Six Ways to Well-Being (6W-WeB)

Behavior-focused interventions such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) aim to activate value-consistent behaviors. However, few measures comprehensively assess what these behaviors are and why individuals engage in them (i.e., motivation). Building on previous research on ACT and self-determination theory, a new behavior-focused measure of valued action called the Six Ways to Well-Being (6W-WeB) was developed. This measure captures both the specific actions individuals engage in as well as why they do so. Specifically, it assesses the typical ways in which an individual engages in six behaviors: connecting with others, challenging oneself, giving to others, engaging in physical activity, embracing the moment, and caring for oneself. For each of these behavior domains, the 6W-WeB assesses an individual’s levels of satisfaction with their frequency of engagement as well as their autonomous and controlled motivation for doing so. It yields global scores for engagement, importance of activities, and pressure to engage in activities, as well as specific scores for each way to well-being. The measure has been validated in four independent samples, from two countries, with participants ranging in age from 11 to 65 years. The measure is best represented by a bifactor model which has been shown to be invariant across gender, age, country of sampling, and levels of psychological distress. The 6W-WeB is also linked in expected ways with measures of flourishing, psychological distress, experiential avoidance, and nonattachment. Additionally, known-groups validity tests demonstrated that the 6W-WeB can successfully differentiate between participants who meet criteria for high psychological distress and those who do not. The 6W-WeB measure can be a clinically relevant tool, helping practitioners identify the specific behavior domains that can promote their clients’ value-consistent living.

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