Economic Security in America: AEI Public Opinion Study, August 2010

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S

Economic Insecurity Update:

Americans’ Concerns about their

Jobs, Personal Finances,

Retirement, Health Costs,

Housing, and More

Compiled by Karlyn Bowman, Resident Fellow, AEI and Andrew Rugg, Research

Assistant

(Updated August 2010)

In this AEI Public Opinion Study, we bring together existing trend questions from many

pollsters about the subjects described in the title above to get a sense of how anxious or

economically insecure Americans feel.

We look here at what people say about their own lives and those of their friends and

family, and not at what people say about ―most Americans‖ or ―Americans in general.‖

We give substantial weight to what people say about their own situations, which we feel

they know best.

AEI Public Opinion

Studies

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Table of Contents Job Anxiety ....................................................................................................................................... 3

Job Security ................................................................................................................................. 14 Outsourcing ................................................................................................................................. 16

Personal Financial Worries: ............................................................................................................ 16 Retirement Anxiety: ........................................................................................................................ 40 Health Cost Anxiety:....................................................................................................................... 46

Housing Anxiety: ............................................................................................................................ 53 Home Value ................................................................................................................................ 58

Comparative Anxiety: ..................................................................................................................... 60 Losing your job ........................................................................................................................... 65 Money Anxiety ........................................................................................................................... 70

Health Anxiety ............................................................................................................................ 74

Crime/Terrorism Anxiety............................................................................................................ 75

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Thinking of the last six months, that is since ___ of last year, have you or someone in your family lost a job as a result of

economic conditions or not?

Yes, self Yes, family No

Feb. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 10% 25% 65%

Apr. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 8 25 62

May. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 7 21 70

Jul. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 8 21 65

Sept. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 5 26 65

Oct. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 8 20 70

Nov. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 9 21 66

Dec. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 9 22 66

Jan. 2010 AP/Roper GfK 7 28 63

Mar. 2010 AP/Roper GfK 8 23 67

Apr. 2010 AP/Roper GfK 6 23 69

May 2010 AP/Roper GfK 8 21 69

Jun. 2010 AP/Roper GfK 7 29 61

Aug. 2010 AP/Roper GfK 6 25 67

And thinking of the last 6 months – that is, since February of this year – has someone you know personally lost a job as

a result of economic conditions or not?

Yes No

Feb. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 65% 35%

Apr. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 67 33

May 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 60 39

Jul. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 64 34

Sept. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 66 32

Oct. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 65 34

Job Anxiety

Most polls show that negative views about the economy as a whole rose during

the summer of 2010.

When asked specifically about whether they or a family member had a lost a job

in the past six months, however, polls have been stable all year. Around two-thirds say

this hasn’t happened to them. At the same time, however, around two-thirds say they

know someone other than a family member who has lost a job in the past six months.

Again, these responses appear stable in 2010. Eighty-five percent told Pew surveyors

that good jobs are hard to find in their area. That is the highest response on the

question since various pollsters started asking it in 1992.

Around three in ten in CBS’s June 2010 poll said they are very concerned that

they or someone in their family could lose a job in the next year. In Gallup’s August

2010 poll, a quarter said they were worried that they would be laid off or separately

that their wages would be cut in the near future. In the same Gallup series, 39 percent

worried that their benefits would be cut back. Although as said earlier, views about the

economy as a whole are more negative now in many polls than they were in the spring,

job anxiety for those who have jobs seemed to be most acute in 2009. In 2010, for those

who have jobs and who are weathering the storm, there is little indication that things

are getting worse. In the August 2010 NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, 65 percent of

those with jobs were very or somewhat satisfied with their job security. In Gallup’s

August poll, 84 percent were completely or somewhat satisfied with it.

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Nov. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 66 34

Dec. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 69 30

Jan. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 71 29

Mar. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 64 35

Apr. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 64 36

May 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 63 36

Jun. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 70 29

Aug. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 65 35

How concerned are you that in the next 12 months you or someone else in your household might be out of work or

looking for a job—very concerned, somewhat concerned, or not concerned at all?

Very concerned Somewhat concerned Not concerned at all

Oct. 2002 CBS/NYT 31% 20% 48%

Apr. 2004 CBS/NYT 33 25 41

Jun. 2004 CBS/NYT 28 27 45

Sep. 2004 CBS/NYT 30 26 44

Oct. 2004 CBS/NYT 22 24 53

Jun. 2005 CBS/NYT 20 18 61

Dec. 2005 CBS/NYT 21 25 53

Jan. 2006 CBS/NYT 22 27 51

Feb. 2008 CBS/NYT 29 27 43

Mar.-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 28 26 45

Aug. 2008 CBS/NYT 24 25 50

Sep. 2008 CBS/NYT 21 23 56

Oct. 2008 CBS/NYT 23 28 49

Late Oct. 2008 CBS/NYT 35 26 38

Dec. 2008 CBS 33 26 39

Jan. 2009 CBS/NYT 30 32 38

Feb. 2009 CBS 44 28 27

Late Feb. 2009 CBS /NYT 38 26 35

Mar. 2009 CBS 30 30 39

Apr. 2009 CBS/NYT 44 26 30

Apr. 2009 CBS/NYT 32 26 42

June 2009 CBS/NYT 36 28 35

Jul. 2009 CBS/ 40 29 30

Jul. 2009 CBS/NYT 36 26 38

Sept. 2009 CBS/NYT 30 28 42

Dec. 2010 CBS/ 20 37 43

Feb. 2010 CBS/NYT 31 26 41

Mar. 2010 CBS/NYT 36 26 37

Jun. 2010 CBS/NYT 32 25 41

Jul. 2010 CBS/NYT 31 29 39

Thinking now about job opportunities where you live, would you say there are plenty of jobs available in your

community or are jobs difficult to find?

Plenty of jobs Jobs are difficult

available to find

Jan. 1992 US News 12% 79%

May 1992 US News 16 77

Aug. 1992 US News 15 76

Jun. 2001 PSRA/Pew Research Center 42 44


Oct. 2003 PSRA/Pew Research Center 24 66

Jan. 2004 PSRA/Pew Research Center 27 60

Feb. 2004 PSRA/Pew Research Center 31 59

Apr. 2004 PSRA/Pew Research Center 30 57

Aug. 2004 PSRA/Pew Research Center 34 55

Sep. 2004 PSRA/Pew Research Center 31 52


May 2005 PSRA/Pew Research Center 30 60

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Mar. 2006 PSRA/Pew Research Center 37 56

Dec. 2006 PSRA/Pew Research Center 40 49



Sep. 2007 PSRA/Pew Research Center 36 50


Apr. 2008 PSRA/Pew Research Center 30 61

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew Research Center 31 58


Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew Research Center 19 73


Sept-Oct. 2009 PSRA/Pew Research Center 14 79

Mar. 2010 PSRA/Pew Research Center 10 85

And would you describe the financial situation in your own household these days as good, poor, or neither good nor

poor?

Good Poor Neither

Sept. 2008 Ap-Gfk/Roper 61% 30% 8%

Jun. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 56 37 6

Sept. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 58 37 5

Oct.2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 60 35 5

Nov. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 59 34 7

Dec. 2009 Ap-Gfk/Roper 61 34 4

Jan. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 60 37 3

Mar. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 62 33 4

Apr. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 59 38 3

May 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 60 33 7

Jun. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 64 30 6

Aug. 2010 Ap-Gfk/Roper 61 36 3

Next, please indicate whether you are worried about each of the following happening to you, personally, in the near

future. How about...?

Gallup

That you will be laid off

Worried Not worried

Aug. 1997 20% 80%

Aug. 2003 19 81

Aug. 2004 20 79

Aug. 2005 15 84

Aug. 2006 17 82

Aug. 2007 14 85

Aug. 2008 15 85

Aug. 2009 31 68

Aug. 2010 26 73

That your hours at work will be cut back

Worried Not worried

Aug. 1997 15% 85%

Aug. 2003 15 84

Aug. 2004 14 86

Aug. 2005 13 87

Aug. 2006 16 83

Aug. 2007 12 87

Aug. 2008 14 85

Aug. 2009 27 72

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Aug. 2010 25 73

That your wages will be reduced

Worried Not worried

Aug. 1997 17% 83%

Aug. 2003 17 82

Aug. 2004 17 83

Aug. 2005 14 86

Aug. 2006 19 80

Aug. 2007 14 86

Aug. 2008 16 83

Aug. 2009 32 67

Aug. 2010 26 74

That your benefits will be reduced

Worried Not worried

Aug. 1997 34% 66%

Aug. 2003 31 67

Aug. 2004 28 69

Aug. 2005 28 69

Aug. 2006 30 67

Aug. 2007 29 68

Aug. 2008 27 70

Aug. 2009 46 52

Aug. 2010 39 58

That your company will move jobs to countries overseas

Worried Not worried

Aug. 2003 9% 89%

Aug. 2004 11 89

Aug. 2005 12 88

Aug. 2006 11 86

Aug. 2007 10 88

Aug. 2008 8 91

Aug. 2009 10 88

Aug. 2010 8 91

Note: Sample is employed adults, full or part-time.

Over the past 12 months, has there been a time when you or someone in your household has been without a job and

looking for work, or not?

Yes No

May 2005 PSRA/Pew 31% 69%

Jan.-Feb. 2008. PSRA/Pew 28 71

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 35 65

Feb. 2009 PSRA/Pew 39 61

Sept./Oct. 2009 PSRA/Pew 42 58

Mar. 2010 PSRA/Pew 54 45

If you were to lose your job, how likely is it that you would find a job just as good as the one you have now—very

likely, somewhat likely, not very likely, or not at all likely?

Very Somewhat Not too Not at all

likely likely likely likely

Feb. 2001 Gallup 35% 29% 24% 11%

Apr. 2001 Gallup 37 33 23 7

Apr. 2006 Gallup 29 31 23 16

Apr. 2007 Gallup 34 30 21 15

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Apr. 2010 Gallup 16 26 30 27

Note: Samples are employed adults.

In the last few months have you or has anyone living in your household been laid off or lost their job?

Yes No

Dec. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 18% 82%

Feb. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 18 82

April 2009 ABC/Wash Post 23 77

Sept. 2009* ABC/Wash Post 27 73

Nov. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 30 70

Note: *Wording was changed to ―In the last year…‖

In the last few months have you or has anyone living in your household had work hours or pay cut?

Yes No



April 2009 ABC/Wash Post 35 65

Sept. 2009* ABC/Wash Post 41 59

Note: *Wording was changed to ―In the last year…‖

Thinking beyond your own household, do you have any close friends or immediate family members who have

been laid off or lost their job?

Yes No

Feb. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 60% 40%

Thinking beyond your own household, do you have any close friends or immediate family members who have

had work hours or pay cut?

Yes No

Feb. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 60% 38%

How concerned are you that you or someone else in your household will be laid off or lose their job in the next few

months – very concerned, somewhat concerned, not so concerned, or not concerned at all?

Very Somewhat Not so Not concerned

concerned concerned concerned at all

Feb. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 23% 24% 21% 33%

Sept. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 25 21 18 36

How concerned are you that you or someone else in your household will have work hours or pay cut in the next few

months – very concerned, somewhat concerned, not so concerned, or not concerned at all?



Feb. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 26% 27% 16% 31%

Sept. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 28 24 17 30

Please tell me whether any of the following have been laid off or lost a job in the last six months?

