Americans Are Increasingly Gloomy About the Economy and Their Own Finances.Seven in Ten Americans Rate Government's Economic Policies as Bad ROCHESTER Rochester (rŏch`ĕstər, –ĭstər). 1 City (1990 pop. 70,745), seat of Olmsted co., SE Minn.; inc. 1858. , N.Y. -- As news from all corners of the world continues to come in mostly bad, with some bright spots, Americans are not optimistic op·ti·mist n. 1. One who usually expects a favorable outcome. 2. A believer in philosophical optimism. op that the government will help. Seven in ten Americans (70%) rate the economic policies of the national government as bad while just 14 percent rate them as good. This dissatisfaction cuts across all party lines. Only one-quarter of Republicans (26%), seven percent of Democrats The List of notable Democrats is a list of prominent politicians, government officials, and organizational leaders of the Democratic Party of the United States. Prominent figures of the Democratic Party Currently notable Democrats
These are some of the results of a nationwide Harris Harris, Scotland: see Lewis and Harris. Poll of 1,297 U.S. adults surveyed online between March 14 and 24, 2008 by Harris Interactive Harris Interactive (NASDAQ: HPOL) is an American market research company that specializes in public opinion research using both telephone and surveys on online panels. The company is the product of a 1996 merger between the Gordon S. Black Company and Louis Harris & Associates. ([R]). Household's Financial Situation Almost half (48%) of Americans say their household's financial situation has worsened compared to one year ago, a six point increase from last month when 42 percent said the same. Three in ten (30%) say that it has improved, down from last month when over one-third (35%) said their household's financial condition had improved. As one might expect, there are some income differences. The greater one's household income is, the more likely they say their condition has improved. Half or more of those who have household incomes of under $75,000 a year say their financial condition has worsened, compared to only one-third (34%) of those with a higher income. Looking six months into the future, people have become more pessimistic pes·si·mism n. 1. A tendency to stress the negative or unfavorable or to take the gloomiest possible view: "We have seen too much defeatism, too much pessimism, too much of a negative approach" . Currently, one-third (33%) of Americans say they expect their household's financial situation to be better in six months while two in five (39%) expect it to be worse. Last month those numbers were reversed as 39 percent of Americans believed the situation would be better and one-third (34%) believed their financial situation would be worse. Again, those who earn more are more likely to believe their financial situation will be better six months from now. So What? While the government is trying to convince people they are implementing programs to help stimulate stimulate /stim·u·late/ (stim´u-lat) to excite functional activity. stim·u·late v. To arouse a body or a responsive structure to increased functional activity. and repair the economy, most Americans are not sold that these will work. From last month to this month the attitudes of Americans have become even more pessimistic and they have little faith in the government's policies. It may be that Americans are just waiting to see what the next Administration will do. But, the candidates need to do something to placate pla·cate tr.v. pla·cat·ed, pla·cat·ing, pla·cates To allay the anger of, especially by making concessions; appease. See Synonyms at pacify. nervous voters. Assuming the Republicans and Democrats follow their party lines, the Independents are painting a bleak The bleak is a small pelagic fish of the Cyprinid family. Description The body of the bleak is elongated and flat. The head is pointed and the relatively small mouth is turned upwards. The anal fin is long and has 18 to 23 fin rays. The lateral line is complete. picture. Over half (53%) say their household's financial situation has worsened and a plurality The opinion of an appellate court in which more justices join than in any concurring opinion. The excess of votes cast for one candidate over those votes cast for any other candidate. Appellate panels are made up of three or more justices. (44%) say they expect it to be worse six months from now. The candidates will need to convince these voters their plan will work. TABLE 1 RATING OF GOVERNMENT'S ECONOMIC POLICIES "How would you rate the economic policies of the national government?" Base: All adults [TABLE OMITTED] Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding Note: * indicates less than 0.5% and "-" indicates no response TABLE 2 FINANCIAL CONDITIONS COMPARED TO LAST YEAR "Compared to a year ago, how has your household's financial condition changed?" Base: All adults [TABLE OMITTED] Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding TABLE 3 FINANCIAL CONDITIONS COMPARED TO LAST YEAR - trend "Compared to a year ago, how has your household's financial condition changed?" Base: All adults > > > > > > > > > > Feb. March > > > > > > > > > > % % > > > > > > > > > > IMPROVED (NET) 35 30 > > > > > > > > > > Improved a lot 3 2 > > > > > > > > > > Improved 7 7 > > > > > > > > > > Improved somewhat 25 22 > > > > > > > > > > Remained the same 23 22 > > > > > > > > > > WORSENED (NET) 42 48 > > > > > > > > > > Worsened somewhat 24 28 > > > > > > > > > > Worsened 10 11 > > > > > > > > > > Worsened a lot 8 9 Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding TABLE 4 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS 6 MONTHS FROM NOW "Thinking about your household's current financial situation, do you expect it to be better or worse in the next six months?" Base: All adults [TABLE OMITTED] Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding TABLE 5 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS 6 MONTHS FROM NOW - trend "Thinking about your household's current financial situation, do you expect it to be better or worse in the next six months?" Base: All adults > > > > > > > > > > > Feb. March > > > > > > > > > > > % % > > > > > > > > > > > BETTER (NET) 39 33 > > > > > > > > > > > Will be much better 3 2 > > > > > > > > > > > Will be better 8 7 > > > > > > > > > > > Will be somewhat better 28 24 > > > > > > > > > > > Will remain the same 28 28 > > > > > > > > > > > WORSE (NET) 34 39 > > > > > > > > > > > Will be somewhat worse 21 22 > > > > > > > > > > > Will be worse 8 12 > > > > > > > > > > > Will be much worse 5 6 Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding Methodology This Harris Poll([R]) was conducted online within the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. March 14 and 24, 2008, among 1,297 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. Please help [ improve the introduction] to meet Wikipedia's layout standards. You can discuss the issue on the talk page. weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online. All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability probability, in mathematics, assignment of a number as a measure of the "chance" that a given event will occur. There are certain important restrictions on such a probability measure. sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify Quantify - A performance analysis tool from Pure Software. or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words "margin of error" as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal. Respondents In the context of marketing research, a representative sample drawn from a larger population of people from whom information is collected and used to develop or confirm marketing strategy. for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in the Harris Interactive panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. These statements conform to Verb 1. conform to - satisfy a condition or restriction; "Does this paper meet the requirements for the degree?" fit, meet coordinate - be co-ordinated; "These activities coordinate well" the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls. J30279B Q923, 924, 927 About Harris Interactive Harris Interactive is a global leader in custom market research. With a long and rich history in multimodal Two or more modes of operation. The term is used to refer to a myriad of functions and conditions in which two or more different methods, processes or forms of delivery are used. On the Web, it refers to asking for something one way and receiving the answer another; for example requesting research, powered by our science and technology, we assist clients in achieving business results. Harris Interactive serves clients globally through our North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. , European European emanating from or pertaining to Europe. European bat lyssavirus see lyssavirus. European beech tree fagussylvaticus. European blastomycosis see cryptococcosis. and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms. To become a member of the Harris Poll Online and be invited to participate in online surveys, register at www.harrispollonline.com. Harris Interactive Inc. 4/08 |
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