Are America’s Best Days Behind Us?

NEW YORK , N.Y. – November 17, 2010 – As we near the end of the first decade of the new millennium, it’s a good time to take stock of Americans’ feelings about the United States’ past, and how they see its future. While strong majorities say that living under a system of guaranteed individual freedom, hard working people, allowing people to own private property and giving people the chance to go freely from one place to another were major contributors in making America great (between 71% and 76% of Americans say so for each), fewer U.S. adults agree that these will be major contributors to making America great in the next 10 years (between 58% and 68% say so for each).

These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 3,084 adults surveyed online between October 11 and 18, 2010.

In fact, of the 24 attributes discussed, Americans believe that the majority of what made America great in the past will be of less importance in the future. More specifically:

• Americans feel that various forms of diversity, openness and inclusion made America great in the past-two thirds say so for giving every race and creed an equal chance to get ahead (65%) and over half say so for people of different racial and religious backgrounds (58%) and people of different ideas representing the rights of others (54%). Fewer Americans, however, say that these will make America great in the future (57%, 50% and 48% say so, respectively).
• Additionally, despite many Americans relying on technology to lead their daily lives, fewer adults say that frequent technological innovations and industrial know-how and scientific progress will be as major a contributor to making America great in the future (59% and 60%), as they were in the past (64% and 67%).
• One of the most surprising changes, is that, despite some Americans’ sour feelings regarding jobs being sent abroad and the notion that our country is falling behind other nations, the majority of Americans say hard working people and free unlimited education to all qualified will be less important to America’s future, than it was in making America great in the past (these attributes dropped by 7 and 4 percentage points, respectively).
• While it’s clear that, of the list provided, the majority of Americans think that most attributes will be less significant to making America great in the future, there are a few notable exceptions. More Americans say that being able to get along with other countries will be a major contributor to making America great in the future (47%) than say it was a factor in the past (43%).
• And, possibly related to the idea of international diplomacy, more Americans say that outstanding political leaders will be of greater significance to making the country great in the future (41%) than said so about the past (33%).
• Lastly, America’s recent financial crisis which resulted in taxpayers bailing out several big businesses and many Americans losing their jobs, might be the catalyst for more people saying that a government that regulates business abuses (36%) and one that looks after the less fortunate (35%), will be more important going forward, than they were previously (31% and 34% respectively).

Although most Americans say that many of the attributes which helped make America great in the past will be of less importance in the future, there is a difference by age. Younger Americans show much more skepticism or disbelief that what made America great in the past, will continue do so in the future, compared to what older Americans say. Although younger adults tend to be more green than those older these days, just over a third of those 18-33 (35%) say that rich natural resources will help make America great in the future, compared to fully seven in ten older Americans, 65 and older, who say the same (70%). Similarly, only a third of Echo Boomers, or those 18-33, say that living in a healthy physical environment will make America great in the future (33%), compared to 62% of Matures, 65 years and older, who say this. Older Americans also place more significance on having a system of free and uncontrolled views, media and communication, than do younger Americans, as well as say that military strength and success will be a major contributor to the United States’ future success, more so than younger Americans say the same.

So What?

The question about what makes America great was first asked 35 years ago in 1975. When the data from 1975 is compared with the current results, a trend emerges. In 1975, larger majorities said that many of the attributes made the country great than say so currently, and that number drops even further when today’s adults discuss the next 10 years. Younger Americans’ perspective that the attributes will be less significant going forward further supports this trend. However, the meaning here can be debated. On the one hand, the trend might indicate that America’s best days are in the past. However, a more optimistic perspective might speak to a changing and increasingly complicated world where some of what’s important today was not conceived of or thought about 35 years ago, and other components are more inter-related and complex than they once were.

TABLE 1A

MAKING AMERICA GREAT

For each item, do you feel this was a major contributor in making America great, a minor contributor or hardly a contributor at all?

Base: All adults

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding

TABLE 1B

MAKING AMERICA GREAT

For each item, do you feel this was a major contributor in making America great, a minor contributor or hardly a contributor at all?

Summary of those saying major contributor

Base: All adults

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding; In 1975 these questions were asked via telephone; NA signifies this was not asked that year.

TABLE 2A

MAKING AMERICA GREAT IN THE FUTURE

In the next 10 years, do you think each of these items will be a major contributor to making the country great, a minor contributor or hardly a contributor at all?

Base: All adults

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding

TABLE 2B

MAKING AMERICA GREAT IN THE FUTURE

In the next 10 years, do you think each of these items will be a major contributor to making the country great, a minor contributor or hardly a contributor at all?

Summary of those saying major contributor

Base: All adults

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding; In 1975 these questions were asked via telephone; NA signifies this was not asked that year.

TABLE 3

PAST AND FUTURE COMPARISON

Methodology

This Harris Poll was conducted online within the United States between October 11 to 18, 2010 among 3,084 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 weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify 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 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 the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

The results of this Harris Poll may not be used in advertising, marketing or promotion without the prior written permission of Harris Interactive.

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Q880, 885

The Harris Poll^® #141, November 17, 2010

By Samantha Braverman, Project Researcher