Jan.-Feb. 2009 Gallup

Yes, lost a job No

A more distant relative or friend 52% 47%

A close friend or immediate family member such as

parent, child, brother or sister. 36 64

You or another person living in your household 19 81

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For each of the following, please indicate whether it has happened to you in the last six months, whether you are

worried it might happen to you in the near future, or if you are not worried about it happening to you in the foreseeable

future. How about ______?

Jan.-Feb. 2009 Gallup

Happened to me in Worried about it Not

the last six months happening worried

Having your hours at work cut back, including

including being furloughed 12% 24% 64%

Having your benefits reduced 9 31 59

Having your wages reduced 8 24 68

Being laid off 2 29 68

Your company moving jobs to countries overseas 2 8 88

Thinking about the next 12 months, how likely is it that you will lose your job or be laid off – very likely, fairly likely,

not too likely or not at all likely?

Very Fairly Not too Not at all

likely likely likely likely

Jan.-Feb. 1975 Gallup 3% 10% 28% 55%

Apr. 1975 Gallup 5 8 22 63

Nov. 1979 Gallup 3 8 18 66

May 1980 Gallup 6 8 24 60

Sep. 1980 Gallup 6 9 24 60

Jun. 1982 Gallup 7 7 28 54

Nov. 1982 Gallup 9 9 28 49

Apr. 1983 Gallup 8 8 26 55

Feb. 1989 Gallup 4 8 35 53

Jul. 1990 Gallup 6 6 24 62

Mar. 1991 Gallup 5 7 22 65

Jul. 1991 Gallup 6 10 25 59

Oct. 1991 Gallup 6 10 25 59

Dec. 1993 Gallup 5 7 27 60

Apr. 1996 Gallup 5 9 34 52

Jun. 1997 Gallup 4 6 26 63

Dec. 1998 Gallup 6 7 27 60

Apr. 2001 Gallup 5 7 36 52

Sep. 2001 Gallup 7 6 25 62

Apr. 2006 Gallup 3 7 32 57

Apr. 2007 Gallup 4 8 31 57

Apr. 2010 Gallup 8 13 40 38

Dec. 2008 ABC/WashPost 10 11 30 48


How concerned are you about losing your job?

Very Somewhat Not very Not

concerned concerned concerned concerned

Apr. 2003 Fox/OD 28% 14% 13% 35%

May 2003 Fox/OD 11 9 17 47

Jun. 2004 Fox/OD 22 12 19 40

Extremely Very Not very Not at all


Dec. 2008 Fox /OD 14% 15% 22% 39%

Jan. 2009 Fox /OD 7 13 26 41

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Now looking ahead at the next six months. How likely is it that you, someone in your family or someone else you know

personally will lose their job in the next six months as a result of economic conditions?… Extremely likely, very likely,

somewhat likely, not very likely, not at all likely

Extremely Very Somewhat Not very Not at all

likely likely likely likely likely

Jan. 2002 IPSOS-Reid 7% 12% 30% 32% 18%

Feb. 2002 IPSOS-Reid 7 13 31 32 16

Mar. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 7 12 29 33 18

Apr. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 7 11 28 34 18

May 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 6 11 28 35 19

Jun. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 7 13 30 31 18

Jul. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 8 11 32 31 17

Aug. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 8 11 31 31 18

Sep. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 8 12 29 29 20

Oct. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 9 13 31 30 16

Nov. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 9 13 30 30 15

Dec. 2002 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 8 14 30 31 14

Jan. 2003 IPSOS-Reid 8 14 30 30 16

Feb. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 9 13 30 28 17

Mar. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 9 13 28 29 17

Apr. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 8 13 29 31 17

May 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 8 13 30 32 15

Jun. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 7 12 32 31 17

Jul. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 7 15 32 29 15

Aug. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 8 13 32 30 16

Sep. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 8 13 32 28 17

Oct. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 7 12 31 30 18

Nov. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 7 12 30 30 19

Dec. 2003 IPSOS-Reid/Cook 7 11 32 32 17

Jan. 2004 AP/Ipsos 7 12 29 33 17

Feb. 2004 AP/Ipsos 8 12 28 31 20

Mar. 2004 AP/Ipsos 6 13 30 31 19

May 2004 AP/Ipsos 8 13 31 29 18

Jun. 2004 AP/Ipsos 8 10 29 31 21

Jul. 2004 AP/Ipsos 6 11 28 34 20

Aug. 2004 AP/Ipsos 6 12 30 33 18

Sep. 2004 AP/Ipsos 7 9 28 33 23

Oct. 2004 AP/Ipsos 6 10 30 37 16

Nov. 2004 AP/Ipsos 8 11 27 31 22

Jan. 2005 AP/Ipsos 6 12 31 32 18

Feb. 2005 AP/Ipsos 6 13 29 32 19

Mar. 2005 AP/Ipsos 9 10 26 34 20

Apr. 2005 AP/Ipsos 7 12 26 31 22

May 2005 AP/Ipsos 6 13 26 33 21

Jun. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 7 12 29 30 21

Jul. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 6 12 31 31 18

Aug. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 8 11 29 34 17

Sep. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 7 12 29 32 18

Oct. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 7 10 29 31 21

Nov. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 7 11 24 35 22

Dec. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 8 13 26 31 21

Jan. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 8 11 32 32 15

Feb. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 8 11 27 33 20

Mar. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 7 12 26 33 21

Apr. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 6 11 29 33 20

May 2006 RBC/Ipsos 9 13 27 30 20

Jun. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 6 10 26 34 23

Jul. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 7 8 29 33 22

Aug. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 4 10 31 33 20

Sep. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 6 12 27 31 23

Nov. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 7 10 27 33 21

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Dec. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 6 10 27 36 20

Jan. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 5 11 25 34 24

Feb. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 5 8 28 34 23

Mar. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 8 11 25 31 23

May 2007 RBC/Ipsos 8 10 24 35 21

Jun. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 4 10 29 32 23

Jul. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 6 12 30 30 20

Aug. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 5 12 25 33 23

Sep. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 6 11 32 29 20

Oct. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 5 12 26 33 21

Nov. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 8 11 29 29 21

Dec. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 5 10 32 33 18

Jan. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 6 12 32 29 18

Feb. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 8 16 30 26 19

Mar. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 7 14 33 28 15

Apr. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 6 14 32 28 17

May 2008 RBC/Ipsos 7 17 33 23 17

Jun. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 8 18 29 28 14

Jul. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 9 15 31 28 14

Sep.2008 RBC/Ipsos 8 15 30 27 19

Oct. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 11 18 35 21 14

Nov. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 9 18 34 24 12

Dec. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 11 21 35 19 10

Jan. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 11 22 33 21 10

Feb. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 15 27 33 18 5

Mar. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 14 25 37 15 7

Aug. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 12 24 35 19 7

Oct. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 11 18 36 25 9

Nov. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 9 20 41 21 8

Dec. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 13 16 38 22 9

Jan. 2010 RBS/Ipsos 9 16 37 26 11

Feb. 2010 RBS/Ipsos 9 16 44 21 8

Mar. 2010 RBS/Ipsos 8 18 37 26 10

Do you, personally, know anyone who has been laid off or lost their job within the last six months, or not?

Yes No

Apr. 2003 Gallup 63% 37%

Apr. 2004 Gallup 60 40





Do you know someone, personally, who has been laid off or fired recently, or not?

Yes No

Oct. 1990 Gallup 50% 49%

Oct. 1991 Gallup 50 46

Dec. 1993 Gallup 52 47

Mar. 1994 Gallup 60 40


Aug. 2001 Gallup 43 57


Nov. 2001 Gallup 54 46

Feb. 2002 Gallup 51 49


Do you, personally, know anyone who has been laid off or lost their job within the last three months?

Yes No

Jan.-Feb. 2008 Gallup/USA Today 38% 62%

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As far as you know, in the past six months, has your employer laid off any employees, or not?

Yes No

Aug. 2003 Gallup 34% 64%




As far as you know, in the past six months, has your employer laid off any employees, or not?

Yes No

Jun.-Jul. 2006 PSRA/Pew 26% 71%

In the last twelve months, has any adult in your household been out of work and actively looking for a job?

Yes No

Aug. 2002 CBS/NYT 29% 71%

Sep. 2008 CBS/NYT 29 71

Oct. 2008 CBS/NYT 25 74

How confident are you that you can continue to work for your company for the next 12 months – extremely confident,

very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident, or not at all confident?

Extremely Very Somewhat Not too Not at all

confident confident confident confident confident

Apr. 2002 Gallup/UBS 47% 32% 15% 3% 2%

May 2002 Gallup/UBS 44 34 14 4 3

Jun. 2002 Gallup/UBS 26 34 29 5 4

Jul. 2002 Gallup/UBS 38 38 14 6 5

Aug. 2002 Gallup/UBS 42 33 16 5 3

May 2003 Gallup/UBS 45 32 16 3 3


How concerned are you that you or someone else in your household will lose their job in the next year? Are you very

concerned, somewhat concerned, not very concerned, or not concerned at all?

Very Somewhat Not very Not at all


Dec. 1994* CBS/NYT 21% 17% 20% 40%

Jul. 1995* CBS/NYT 26 17 17 39

Mar. 1996 CBS 27 22 19 30

May 1996 CBS/NYT 27 21 22 29

Apr. 2003 CBS 20 19 22 37

May 2003 CBS/NYT 25 20 24 32

Jul. 2003 CBS/NYT 25 21 21 32

Aug. 2003 CBS 22 19 31 36

Sep. 2003 CBS/NYT 26 18 22 33

Jan. 2004 CBS/NYT 21 18 20 39

Note: * Question wording, ―How much do you worry that you or someone else in your household will be laid off—a lot,

some, only a little or not at all?‖

How concerned are you that you or someone else in your household will lose their job in the next year? Are you very

concerned, somewhat concerned, not too concerned, or not concerned at all?

Very Somewhat Not too Not

concerned concerned concerned concerned at all

Apr. 2004 ABC/Wash Post 24% 19% 19% 34%

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Please tell me whether you are worried or not worried about each of the following happening in the next 12 months…

that you or your spouse will lose a job?

Worried Not worried

Oct. 1990^ Gallup/Newsweek 20% 79%

Oct.-Nov. 1991 Gallup 31 65

Dec. 1991 Gallup 25 68

Jan. 1992 Gallup 36 62

Jan.-Feb. 1992 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 33 64

Oct. 1992* Gallup/CNN/USA Today 29 67


Jul. 2001 Gallup 22 77

Oct. 2001 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 29 70

Jul. 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 27 70

Jul. 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 22 73

Oct. 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 27 70

Dec. 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 24 73

Jan. 2004 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 21 78

Jan.-Feb. 2008 Gallup/USA Today 23 74

Note: * Asked of registered voters. ^ Very and somewhat categories combined. Samples are national adults.

As a result of what‘s happening in the economy these days, please tell me whether or not you are worried about the

following—a major wage earner in your family losing a job? Are you worried about this, or not?

Yes, worried No, not worried

Oct. 1991 PSRA/Newsweek 44% 48%

May 2003 PSRA/Newsweek 32 58

Nov. 2003 PSRA/Newsweek 34 60

Feb. 2004 PSRA/Newsweek 43 55

How many jobs do you have now?

One job Two jobs or more

Jun. 1991 Gallup 84% 16%

Jul. 1996 Newsweek 85 15

Jul. 1997 PSRA/Pew 87 12





How many jobs do you have now?

