Survey finds record lows in how Afghans rate their lives

Afghans worry more, laugh less and are the most pessimistic about their future, based on the survey. (Reuters)

• The poll surveyed 1,000 Afghans in July
• Afghans averaged 2.3, with 10 being the best mark of how people judge their chances for a better future

KABUL, Afghanistan: A new survey has found record lows in how Afghans rate their chances for a better life.
Afghans worry more, laugh less and are the most pessimistic about their future than any country surveyed by Gallup since 2006, when the organization first began to measure how good people feel about themselves, their lives and their prospects.
The poll, released last Friday, says that on a 0-10 scale, with 10 being the best mark of how people judge their chances for a better future five years down the road, Afghans averaged 2.3.
Gallup says it’s a “new low for any country in any year.”
The poll surveyed 1,000 Afghans in July, in face-to-face interviews conducted in the main Dari and Pashto languages. The survey had a 3.8 percent margin of error.