.
- Respondents do not feel strongly in agreement or disagreement about how the environment around them is managed nor whether they feel heard in decision making. See Interpretation of Results for more information.
- Monitoring Program
- Data Source
Oregon State University Human Dimensions Lab
Data are collected every two years via paper survey and online response option to a random sample of Puget Sound households. The population is a clustered random sample of Puget Sound residents across 12 counties, with an initial sample of 9,000. Due to undeliverable addresses, the total sample reached was less than 9,000. In 2022, the response rate was 20.8 percent, with a total of 1,271 responses. In 2020, the response rate was 25 percent for a total of 1,843 respondents. In 2018, the first iteration of the survey, the response rate was 28 percent for a total of 2,323 individual responses.
The Good Governance Indicator is based on a single question in the survey that asks respondents to rate their level of agreement (from strongly agree to strongly disagree) with the status of seven characteristics of good governance. Responses to these options are combined to form an index.
For more information on the survey, see Appendix A. Detailed Methodology and Appendix B. 2022 Survey Instrument in the 2022 Summary Report.
- Critical Definitions
Governance refers to the way in which decions are made - the decision making process. This indicator is specificaly individual perceptions of the decision making process for Puget Sound environmental issues. As such, it is a subjective measure.
The question is asked at a Puget Sound scale, yet analysis of an open-ended question on the 2020 survey identified that respondents are considering different entities when providing their responses. The most frequently mentioned sources for governance assessments were state (WADNR, WADFW, WA Department of Ecology, in respective order) and federal (EPA, BLM) as well as county and city groups.
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We did not measure any differences across the general population between 2018 and 2022. This lack of change is expected, as we don’t anticipate measuring large changes in human attitudes until several years of monitoring and large ecological or social influencing events.
Harrington, K., B. Leach, Z. Antenucci, and K. Biedenweg. 2023. Human Wellbeing Vital Signs Survey 2022 Summary: A report on subjective human wellbeing indicators prepared for the Puget Sound Partnership.
Justiniano, I., C. Avendano, C. Lozano and K. Biedenweg. 2021. Vital Signs Latinx Survey. Report to Puget Sound Partnership.
Fleming, W., H. Kehoe-Thommen, B. Katz, J. Hart and K. Biedenweg. 2021. Vital Signs Survey Summary 2020: A report on subjective human wellbeing. Report to the Puget Sound Partnership.
Fleming, W. and K. Biedenweg. 2019. Visualizing Human Wellbeing in the Puget Sound (Vital Signs Survey Summary 2018). Report to the Puget Sound Partnership.
Human Wellbeing Vital Signs Interactive Web-interface (2018, 2020)
The Puget Sound Partnership believes in the transparency and accessibility of the data used to address puget sound indicators. These data are provided by contributing partners to the Partnership and are made publicly available through the Puget Sound Info site. These data are available on an "as is" basis and the Partnership is not responsible for any errors, omissions, or inaccuracies. Please acknowledge the monitoring program and data source when using these data and obtain permission from the Vital Sign Indicator Reporter to use these data in a publication.
- Human Wellbeing Survey Results (all years)
- Uploaded On
- 8/11/2023
- File Type
- Excel (XLSX)
- Description
- Survey results are provided for the subjective Human Wellbeing Vital Sign Indicators. Data were collected via survey to the general population of the Puget Sound Region in 2018, 2020, and 2022. Please acknowledge the Oregon State University Human Dimensions Lab and Puget Sound Partnership when using these data.
- Reporting Instructions
No Subcategories for this Puget Sound Indicator.