One job Two jobs or more

Jun.-Jul. 2006 PSRA/Pew 87% 13%

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Were you laid off from your main job at any time in the past two years?

Yes No

Jun-Jul. 2006 PSRA/Pew 8% 91%

About how long were you out of work?

Less than Between 3 Between 6 More than Still out of

3 months and 6 months months and 1 year 1 year work now

34% 23% 16% 15% 9%

Note: Based on those adults who were laid off.

Overall, would you say the new job you took during this period offered wages and benefits that were better,

worse, or about the same as the previous job?

Better Worse About the same

25% 28% 37%

Note: Based on those adults who were laid off and now are employed.

Thinking of the last 6 months- that is, since November of last year – have you or has someone in your family lost a job

as a result of economic conditions or not?

Yes (self lost job) Yes(someone in family) Both No

May 2009 Roper 7% 21% 1% 70%

May 2010 Roper 8 21 1 69

In your opinion, what is the most important problem facing the U.S. today?

Economy (Net) Top Response

Feb. 2009 Ipsos/McClatchy 76% Economy (76%)

Oct. 2009 Ipsos/McClatchy 46 Economy (46)

Jan. 2010 Ipsos/McClatchy 48 Economy (48)

Mar. 2010 Ipsos/McClatchy 47 Economy (47)

Jul. 2010 Ipsos/McClatchy 48 Economy (48)

What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today?

Gallup

The Economy Unemployment/Jobs Top Response

Apr. 2009 48% 17% The economy

May 2009 47 14 The economy

Jun. 2009 41 14 The economy

Jul. 2009 38 19 The economy

Aug. 2009 33 14 The economy

Sept. 2009 29 15 The economy

Oct. 2009 26 17 The economy

Nov. 2009 31 20 The economy

Dec. 2009 26 16 The economy

Jan. 2010 25 22 The economy

Feb. 2010 31 31 The Economy & Unemployment Jobs

Mar. 2010 24 31 Unemployment/Jobs

Apr. 2010 23 30 Unemployment/Jobs

May 2010 26 22 The economy

Jun. 2010 28 21 The economy

Jul. 2010 31 22 The economy

Aug. 2010. 31 28 The economy

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Job Security

Now I‘ll read a list of job characteristics. For each, please tell me how satisfied or dissatisfied you are with your current

job in this regard. First, are you completely satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or completely

dissatisfied with job security?

Gallup

----------------------------------------------------Job Security----------------------------------------------------------

Completely satisfied Somewhat satisfied Somewhat dissatisfied Completely dissatisfied

1989 45% 42% 8% 3%

1991 35 44 12 7

1993 46 33 9 11

1998 52 35 6 6

1999 48 33 11 7

2001 54 30 8 7

2002 55 30 7 7

2003 48 35 7 8

2004 54 28 11 6

2005 52 31 9 7

2006 55 29 10 5

2007 56 31 6 6

2008 55 31 8 5

2009 50 30 10 8

2010 51 33 7 7

Note: Asked of those employed full or part time.

Let me read you several elements relating to the current economy. For each one, please tell me whether it is an area in

which you feel very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or very dissatisfied…your current job security?

NBC/WSJ

-------------------------------------------------Current Job Security----------------------------------------------------

Very satisfied Somewhat satisfied Somewhat dissatisfied Very dissatisfied

Mar. 1996 36% 37% 14% 12%

Jun. 1996 38 37 12 12

Sept. 1996 37 39 10 13

Dec. 1996 36 38 13 12

Mar. 1997 37 40 12 11

Jun. 1997 38 36 12 13

Sept. 1997 41 37 10 11

Dec. 1997 40 38 11 10

Dec. 1998 45 33 10 11

Apr. 2000 (RV) 46 35 9 9

Jan. 2009 35 35 14 15

Apr. 2009 32 36 13 17

Jul. 2009 30 30 15 24

Sept. 2009 36 30 16 17

Dec. 2009 33 34 14 18

Aug. 2010 33 32 15 19

Note: Asked of those employed.

How secure do you feel in your current job?

Very secure Fairly secure Not very secure Not at all secure

Jul. 2007 Zogby 48% 21% 4% 6%

Aug. 2007 Zogby 47 18 3 4

Sep. 2007 Zogby 44 20 3 3

Oct. 2007 Zogby 45 20 5 2

Nov. 2007 Zogby 45 20 4 5

Dec. 2007 Zogby 48 17 3 1

Jan. 2008 Zogby 43 21 7 6

15

Feb. 2008 Zogby 50 23 5 6

Mar. 2008 Zogby 41 20 7 8

Apr. 2008 Zogby 48 17 4 5

May 2008 Zogby 42 24 3 6

Jun. 2008 Zogby 43 21 5 4

Jul. 2008 Zogby 43 22 5 4

Aug. 2008 Zogby 42 19 6 6

Sep. 2008 Zogby 44 20 5 3

Oct. 2008 Zogby 42 24 6 7

Nov. 2008 Zogby 37 26 3 4

Dec. 2008 Zogby 37 23 6 8

Now I'll read a list of job characteristics. For each, please tell me how satisfied you are with your current job in this

regard. Are you completely satisfied, mostly satisfied, mostly dissatisfied, or completely dissatisfied with . . . your job

security?

Jun.-Jul. 2006 PSRA/Pew

Completely satisfied Somewhat satisfied Somewhat dissatisfied Completely dissatisfied

39% 46% 10% 4%

Thinking back over the last five years, which, if any, of the following have happened to you personally?

Aug. 2005 Gallup

Yes No

You were given a promotion 42% 58%

You left a job to work for a different company 41 59

You changed careers or made a significant change

in they type of work you do for a living 32 68

Your benefits were reduced 30 69

Your wages were reduced 19 81

You were laid off from a job 15 85

You were fired from a job 7 93

Do you think you would be happier in a different job?

Yes, happier No, not happier

Jun. 1955 Gallup 32% 63 %



Jul. 2006 Gallup/USA Today 31 63


Note: Sample is adults employed full or part-time.

Do you think you would be happier if you made more money?

Yes, happier No, not happier

Jul. 2006 Gallup/USA Today 73% 26%

Note: In 1955, 69 percent said they would be happier with more money; in 1965 64 percent gave the same response.

Sample is adults employed full or part-time.

In the last 12 months would you say you have felt more secure and confident that you can continue in your job as long as

you want, or less secure and confident, or has there been no change?

More Less No Change

Jul. 2010 CBS 14% 37% 47%

16

Outsourcing

Next, please indicate whether you are worried or not about each of the following happening to you, personally, in the

near future. How about that your company will move jobs to countries overseas?

Worried Not worried

Aug. 2003 Gallup 9% 89%









How concerned are you, that you, or a friend, or relative, might lose a job because the employer is moving that job to a

foreign country—very concerned, somewhat concerned, not too concerned, not at all concerned?



Mar. 2004 CNN/USA Today/Gallup 30% 17% 18% 34%

How would you rate your own personal financial situation? Would you say you are in excellent shape, good shape, only

fair shape or poor shape financially?

Excellent Good Only fair Poor

Jan. 1992 US News 4% 32% 45% 18%

May 1992 US News 4 35 45 15

Aug. 1992 US News 5 30 47 17

Oct. 1992 US News 6 34 40 19

Jan. 1993 US News 4 33 46 16

Personal Financial Worries:

Question wording is always important in polls. In Pew’s June 2010 question, 38 percent

described their own personal financial situation as excellent or good. In CBS News’s

question 65 percent said the financial situation of their household these days as very or

fairly good. Sixty-one percent in the AP/GfK Roper August poll said their financial

situation these days was good. Thirty-six percent said it was poor. Twenty-six percent in a

July Fox New/Opinion Dynamics question said they were getting ahead, 54 percent just

keeping up with their bills, and 18 percent falling behind.

In a Gallup battery asked in the spring every year since 2001, views about different items in

one’s current financial situation such as being able to pay the minimum on credit card bills

or not having enough money to pay normal bills are more generally pessimistic in recent

years than they were earlier in the decade.

Anxiety about prospects for retirement has clearly risen in the past few years. In 2001,

when Gallup asked non-retired people whether they would have enough money in

retirement to live comfortably, 59 percent said they would. In 2010, that response was 46

percent. Those in retirement seem less concerned.

17

Dec. 1993 PSRA/Pew 5 34 45 15

Mar. 1994 PSRA/Pew 5 41 40 13

Feb. 1995 PSRA/Pew 8 39 38 14

Sep. 1996* PSRA/Pew 8 47 34 10

May 1997 PSRA/Pew 7 43 38 11

Aug. 1999 PSRA/Pew 6 43 41 9

Jun. 2000 PSRA/Pew 9 43 35 11

Jun. 2001 PSRA/Pew 6 38 39 16

Sep. 2001 PSRA/Pew 7 40 37 14

Jun. 2002 PSRA/Pew 5 40 37 16

Oct. 2002 PSRA/Pew 7 39 37 16

Jan. 2003 PSRA/Pew 7 38 39 15

Mar. 2003 PSRA/Pew 10 43 31 12

Sep. 2003 PSRA/Pew 10 38 36 15

Aug. 2004 PSRA/Pew 9 42 34 14

Jan. 2005 PSRA/Pew 10 41 34 14

May 2005 PSRA/Pew 7 37 39 16

Jan. 2006 PSRA/Pew 7 39 37 15

Mar. 2006 PSRA/Pew 9 39 36 15

Oct. 2006 PSRA/Pew 9 40 33 16

Dec. 2006 PSRA/Pew 8 40 35 16

Feb. 2007 PSRA/Pew 8 41 36 14

Sep. 2007 PSRA/Pew 10 38 34 16

Nov. 2007 PSRA/Pew 9 41 34 15

Jan. 2008 PSRA/Pew 10 39 34 15

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 9 36 37 16

Mar. 2008 PSRA/Pew 8 39 34 17

Apr. 2008 PSRA/Pew 8 35 39 16

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 9 33 37 19

Oct. 2008 PSRA/Pew 6 35 40 18

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 6 32 40 21

Feb. 2009 PSRA/Pew 5 33 41 20

Jun. 2009 PSRA/Pew 6 32 39 22

Aug. 2009 PSRA/Pew 6 31 36 26

Sept/Oct. 2009 PSRA/Pew 6 32 38 22

Oct/Nov. 2009 PSRA/Pew 5 30 40 25

Dec. 2009 PSRA/Pew 7 28 39 24

Mar. 2010 PSRA/Pew 6 31 39 22

Jun. 2010 PSRA/Pew 6 32 38 20

Note: *Asked of registered voters.

How would you rate the financial situation in your household these days? Is it very good, fairly good, fairly bad, or very

bad?

Very good Fairly good Fairly bad Very bad

Nov. 1988 CBS/NYT 12% 69% 13% 5%

Oct. 1990 CBS/NYT 14 70 11 4

Jul. 2006 CBS/NYT 12 64 17 5

Apr. 2007 CBS 14 69 13 4

Feb. 2008 CBS/NYT 18 60 15 6

Mar-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 9 63 20 7

Jul. 2008 CBS/NYT 13 61 19 7

Aug. 2008 CBS/NYT 15 56 20 8

Jan. 2009 CBS/NYT 10 63 19 8

Feb. 2009 CBS/NYT 12 55 21 11

Apr. 2009 CBS/NYT 10 56 21 12

Dec. 2009 CBS/NYT 13 56 20 11

Feb. 2009 CBS/NYT 12 55 21 11

Apr. 2009 CBS/NYT 10 56 21 12

Feb. 2010 CBS/NYT 9 58 24 8

Apr. 2010 CBS/NYT 9 64 16 9

18

May 2010 CBS 10 59 23 7

Jun. 2010 CBS/NYT 10 56 25 8

Jul. 2010 CBS 11 54 25 10

Thinking about your household‘s financial condition, do you expect it to be better or worse in the next six months?

Better Will remain the same Worse

Feb. 2008 Harris Interactive 39% 28% 34%

Mar. 2008 Harris Interactive 33 28 39

Jun. 2008 Harris Interactive 40 25 36

Nov. 2008 Harris Interactive 24 43 33

Jan. 2009 Harris Interactive 20 48 32


Apr. 2009 Harris Interactive 23 46 31

May 2009 Harris Interactive 25 45 30


Aug. 2009 Harris Interactive 24 48 28

Sept. 2009 Harris Interactive 23 48 29

Oct. 2009 Harris Interactive 23 45 31

Nov. 2009 Harris Interactive 18 47 35

Dec. 2009 Harris Interactive 19 48 33

Jan. 2010 Harris Interactive 21 49 30


Apr. 2010 Harris Interactive 22 50 29

May 2010 Harris Interactive 25 47 28


Would you describe the financial situation in your household these days as good, poor, or neither good nor poor?

Good Neither Poor

Sept. 2008 Gfk/Roper 61% 8% 30%

Jul. 2009 Gfk/Roper 56 6 37

Sept. 2009 Gfk/Roper 58 5 37

Oct. 2009 Gfk/Roper 60 5 35

Nov. 2009 Gfk/Roper 59 7 34

Dec. 2009 Gfk/Roper 61 4 34

Jan. 2010 Gfk/Roper 60 3 37

Mar. 2010 Gfk/Roper 62 4 33

Apr. 2010 Gfk/Roper 59 3 38

May 2010 Gfk/Roper 60 7 33

Jun. 2010 Gfk/Roper 64 6 30

Aug. 2010 Gfk/Roper 61 3 36

Which best describes your current financial situation? Are you: getting ahead, just able to pay most bills, or falling

behind?

Getting Just able to Falling

ahead pay most bills behind

Apr. 2007 Fox/OD 31% 51% 15%

Dec. 2007 Fox/OD 41 45 11

Sep. 2008 Fox/OD 23 57 17

Sept. 2009 Fox/OD 27 54 17

Jul. 2010 Fox/OD 26 54 18

In the last 12 months, as a result of bad economic conditions, have your salary or wages been reduced, or not?

Yes No

Jul. 2010 CBS 31% 69%

19

Next, please tell me how concerned you are right now about each of the following financial matters, based on your

current financial situation – are you very worried, moderately worried, not too worried, or not worried at all. If a

particular item does not apply to you please say so. First, how worried are you about…?

Very Moderately Not too Not worried

worried worried worried at all

Not being able to pay your rent,

mortgage or other housing costs

Apr. 2001 Gallup 10% 14% 28% 44%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 8 14 26 47

Apr. 2003 Gallup 11 14 27 43

Apr. 2004 Gallup 11 13 26 42

Apr. 2005 Gallup 10 13 30 43

Apr. 2006 Gallup 11 16 29 37

Apr. 2007 Gallup 11 15 31 38

Apr. 2008 Gallup 18 18 24 35

Apr. 2009 Gallup 17 18 26 33

Apr. 2010 Gallup 18 20 28 28

Not being able to maintain the

standard of living you enjoy

Apr. 2001 Gallup 16% 27% 30% 26%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 12 23 31 32

Apr. 2003 Gallup 14 24 32 29

Apr. 2004 Gallup 16 23 29 31

Apr. 2005 Gallup 14 27 31 28

Apr. 2006 Gallup 18 31 28 22

Apr. 2007 Gallup 18 23 32 26

Apr. 2008 Gallup 25 30 24 20

Sep. 2008 Gallup 24 32 24 19

Apr. 2009 Gallup 21 32 28 18

Apr. 2010 Gallup 23 31 30 15



Not being able to make the minimum

payments on your credit cards

Apr. 2001 Gallup 9% 9% 22% 41%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 7 8 21 48

Apr. 2003 Gallup 7 9 21 47

Apr. 2004 Gallup 7 10 22 46

Apr. 2005 Gallup 7 9 22 45

Apr. 2006 Gallup 9 8 24 41

Apr. 2007 Gallup 9 9 23 41

Apr. 2008 Gallup 11 12 19 42

Sep. 2008 Gallup 13 12 19 39

Apr. 2009 Gallup 10 13 20 37

Apr. 2010 Gallup 11 13 21 37

Not having enough to pay

your normal monthly bills

Apr. 2001 Gallup 12% 20% 29% 39%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 11 19 27 42

Apr. 2003 Gallup 12 18 29 40

Apr. 2004 Gallup 12 20 28 39

Apr. 2005 Gallup 13 17 32 37

Apr. 2006 Gallup 14 24 30 30

Apr. 2007 Gallup 14 19 32 34

Apr. 2008 Gallup 20 24 25 30

Sep. 2008 Gallup 20 24 24 30

Apr. 2009 Gallup 19 25 26 28

Apr. 2010 Gallup 18 26 28 26

20

Not being able to get a loan to pay

for a home, car, tuition, or business

Sep. 2008 Gallup 20% 15% 22% 33%

Not being able to pay medical costs

for normal health care

Apr. 2003 Gallup 17% 20% 24% 36%

Apr. 2004 Gallup 21 16 25 36

Apr. 2005 Gallup 23 18 24 32

Apr. 2006 Gallup 23 22 26 27

Apr. 2007 Gallup 21 15 31 30

Apr. 2008 Gallup 23 21 24 29

Dec. 2008 Gallup 24 22 24 27

Apr. 2009 Gallup 26 20 28 26

Apr. 2010 Gallup 22 26 27 21

Right now, do you have enough money to live comfortably, or not.

Yes No

Apr. 2002 Gallup 75% 24%








When you retire, do you think you will have enough money to live comfortably, or not?

Non-retired Adults

------------Right Now--------- ------------When you retire--------

Yes, have enough No Yes, will have enough No

Apr. 2002 Gallup 75% 24 % 59% 32%

Apr. 2003 Gallup 73 26 59 36

Apr. 2004 Gallup 74 25 59 35

Apr. 2005 Gallup 72 28 53 40

Apr. 2006 Gallup 71 28 50 43

Apr. 2007 Gallup 73 26 53 42

Apr. 2008 Gallup 69 30 46 44

Apr. 2009 Gallup 65 33 41 52

Apr. 2010 Gallup 68 31 46 48

Think about your household income, would you say that it is more than enough so that you can save and buy some

extras, just enough to meet your bills and obligations, or it is not enough to meet your bills and obligations?

Save and Just Not

buy extras enough enough

Mar. 1996 CBS/NYT 27% 55% 16%

May 1996 CBS/NYT 24 57 19

Jan. 2005 CBS 33 48 17

Jul. 2006 CBS 35 52 12

Sep. 2006 CBS/NYT 34 51 15

Oct. 2006 CBS/NYT 36 46 17

Nov. 2006 CBS/NYT 38 44 17

Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 37 49 13

Dec. 2007 CBS/NYT 35 51 13

Jan-Feb. 2008 CBS 33 46 21

Feb. 2008 CBS/NYT 38 46 13

Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 27 48 23

May-Jun. 2008 CBS 33 47 18

21

Sep. 2008 CBS/NYT 37 44 17

Oct. 2008 CBS/NYT 30 51 18

Late Oct. 2008 CBS/NYT 29 51 20

Dec. 2008 CBS 31 49 19

Jan. 2009 CBS/NYT 29 53 17

Feb. 2009 CBS/NYT 27 55 17

Apr. 2009 CBS/NYT 29 49 22

Late Apr. 2009 CBS/NYT 29 47 23

May 2009 CBS/NYT 26 52 22

June 2009 CBS/NYT 28 49 22

Jul. 2009 CBS 25 45 28

Jan. 2010 CBS 22 53 25

Feb. 2010 CBS/NYT 25 57 17

How much have you been affected personally by the downturn in the economy––a great deal, quite a bit, just

some, or not at all?

Affected a

great deal Quite a bit Some Not at all

Jan. 2001 NBC/WSJ 12% 12% 40% 36%

Jan. 2009 NBC/WSJ 22 20 42 16

Feb. 2009 NBC/WSJ 23 20 42 15

Apr. 2009 NBC/WSJ 23 23 41 13

Mar. 2010 NBC/WSJ 25 23 40 12

Gallup Financial Well Being Index

Those that say they have ―more than enough money to do what you want to do‖

Jun. 2009 Gallup 33%

Jul. 2009 Gallup 32

Aug.2009 Gallup 33

Sept. 2009 Gallup 31

Oct. 2009 Gallup 32

Nov. 2009 Gallup 34

Dec. 2009 Gallup 34

Jan. 2010 Gallup 32

Feb. 2010 Gallup 33

Mar. 2010 Gallup 32

Apr. 2010 Gallup 34

May 2010 Gallup 33

Do not have enough money to buy the things they need

Jun. 2009 Gallup 22%

July 2009 Gallup 22

Aug. 2009 Gallup 24

Sept. 2009 Gallup 24

Oct. 2009 Gallup 23

Nov. 2009 Gallup 24

Dec. 2009 Gallup 25

Jan. 2010 Gallup 22

Feb. 2010 Gallup 21

Mar. 2010 Gallup 22

Apr. 2010 Gallup 21

May 2010 Gallup 20

Over the course of the next year, do you think the financial situation of you and your family will improve a lot, improve

some, get a little worse, or get a lot worse?

Improve a lot Improve a little Get a little worse Get a lot worse

Jan. 1992 US News 9% 46% 19% 5%

May 1992 US News 8 49 22 4

Aug. 1992 US News 6 50 20 5

22

Oct. 1992 US News 9 51 14 3

Mar. 1994 PSRA/Pew 10 57 11 3

Feb. 1995 PSRA/Pew 11 53 13 3

May 1997 PSRA/Pew 12 56 10 2

Jun. 2000 PSRA/Pew 17 55 7 3

Jan. 2001 PSRA/Pew 11 46 18 9

Jun. 2001 PSRA/Pew 11 52 15 4

Sep. 2001 PSRA/Pew 9 46 16 4

Jan. 2002 PSRA/Pew 12 53 15 5

Jun. 2002 PSRA/Pew 11 55 15 4

Oct. 2002 PSRA/Pew 10 54 13 5

Jan. 2003 PSRA/Pew 9 51 18 5

Mar. 2003 PSRA/Pew 12 51 15 4

Sep. 2003 PSRA/Pew 11 53 15 4

Aug. 2004 PSRA/Pew 13 57 9 3

Jan. 2005 PSRA/Pew 10 54 14 4

May 2005 PSRA/Pew 10 51 15 5

Jan. 2006 PSRA/Pew 10 51 14 5

Dec. 2006 PSRA/Pew 10 57 13 3

Feb. 2007 PSRA/Pew 11 52 12 3

Sep. 2007 PSRA/Pew 10 52 14 4

Jan. 2008 PSRA/Pew 11 49 16 6

Mar. 2008 PSRA/Pew 10 45 20 7

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 7 44 21 7

Oct. 2008 PSRA/Pew 8 51 20 6

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 7 49 21 6

Feb. 2009 PSRA/Pew 7 47 22 7

Jun. 2009* PSRA/Pew 9 54 17 7

Aug. 2009 PSRA/Pew 8 47 17 8

Sept/Oct. 2009 PSRA/Pew 10 49 17 6

Oct/Nov. 2009 PSRA/Pew 6 50 19 8

Dec. 2009 PSRA/Pew 9 44 19 8

Mar. 2010 PSRA/Pew 9 52 15 8

May 2010 PSRA/Pew 10 52 14 5

Note: *Category ‗Improve a little‘ changed to ‗Improve some‘.

How would you rate your own personal financial situation?

Excellent Good Fair Poor

Jul. 2007 Zogby 14% 43% 32% 10%

Aug. 2007 Zogby 12 48 29 11

Sep. 2007 Zogby 12 44 31 12

Oct. 2007 Zogby 10 45 32 13

Nov. 2007 Zogby 10 45 33 11

Dec. 2007 Zogby 11 44 32 13

Jan. 2008 Zogby 12 40 33 13

Feb. 2008 Zogby 12 44 28 15

Mar. 2008 Zogby 9 37 37 17

Apr. 2008 Zogby 9 44 32 15

May 2008 Zogby 7 39 40 14

Jun. 2008 Zogby 11 39 35 14

Jul. 2008 Zogby 8 41 34 16

Aug. 2008 Zogby 8 39 38 14

Sep. 2008 Zogby 10 43 35 12

Oct. 2008 Zogby 7 40 37 15

Nov. 2008 Zogby 8 40 35 16

Dec. 2008 Zogby 7 41 33 20

23

How would you rate your personal financial situation – excellent, good, only fair, or poor?

Excellent Good Only fair Poor

Apr. 2003 Fox/OD 9% 46% 33% 10%

Jun.-Jul. 2003 Fox/OD 9 48 29 12

Sep. 2003 Fox/OD 5 39 38 16

Nov. 2003 Fox/OD 7 40 37 13

Mar. 2004 Fox/OD 14 48 27 10

Jun. 2004 Fox/OD 14 48 25 11

Aug. 2004 Fox/OD 13 45 30 10

Sep. 2004 Fox/OD 15 44 27 10

Oct. 2004 Fox/OD 16 47 27 8

Dec. 2004 Fox/OD 7 43 35 13

Dec. 2005 Fox/OD 8 40 34 16

Apr. 2006 Fox/OD 10 36 35 17

Jan. 2008 Fox/OD 11 45 32 12

Apr. 2009 Fox/OD 8 37 38 15

A year from now, do you think your personal financial situation will be better or worse?

Better Worse Same (vol.)

Aug. 2001 Fox/OD 49% 19% 24%

Jul. 2002 Fox/OD 57 19 21

Apr. 2003 Fox/OD 63 9 22

Jun.-Jul. 2003 Fox/OD 56 12 27

Sep. 2003 Fox/OD 53 14 26

Dec. 2003 Fox/OD 57 14 24

Dec. 2004 Fox/OD 51 16 27

Dec. 2005 Fox/OD 48 17 30

Jan. 2008 Fox/OD 47 13 32

Rate your current financial situation, using a scale from 1 to 7, where 7 means your personal financial situation is very

strong today and 1 means it is very weak.

Very Strong Very Weak

Seven Six Five Four Three Two One

Sep. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 11% 17% 25% 20% 11% 6% 9%

Oct. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 9 14 29 21 12 5 9

Nov. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 8 17 29 18 12 6 9

Dec. 2005 RBC/Ipsos 10 15 30 18 10 4 11

Jan. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 8 18 30 16 13 5 9

Feb. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 11 17 29 19 8 5 9

Mar. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 10 16 31 17 10 5 9

Apr. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 10 14 29 20 13 5 8

May 2006 RBC/Ipsos 11 14 30 18 10 5 11

Jun. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 10 17 29 15 12 5 11

Jul. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 10 16 28 18 12 5 9

Aug. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 14 13 30 16 11 6 9

Sep. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 12 21 26 19 7 3 10

Nov. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 11 16 29 18 11 4 10

Dec. 2006 RBC/Ipsos 10 14 27 20 14 4 10

Jan. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 9 16 29 16 13 5 10

Feb. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 11 18 30 16 11 7 6

Mar. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 11 15 28 21 11 3 10

Apr. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 10 16 28 18 12 6 9

May 2007 RBC/Ipsos 12 19 29 15 11 4 8

Jun. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 8 14 30 20 11 6 10

Jul. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 11 13 27 22 10 5 10

Aug. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 11 15 30 19 9 5 9

Sep. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 10 17 25 19 9 6 11

Oct. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 13 15 26 18 10 6 11

Nov. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 11 15 27 20 10 6 10

24

Dec. 2007 RBC/Ipsos 11 15 28 18 10 5 11

Jan. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 9 16 27 18 11 6 10

Feb. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 11 15 25 17 15 4 12

Mar. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 9 16 26 16 13 5 13

Apr. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 11 14 25 18 15 6 10

May-Jun. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 10 13 24 20 11 6 14

Jun. 26-29, 2008 RBC/Ipsos 10 12 23 16 14 7 16

Jul.-Aug. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 9 14 25 18 13 5 14

Sep. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 12 13 23 19 15 5 12

Oct. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 11 14 26 19 11 6 12

Nov. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 9 12 26 19 15 6 13

Dec. 2008 RBC/Ipsos 9 12 23 18 13 8 15

Jan. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 8 12 24 17 14 7 16

Feb. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 7 11 24 17 14 8 17

Mar. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 10 11 24 19 14 8 12

Apr. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 8 15 26 19 12 6 11

May 2009 RBC/Ipsos 10 15 25 16 13 8 11

Jun. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 9 9 23 23 15 6 12

Jul. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 9 11 25 20 14 7 13

Jul./Aug. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 8 13 25 20 13 10 8

Aug. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 9 12 24 15 16 7 15

Oct. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 9 13 29 21 11 5 11

Oct./Nov. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 9 11 28 18 15 5 13

Dec. 2009 RBC/Ipsos 8 13 27 17 14 7 11

Jan. 2010 RBC/Ipsos 12 14 25 17 10 7 15

Jan./Feb. 2010 RBC/Ipsos 11 11 23 19 14 5 16

Feb. 2010 RBC/Ipsos 10 15 27 17 10 6 14

How would you rate your own personal financial situation today? Would you say you are in excellent shape, good

shape, only fair shape, or poor shape?

Excellent shape Good shape Fair shape Poor shape

Nov. 1992 PSRA/Newsweek 6% 34% 40% 19%

Jan. 1993 PSRA/Newsweek 4 33 46 16

Dec. 1993 PSRA/Newsweek 5 34 45 15

Mar. 1994 PSRA/Newsweek 5 41 40 13

May 1997 PSRA/Newsweek 7 43 38 11

Sep. 1999 PSRA/Newsweek 6 43 41 9


Dec. 2000 PSRA/Newsweek 9 38 36 15


May 2003 PSRA/Newsweek 8 38 37 16

Nov. 2003 PSRA/Newsweek 9 41 34 15

Jan. 2009 PSRA/Newsweek 7 35 37 20

Looking ahead, over the next 12 months, do you think your own financial situation will get better, get worse, or stay

about the same?

Get better Get worse Stay about the same

Jan. 1996 PSRA/Newsweek 37% 8% 53%

Mar. 2000 PSRA/Newsweek 42 7 49

Dec. 2000 PSRA/Newsweek 45 6 44

Mar. 2001 PSRA/Newsweek 34 15 51

May 2003 PSRA/Newsweek 40 8 50

Nov. 2003 PSRA/Newsweek 36 8 54

Jan. 2009 PSRA/Newsweek 32 17 48

25

How satisfied are you with your own current financial situation today—are you very satisfied, somewhat satisfied,

somewhat dissatisfied, or very dissatisfied with your financial situation?

Very Somewhat Somewhat Very

satisfied satisfied dissatisfied dissatisfied

Dec. 1994 NBC/WSJ 13% 48% 24% 14%

Dec. 1996 NBC/WSJ 16 50 21 12

Mar. 1997 NBC/WSJ 17 48 20 14

Jun. 1997 NBC/WSJ 16 50 20 13

Sep. 1997 NBC/WSJ 19 49 17 14

Dec. 1997 NBC/WSJ 20 51 16 12

Sep. 1998 NBC/WSJ 26 52 17 7

Dec. 1998 NBC/WSJ 25 51 13 10

Sep. 1999 NBC/WSJ 22 50 18 10

Nov. 1999 NBC/WSJ 21 53 14 11

Apr. 2000 NBC/WSJ (RV) 25 51 13 10

Jan. 2001 NBC/WSJ 21 50 17 11

Jan. 2002 NBC/WSJ 19 50 19 12

Jul. 2002 NBC/WSJ 16 47 24 13

Nov. 2002 NBC/WSJ (RV) 18 40 23 19

Dec. 2002 NBC/WSJ 17 44 21 17

Jan. 2004 NBC/WSJ 19 50 18 13

Dec. 2007 NBC/WSJ 21 46 17 16

Apr. 2008 NBC/WSJ (RV) 17 42 20 21

Jan. 2009 NBC/WSJ 15 41 22 22

Feb.-Mar. 2009 NBC/WSJ 15 35 23 26

Apr. 2009 NBC/WSJ 14 44 22 19

Would you describe the state of your personal finances these days as secure or shaky?

LA Times/Bloomberg

Very Fairly Fairly Very

secure secure shaky shaky

Apr. 1991 13% 55% 20% 11%

Sep. 1991 11 54 22 11

Nov. 1991 11 52 22 14

Feb. 1992 13 49 22 15

Mar. 1992 13 54 19 12

Jul. 1992 13 51 21 13

Jan. 1993 9 48 24 18

Feb. 1993 9 52 23 14

Jun. 1993 10 50 23 16

Sep. 1993 11 52 19 17

Dec. 1993 10 50 23 16

Jan. 1994 11 50 23 15

Apr. 1994 10 51 24 14

Jul. 1994 14 49 23 12

Oct. 1994 12 57 16 13

Jan. 1995 12 55 21 11

Mar. 1995 13 54 19 12

Oct. 1995 11 54 20 13

Aug. 1996 13 54 18 14

Oct. 1996 13 55 18 12

Sep. 1997 14 51 19 14

Jan. 1999 15 59 16 8

May 2000 15 57 17 10

Jul. 2000 18 62 13 6

Aug. 2000 22 57 13 6

Sep. 2000 16 61 14 8

Mar. 2001 13 55 18 12

Nov. 2001 21 54 16 7

26

Feb. 2002 19 58 16 7

Aug. 2002 10 55 21 13

Dec. 2002 15 51 21 12

Feb. 2003 15 50 22 12

Jan. 2005 16 54 15 15

Jan. 2006 15 47 21 16

Mar. 2006 17 55 15 12

Jun. 2006 18 48 18 13

Dec. 2006 15 53 18 13

Jan. 2007 15 56 16 12

Apr. 2007 19 45 22 13

Nov. 2007 17 49 17 13

Jan. 2008 16 51 19 12

May 2008 13 44 21 16

Jun. 2008 13 48 20 17

Oct. 2008 14 46 18 19

Dec. 2008 13 42 23 19

Note: All askings prior to Jan. 2006 were done solely by the LA Times. The LA Times and Bloomberg began asking the

question together in Jan. 2006. Since then all askings have been done jointly by LA Times/Bloomberg with the

exception of the Jun. 2006 asking which was also done solely by the Times.

All in all, how financially secure do you feel?


secure secure insecure insecure

Jul. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 21% 42% 21% 15%

Dec. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 20 44 24 11

Sep. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 16 48 22 12

Feb. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 12 45 28 15

As you think about your own financial situation, which of the following economic issues worries you most right now?

PSRA/Pew

Worries me the most

Rising prices

Mar. 2008 49%

Oct. 2008 38

Dec. 2008 31

Feb. 2009 21

Mar. 2009 22

Aug. 2009 26

Sept/Oct. 2009 27

Problems in the financial markets

Mar. 2008 14%

Oct. 2008 31

Dec. 2008 29

Feb. 2009 21

Mar. 2009 21

Aug. 2009 14

Sept/Oct. 2009 14

The job situation

Mar. 2008 19%

Oct. 2008 18

Dec. 2008 26

Feb. 2009 45

Mar. 2009 42

Aug. 2009 44

Sept/Oct. 2009 46

27

Declining real estate values

Mar. 2008 12%

Oct. 2008 8

Dec. 2008 9

Feb. 2009 9

Mar. 2009 10

Aug. 2009 9

Sept/Oct. 2009 7

Thinking about your personal finances, have you done or not done any of the following lately?

PSRA/Pew

Yes, have done that No

Delayed or canceled plans to buy a new home or

make major home improvements

Dec. 2008 36% 63%

Feb. 2009 37 62

Jun. 2009 40 58

Aug. 2009 36 63

Dec. 2009 38 62

Delayed or canceled plans to buy a new car

Dec. 2008 33% 67%

Feb. 2009 37 62

Jun. 2009 36 63

Aug. 2009 38 62

Dec. 2009 36 63

Delayed or canceled plans to make a major purchase

For your household, such as a computer or appliance

Dec. 2008 44% 56%

Feb. 2009 44 55

Jun. 2009 40 59

Aug. 2009 42 58

Dec. 2009 43 56

Cut back on planned spending for a vacation

Dec. 2008 57% 42%

Feb. 2009 59 41

Jun. 2009 59 41

Aug. 2009 59 40

Dec., 2009 59 40

Adjusted your plans for retirement

Dec. 2008 27% 72%

Feb. 2009 29 70

Jun. 2009 30 69

Dec. 2009 32 66

Changed the way your money is saved or invested

Dec. 2008 48% 51%

Feb. 2009 53 46

Jun. 2009 57 42

Dec. 2009 52 46

Been out at restaurants less often

Dec. 2008 55% 44%

Feb. 2009 55 44

Jun. 2009* 56 44

Aug. 2009* 55 44

Dec. 2009* 56 44

28

Note: *Wording changed to ‗Been eating out at restraints less often‘.

Which one of the following statements best describes your own personal economic situation?

NBC/WSJ

I am in good shape. I am able to save and plan for the future

Mar. 2001 20%

Jan. 2004 23

Jul. 2008 18

I am okay. I am saving a little and I am able to provide for my needs

Mar. 2001 51%

Jan. 2004 51

Jul. 2008 47

I am barely getting by. I have to budget carefully and I am not able

to plan for the future

Mar. 2001 20%

Jan. 2004 17

Jul. 2008 23

I am falling behind. I have had to use savings or go further into debt

to pay my bills

Mar. 2001 6%

Jan. 2004 5

Jul. 2008 7

I am in serious financial trouble, and can‘t quite see how I am going

to make it

Mar. 2001 2%

Jan. 2004 3

Jul. 2008 4

Would you say you and your family live above your means or within your means?

Above Within Below (vol.)

Jan. 2009 Fox /OD 8% 85% 5%

Excluding mortgage debt, overall about how much are you personally in debt – that is, how much do you owe with

things like credit card bills, car loans, and student loans?

Jan. 2009 Fox/OD

Less than $10,001- $30,001- Over

Nothing $10,000 30,000 50,000 $50,000

27% 29% 21% 6% 5 %

Thinking about the economic conditions that you and your family face, which one of the following has the greatest

effect on you personally?

NBC/WSJ

Apr. 2009 Dec. 2008 Oct. 2008 (late) Oct. 2008

Savings, such as the drop in the stock market or

savings for retirement 24% 25% 23% 7%

Inflation, such as the cost of groceries 14 21 15 21

Health care, such as the cost of health insurance

prescriptions 18 16 13 18

Employment, such as job security and wages 14 16 13 8

Energy, such as the cost of gasoline and utilities 11 11 25 37

Housing, such as home values and the mortgage market 9 9 9 6

29

Would you say this recession has hurt you financially, or not. If yes, is that a great deal or only somewhat?

Hurt a Hurt

great deal only somewhat Not hurt

Jun. 1991 ABC/Wash Post 16% 37% 46%

Dec. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 30 34 36

Jan. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 37 32 32

Feb. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 30 34 35

Sept. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 33 32 35

How concerned are you about being able to maintain your current standard of living – are you very worried, somewhat

worried, not so worried, or not worried at all?

Very Somewhat Not so Not worried

Worried worried worried at all

Dec. 2007 ABC/Wash Post 17% 34% 22% 27%

May 2008 ABC/Wash Post 28 40 16 15



Would you say you feel financially secure enough to provide sufficiently for your children, or don‘t you feel that way?

Feel secure Do not

Mar.-Apr. 2008 CNN/ORC 68% 30%

May 2009 CNN/ORC 64 32

Note: Asked of those who have children 18 years and younger.

Have recent price increases in gasoline caused any financial hardship for you or your household?

Caused hardship Has not

Feb. 2000 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 40% 60%

Apr. 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 58 42

May 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 59 41

Aug. 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 69 31

Sep. 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 61 38

Sep. 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 72 28

Apr. 2006 CNN/ORC 69 28

May 2006 CNN/ORC 65 34

Aug. 2006 CNN/ORC 65 34

Apr. 2007 CNN/ORC 66 33

Nov. 2007 CNN/ORC 63 37

Mar. 2008 CNN/ORC 72 28

Apr. 2008 CNN/ORC 60 39

Jul. 2008 CNN/ORC 75 25

Sep. 2008 CNN/ORC 63 37

Jun. 2009 Gallup 56 44

How often do you worry that your total family income will not be enough to meet your family‘s expenses and bills – all

of the time, most of the time, some of the time, or almost never?

All the Most of Some of

time the time the time Almost never

Jan.-Jun. 1976 Gallup 13% 13% 36% 38%

Jan. 1984 Gallup 20 15 30 34

Jan. 1987 Gallup 15 16 38 30

Jun. 1989 Gallup 13 13 35 38

Apr.-May 1998 Gallup 9 12 44 34

Dec. 2002-Feb. 2003 Gallup 12 14 37 36

Jun. 2004 Gallup 15 10 36 38

Jun. 2005 Gallup 18 11 43 28

Jun. 2006 Gallup 20 12 35 32

30

Jun. 2007 Gallup 21 13 37 28

Jun. 2008 Gallup 20 17 34 29

In looking at the next twelve months, do you think that it will be a time of economic expansion for you and your family

and an opportunity to move ahead, or do you think that it will be a time to hold back and save because harder times are

ahead?

Time of expansion/ Time to hold back/

opportunity harder time ahead

Dec. 1998 NBC/WSJ 32% 57%

Jan. 2001 NBC/WSJ 29 60

Mar. 2001 NBC/WSJ 32 56

Jan. 2005 NBC/WSJ 40 51

May 2005 NBC/WSJ 30 61

Dec. 2005 NBC/WSJ 29 60

Jan. 2008 NBC/WSJ 19 70

For you and your family, does it feel like the economy is getting better or worse?

Better Worse Same

Oct. 2003 Fox/OD 35% 45% 18%

Jan. 2004 Fox/OD 44 34 19

Feb. 2004 Fox/OD 36 41 21

May 2004 Fox/OD 31 49 17

Apr. 2006 Fox/OD 21 56 20

Oct. 2007 Fox/OD 22 53 23

Oct. 2009 Fox/OD 37 43 19

May 2010 Fox/OD 36 38 24

Note: Samples are registered voters. ―The same‖ responses are volunteered.

For each of the following items I read, please tell me whether you feel very confident about it, somewhat confident, not

very confident, not at all confident.

Fox/OD

Very Somewhat Not very Not at

confident confident confident all confident

About the future security of your job

Oct. 1999 62% 25% 8% 3%

Oct. 2007 51 31 9 5

Sep. 2008 37 27 10 5

Mar. 2009 32 28 10 5

About your own personal financial future

May 1999 36 47 11 2

Jan. 2001 32 50 10 4

Jan. 2002 36 45 11 3

Jun. 2003 26 48 17 6

Oct. 2007 37 43 13 6

Sep. 2008 32 49 12 4

Mar. 2009 32 47 13 6

About making decisions about your

personal financial investments

Oct. 2007 46 34 11 6

Sep. 2008 36 40 16 5

Mar.2009 39 35 14 9

In the U.S. stock market

Mar. 2002 18 35 19 15

Apr. 2003 12 34 24 19

Oct. 2003 17 43 21 12

Oct. 2007 21 44 17 10

Sep. 2008 8 38 28 20

31

Mar. 2009 11 30 31 21

That you are saving enough money

for your retirement

Oct. 2007 29 33 17 16

Now I‘m going to read a few more pairs of statements. Again, just tell me whether the first statement or the second

statement comes closer to your own views—even if neither is exactly right. The first pair…I often don‘t have enough

money to make ends meet, or paying the bills is generally not a problem for me. Do you feel strongly about that, or not?

Often don‘t have Paying bills

enough money to generally not a

make ends meet problem for me

Jul. 1994 PSRA/Pew 36% 63%

Aug. 1999 PSRA/Pew 29 68

Sep. 2000 PSRA/Pew 37 59



For each statement, please tell me if you completely agree with it, mostly agree with it, mostly disagree with it, or

completely disagree with it. I often don‘t have enough money to make ends meet.

Agree Disagree


May 1988 PSRA/Pew 45 54



Nov. 1991 PSRA/Pew 51 48

Jun. 1992 PSRA/Pew 52 47







Mar. 2007 PSRA/Pew 44 54

Apr. 2009 PSRA/Pew 42 55

Note: Responses combined.

Which best describes your family‘s financial situation? Do you feel as if you are getting ahead financially, have just

enough money to maintain your standard of living, or are falling behind financially?

Getting ahead Just enough Falling behind

Oct. 2006 ABC/Wash Post 24% 52% 23%

Nov. 2006* ABC/Wash Post 28 48 23

Sep. 2007 ABC/Wash Post 26 53 20

Jan. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 21 61 17

Note: * Registered voters.

Thinking of your own financial situation just now, do you feel you are in a good position to buy some of the things you

would like to have, or is now a rather bad time for you to spend money?

Good Bad

Mar-Apr. 1978 Gallup 28% 55%



Sep. 2001 Gallup 43 53



32

How concerned are you that you will have enough money to pay for major expenses, for example, health care tuition,

buying a home, and retirement? Are you very concerned, somewhat concerned, not very concerned, or not at all

concerned?



Jan. 2005 CBS/NYT 38% 29% 19% 14%

Sep. 2006 CBS/NYT 44 34 13 9

Apr. 2007 CBS 46 33 14 7

In general, how easy is it for you to afford the things in life that you want – very easy, easy, difficult, or very difficult?

Very easy Easy Difficult Very difficult

Jan. 1992 US News & World Report 4% 35% 46% 12%

Jun. 2001 PSRA/Pew 7 43 36 12

Jun. 2002 PSRA/Pew 5 44 37 11

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 9 43 33 12

Oct. 2008 PSRA/Pew 8 41 37 11

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 6 37 40 15

How easy or difficult is it for you and your family to afford ____ -- very easy, easy, difficult, or very difficult?

Very easy Easy Difficult Very difficult

Food

Jan. 1992 US News 7% 68% 21% 3%

May 1992 US News 12 66 18 3

Aug. 1992 US News 11 65 18 5

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 14 57 22 5

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 10 50 30 8

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 9 60 25 4

Health care

Jan. 1992 US News 6% 43% 29% 16%

May 1992 US News 10 42 29 15

Aug. 1992 US News 7 39 32 19

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 11 39 29 16

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 9 40 30 16

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 7 44 29 16

Taxes

Jan. 1992 US News 2% 33% 45% 13%

May 1992 US News 4 30 46 15

Aug. 1992 US News 3 32 43 17

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 6 36 37 14

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 5 35 40 12

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 3 38 41 11

Saving for retirement

Jan. 1992 US News 2% 22% 37% 23%

May 1992 US News 2 21 38 24

Aug. 1992 US News 3 22 36 29

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 5 28 34 22

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 5 23 37 22

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 2 23 39 25

Your home heating and electric bills

Jan. 1992 US News 4% 55% 31% 7%

May 1992 US News 9 54 28 6

Aug. 1992 US News 7 54 29 8

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 8 44 33 11

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 6 41 38 11

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 7 46 32 10

33

Gasoline

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 5% 30% 38% 22%

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 4 23 42 26

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 10 57 21 6

Have there been times during the last year when you did not have enough money to buy food your family needed?

Yes No

Jan.-Jun. 1976 Gallup 14% 86%




Apr.-May 1998 Gallup 11 89

Dec.-Feb. 2003 Gallup 13 86




Note: In the June 2007 survey, 10 percent of whites said yes, 36 percent of blacks, and 39 percent of Hispanics also

said yes.

Thinking about the next 12 months, would you say you feel optimistic or pessimistic about your own family‘s financial

situation?

Optimistic Pessimistic


Dec. 2005 ABC/Wash Post 73 26

May 2006 ABC/Wash Post 79 20




Apr. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 65 32

Sep. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 61 34



Apr. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 66 31

How do you feel about your own family‘s financial situation – very worried, somewhat worried, not too worried, not

worried at all?

Very Somewhat Not too Not worried


Sep. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 22% 38% 26% 14%

Early Oct. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 23 43 22 11

Mid Oct. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 24 43 21 12

Jan. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 27 43 20 10

Jul. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 23 41 25 12

Oct. 2009 ABC/Wash Post 23 37 24 16

Have you personally tried to reduce your household and personal spending because of concern about the economy?

Yes, reduced No

Feb. 2001 Fox/OD 39% 58%

Mar. 2001 Fox/OD 37 61

Oct. 2001 Fox/OD 32 67

Apr. 2003 Fox/OD 50 49

Apr. 2008 Fox/OD 75 24

Feb. 2009 Fox/OD 79 21

34

In the past couple of years, would you say you have been getting ahead financially, just staying even financially, or

falling behind financially?

Getting ahead Staying even Falling behind

Jan. 1998 CBS 31% 48% 20%

Apr. 2007 CBS 21 50 27

Mar.-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 23 48 28

Is your financial situation a major cause of stress in your life, a minor cause, or not a cause of stress in your life?

Major cause Minor cause Not a cause

Oct. 1997 ABC/Wash Post 23% 41% 35%

Jul. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 23 42 34

How much difficulty would you have if you had to pay an unexpected bill of one thousand dollars right away – a lot, a

little, not much, or none at all?

A lot A little Not much None at all

Jun. 1996 CBS 44% 26% 12% 17%

Apr. 2007 CBS 43 24 15 17

What is your biggest personal economic concern right now? Paying everyday bills, or paying for healthcare or saving for

retirement or something else?

Mar.-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT

Every day bills 29%

Retirement 25

Healthcare 24

College tuition (vol.) 4

Paying for gas (vol.) 2

Note: Only the top five responses are shown.

How concerned are you about being able to afford your children‘s college tuition – very concerned, somewhat

concerned, or not at all concerned?

Very Somewhat Not at all

concerned concerned concerned

Mar.-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 70% 24% 6%

Note: Asked of parents with children under age eighteen.

How would you describe your household‘s financial situation? Would you say you?

Meet your basic

expenses with a Don‘t have

little left over Just meet your enough to meet

Live comfortably for extras basic expenses basic expenses

Jan.-Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 38% 32% 22% 7%

Mar. 2008 PSRA/Pew 39 31 21 7

Jul. 2009 PSRA/Pew 33 27 26 11

May 2010 PSRA/Pew 30 30 27 11

Which of the following best describes you: you do not have any credit cards, you have at least one credit card but you do

not owe any money on them except for purchases in the last 30 days, or you have at least one credit card and you owe

money for purchases made more than 30 days ago?

Have one and do Have one and

No credit cards not owe money do owe money

Mar. 2008 CNN/ORC 25% 39% 35%

35

Roughly how much do you owe on all your credit cards?

Mar. 2008 CNN/ORC

Zero 64%

Under $1,000 5

$1,000-$3,000 9

$3,001-$8,000 10

Over $8,000 8

Median credit card debt (among those who owe): $4,000

Note: Sample is a full national sample—not a subset of the previous question.

Thinking about the money you owe on credit cards and installment loans (excluding your mortgage), would you say

you?

PSRA/Pew

Owe lot more Owe little more Owe about Owe less than Do not have No cards or

than can afford than can afford what can afford can afford any debt loans

Jan. 1992 7% 14% 32% 19% 16% 11%

Jun. 2001 13 15 31 18 12 10

Feb. 2004 9 13 29 23 20 5

May 2005 10 15 33 22 13 5

Jan. 2006 8 15 30 24 15 6

Sep. 2007 7 13 31 26 15 6

Feb. 2008 9 13 32 22 12 9

Jul. 2008 10 12 34 20 16 6

Oct. 2008 10 15 33 22 13 6

Note: The 1992 asking was done by U.S News and World Report.

First, what, if anything, worries you most about your personal financial situation in the . . . ?

Sep. 2007 Gallup

Worry about my personal financial situation in the

Short-term Long-term

Income is not enough to meet expenses 11% 7%

Health insurance/cost of healthcare 9 13

Job security concerns/possible loss of job 7 3

Rising cost of living/inflation 6 7

Housing costs 4 4

College expenses 4 6

Taxes 3 3

Debt (non-specific) 3 2

Social Security benefits 3 8

Stock market downturn/crash 3 4

Recession 2 3

Paying mortgage/rent 2 --

Gas prices 2 --

Interest rates 2 --

Energy/home heating prices 1 --

Credit card debt 1 --

Retirement savings/retirement income -- 18

Note: Wordings slightly varied between short term and long term.

36

I am going to read you a series of statements about several issues. After each one I read, please tell me if you agree,

disagree or if you neither agree, nor disagree.

Public Opinion Strategies (R)/Greenberg, Quinlan, Rosner (D) Apr. 2006

Completely Somewhat Somewhat Completely

agree agree disagree disagree Neither

Sometimes because I am short of money

I fall behind on my monthly payments

and pay bills late 15% 14% 9% 57% 4%

I have checked my credit rating online or

ordered a credit report in the past year 37 7 9 40 4

Frequently because I am short of money

I fall behind on my monthly payments

and pay bills late 10 13 10 60 5

Thinking now about your own personal finances, compared to a year ago, would you say your personal economic

situation is…?

Neither better

Better nor worse Worse

Aug. 2007 Harris Interactive 32% 31% 32%

Note: Sample is an online national adults.

In general, when you think of your financial situation would you say you are…?

Worried Not worried

Aug. 2007 Harris Interactive 56% 44%

Note: Sample is an online national adults.

How would you rate your personal financial situation? Do you feel as if you: 1) Are getting ahead financially 2. Have

just enough money to maintain your standard of living 3. Are falling behind financially?

Getting Maintaining Falling

ahead standard of living behind

Oct. 2006 Fox/OD 29% 53% 17%

If you had to choose, what would you say is the most important cause of stress in your life?

Your job Your finances Your health Your family life

Nov. 2006 AP/Ipsos 26% 34% 15% 16%

How would you describe your own personal financial situation? Would you say you live comfortably, meet your

expenses with a little left over for extras, just meet your basic living expenses, or don‘t even have enough to meet

expenses?

Live A little Meet basic Don‘t meet

comfortably for extras expenses expenses

Oct.-Nov. 2006 PSRA/Pew 38% 28% 23% 9%

How often do you worry about money matters?

Often Sometimes Rarely Never

Oct.-Nov. 2006 PSRA/Pew 35% 37% 17% 10%

Have you ever felt that your financial situation was out of control, or haven‘t you ever felt this way?

Yes No

Oct.-Nov. 2006 PSRA/Pew 36% 63%

37

As I read each item, tell me if this is one of your household‘s regular expenses, or not?

Oct.-Nov. 2006 PSRA/Pew

Yes No

Mortgage* 67% 32%

A car loan 42 57

A store payment plan for home furnishings

or electronics 12 87

A credit card payment 58 41

Alimony or child support 7 92

Child care 13 86

School tuition 25 75

A school loan 16 84

Cable or satellite television 78 22

Cell phone 74 26

Internet service 65 35

Health club or other sports facility 21 79

Landscaping or lawn maintenance 19 81

Housecleaning 16 83

Note: * Sample is based on homeowners.

Have you ever had any unexpected expenses in the past 12 months that seriously set you back financially, or hasn‘t this

happened to you?


Yes No

34% 66%

(If yes) What kind of expenses were these?

Medical 34%

Cars 24

Home and housing 20

Life events & children: wedding, divorce,

birth, death, moving 9

Work related 3

Travel/vacation 2

Taxes 2

Pets/veterinary bills 1

Note: Based on those who had unexpected expenses in the past 12 months.

Generally, do you pay your credit card bills in full each month or do you make a payment?

Pay in full Payment

Oct.-Nov. 2006 PSRA/Pew 41% 53 %

Note: Based on those who have a credit card as a regular expense.

Have you used a payday lender in the past 12 months, or not?

Yes No


Have you ever used a credit consolidator to help pay off your debt, or not?

Yes No


38

Have you ever had to declare bankruptcy, or hasn‘t this happened to you?

Yes No


Oct.-Nov. 2006 PSRA/Pew 9 91

How difficult is it for you and your family to get ahead financially these days? Is it…?


difficult difficult difficult difficult

Oct. 2006 AP/Ipsos 28% 35% 23% 12%

Which best describes your family‘s financial situation? Are you doing okay and have extra money each month, or are

you barely getting by?

Doing okay Barely getting by

Sep. 2006 Fox/OD 56% 32%

Do you think your family‘s financial situation is getting better, getting worse, or staying about the same?

Getting Getting Staying about

better worse the same

Jul. 2006 CBS 18% 25% 56%

Mar.-Apr. 2008 CBS 23 28 48

Do you now earn enough money to lead the kind of life you want or not?

(If no) Do you think you will be able to earn enough money in the future to lead the kind of life you want, or not?

Of those who responded ―no‖

Expect to earn enough

in the future to lead the

kind of life you want

Yes No Yes Do not

Jan. 1992 US News 39% 61% 34% 22%

May 1992 US News 34 65 34 28

Aug. 1992 US News 33 66 36 25

Oct. 1992 US News 36 63 35 36

Mar. 1994 Times Mirror 44 56 33 20

Feb. 1995 Times Mirror 41 58 35 20

Jun. 1996 PSRA/Pew 44 56 34 20

May 1997 PSRA/Pew 46 54 34 18

Nov. 1997 PSRA/Pew 41 59 33 24

Aug. -Sep. 1998 PSRA/Pew 43 57 36 20

Sep.-Oct. 1999 PSRA/Pew 42 58 33 23

Jan. 2001 PSRA/Pew 43 56 33 21

Jun. 2002 PSRA/Pew 43 56 30 23

Feb. 2004 PSRA/Pew 53 46 26 19

May 2004 PSRA/Pew 51 48 25 19

Jan. 2006 PSRA/Pew 46 53 28 23

Sep. 2007 PSRA/Pew 46 53 31 19

Jan. 2010 PSRA/Pew 45 55 37 16

Note: Asked of those who are employed.

(Responds were asked to select one) 1: I am making financial progress toward my long-term goals. 2: I am keeping up

with monthly expenses 3: I am slowly falling behind on some of my bills. 4: I am hopelessly behind, with no chance to

catch up.

Making Keeping Slowly falling Hopelessly

progress up behind behind

Jan. 2006 Zogby 41% 41% 13% 3%

39

(Select one) A: I am convinced that the American economy is in strong shape. B: I worry about the economy because

while I have a good job and am financially secure, I know neighbors, friends, and family who are not doing so well

C: Nationally, the economy may be doing well, but I am not doing well and I am concerned the immediate future.

US economy in Worry about economy Concerned

strong shape for others for myself now

Jan. 2006 Zogby 35% 39% 15%

Now I‘m going to read a few more pairs of statements. Again, just tell me whether the first statement or the second

statement comes closer to your own views—even if neither is exactly right. The first pair…I‘m generally satisfied with

the way things are going for me financially, or I‘m not very satisfied with my financial situation. Do you feel strongly

about that, or not?

Generally more Not very

satisfied satisfied

Jul. 1994 PSRA/Pew 36% 63%




Oct. 2006 PSRA/Pew 59 40

Note: Samples are adults employed full or part-time.

For each statement, please tell me if you completely agree with it, mostly agree with it, mostly disagree with it, or

completely disagree with it. I‘m pretty well satisfied with the way things are going for me financially?

Satisfied Not satisfied






Jun. 1992 PSRA/Pew 58 41







Dec. 2006-

Jan. 2007 PSRA/Pew 61 38

April 2009 PSRA/Pew 53 45

Note: In the Dec. 2006-Jan. 2007 poll, 81 percent of Republicans were satisfied while 54 percent of Democrats and

independents were satisfied. Responses are combined.

Thinking back over the past year, would you say that each of the following has—gone up a lot, gone up a little,

remained about the same, gone down a little, or gone down a lot? How about…?

May 2006 Gallup

-----------------Over the past year------------------

Gone Remain Total gone

up the same down

The price you pay for a gallon of gasoline 96% 1% *

The amount you pay for home utilities such

as heating/electricity/water 78 15 2

The price you pay for food and other groceries 72 25 1

The value of your home (asked of home owners) 71 16 6

Your local property taxes 60 24 2

The amount of money you pay out-of-pocket

for healthcare/Rx drugs 58 30 5

The amount you pay for health insurance coverage 57 28 4

40

Your state taxes 41 39 2

Your federal income taxes 37 44 8

Your rent (asked of renters) 36 51 4

Your take home pay after taxes and deductions 32 34 19

The amount of money you are able to put away

in savings each month 18 33 43

How much more money per year would it take to make you happy?

None/ $5,000 or $5,001- $10,001- $20,001- $50,001- More than

Not happier Less 10,000 20,000 50,000 100,000 $100,000

Jul. 2006 Gallup 26 % 11% 17% 17% 14% 5% 3%

Mean (including zero): $32,629

Mean (excluding zero)*: $45,934

Median (including zero): $10,000

Median (excluding zero)*: $17,000

Note: Sample is adults employed full or part-time. * Asked of the 67 percent who said that more money would make

them happy.

How about next year? Do you think your financial situation twelve months from now will be better or worse than this

year or will it be about the same?

Better Worse Same as this year

Sep. 2006 LA Times/Bloomberg 36% 11% 50 %

Right now, do you have enough money to live comfortably, or not?

When you retire, do you think you will have enough money to live comfortably, or not?

Non-retired Adults

------------Right Now--------- ------------When you retire--------

Yes, have enough No Yes, will have enough No

Apr. 2002 Gallup 75% 24% 59% 32%

Apr. 2003 Gallup 73 26 59 36

Apr. 2004 Gallup 74 25 59 35

Apr. 2005 Gallup 72 28 53 40

Apr. 2006 Gallup 71 28 50 43

Apr. 2007 Gallup 73 26 53 42

Apr. 2008 Gallup 69 30 46 44

Apr. 2009 Gallup 65 33 41 52

Apr. 2010 Gallup 68 31 46 48

Retirement Anxiety:

In April 2010, 46 percent of non-retired adults said they thought they would have enough money

to live comfortably when they retired. Forty-eight percent didn’t think that was the case. In

2002, 59 percent said they would have enough money to live comfortably in retirement. More

non-retired adults today say they will rely on Social Security in retirement than gave that

response in 2001. Fewer say they will be able to rely on their 401Ks. Sixty-eight percent of

retired adults in 2010 said they had enough money to live comfortably. In 2002, 75 percent gave

that response.

41



particular item does not apply to you please say so. First, how worried are you about… How about—

Not having enough

money for retirement ------------------------------Non-retired adults----------------------------------



Apr. 2001 Gallup 24% 29% 24% 19%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 25 29 19 22

Apr. 2003 Gallup 24 30 22 20

Apr. 2004 Gallup 26 26 21 23

Apr. 2005 Gallup 30 30 18 19

Apr. 2006 Gallup 30 30 19 16

Apr. 2007 Gallup 24 29 24 19

Apr. 2008 Gallup 35 28 18 16

Sep. 2008 Gallup 33 31 16 15

Apr. 2009 Gallup 36 29 17 14

Apr. 2010 Gallup 34 32 18 14

How much do you rely on each of the following sources of income today – is it a major source of income, a minor

source of income, or not a source at all? How about…?

When you retire, how much do you expect to rely on each of the following sources of money – will it be a major source

of income, a minor source of income, or not a source at all?

--------Rely on today-------- --Will rely on in the future--

Gallup Retired Adults Non-retired adults

Major Minor Not a Major Minor Not a

source source source source source source

Social Security*

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 28% 57% 14%

Apr. 2002 58% 22% 18% 27 56 15

Apr. 2003 50 35 13 29 57 12

Apr. 2004 55 31 13 25 56 18

Apr. 2005 58 30 11 28 53 18

Apr. 2006 55 32 12 25 51 22

Apr. 2007 54 34 10 27 51 20

Apr. 2008 56 29 13 31 53 15

Apr. 2009 57 31 10 30 49 18

Apr. 2010 54 32 13 34 46 20

A 401(k), IRA, Keogh or other retirement

savings account

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 58% 26% 15%

Apr. 2002 19% 23% 56% 53 28 16

Apr. 2003 20 26 51 47 34 17

Apr. 2004 20 27 50 54 28 18

Apr. 2005 21 29 46 49 33 17

Apr. 2006 21 29 48 47 31 19

Apr. 2007 23 28 47 52 29 17

Apr. 2008 20 30 46 54 29 15

Apr. 2009 20 30 48 42 31 25

Apr. 2010 22 29 47 45 31 23

Individual stock or mutual fund investments

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 24% 39% 36%

Apr. 2002 15% 31% 52% 23 43 32

Apr. 2003 12 27 57 20 42 36

Apr. 2004 10 26 62 20 41 38

Apr. 2005 12 32 53 21 41 37

Apr. 2006 10 26 62 19 41 38

42

Apr. 2007 16 27 55 24 39 35

Apr. 2008 11 29 58 17 47 34

Apr. 2009 11 28 58 17 38 43

Apr. 2010 14 24 61 20 34 45

Money from inheritance

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 7% 29% 63%

Apr. 2002 4% 11% 84% 10 28 60

Apr. 2003 4 11 82 7 31 60

Apr. 2004 3 11 85 8 31 60

Apr. 2005 3 13 82 7 28 63

Apr. 2006 3 14 82 7 31 60

Apr. 2007 3 11 85 8 28 64

Apr. 2008 6 8 85 9 29 60

Apr. 2009 3 11 84 7 24 68

Apr. 2010 3 10 85 9 26 63

Other savings such as a regular savings

account or CDs

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 16% 51% 32%

Apr. 2002 15% 33% 51% 23 50 25

Apr. 2003 14 39 46 19 52 27

Apr. 2004 13 34 51 17 52 30

Apr. 2005 11 41 46 18 55 27

Apr. 2006 14 39 45 19 51 28

Apr. 2007 16 41 41 23 48 28

Apr. 2008 11 40 45 17 53 29

Apr. 2009 13 38 46 20 47 31

Apr. 2010 13 44 41 22 48 30

A work-sponsored pension plan

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 34% 28% 37%

Apr. 2002 29% 16% 51% 29 33 36

Apr. 2003 41 14 44 28 32 39

Apr. 2004 34 22 42 30 32 37

Apr. 2005 36 22 40 28 31 39

Apr. 2006 36 21 41 26 30 42

Apr. 2007 32 24 41 31 28 39

Apr. 2008 33 19 46 26 30 43

Apr. 2009 38 16 43 24 29 45

Apr. 2010 37 18 42 23 31 45

Rent and royalties

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 5% 22% 72%

Apr. 2002 6% 13% 80% 8 29 60

Apr. 2003 5 17 76 5 27 66

Apr. 2004 4 12 82 5 25 69

Apr. 2005 2 13 82 6 24 69

Apr. 2006 5 13 80 6 26 66

Apr. 2007 2 16 80 7 24 68

Apr. 2008 6 14 79 6 23 68

Apr. 2009 3 10 85 6 23 70

Apr. 2010 5 11 82 6 22 71

Annuities or insurance plans

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 7% 34% 58%

Apr. 2002 8% 21% 69% 7 40 51

Apr. 2003 6 23 69 10 36 53

Apr. 2004 9 21 67 8 34 57

Apr. 2005 6 26 66 9 34 56

Apr. 2006 8 17 73 7 32 59

Apr. 2007 8 29 62 9 35 54

43

Apr. 2008 7 19 72 8 32 59

Apr. 2009 8 17 72 7 36 57

Apr. 2010 8 24 66 8 30 61

Part-time work

Apr. 2001 -- -- -- 10% 52% 36%

Apr. 2002 3% 14% 82% 16 51 31

Apr. 2003 1 18 80 13 57 29

Apr. 2004 2 17 80 17 50 32

Apr. 2005 6 17 75 18 51 30

Apr. 2006 3 20 77 18 50 28

Apr. 2007 3 19 78 21 52 27

Apr. 2008 3 13 83 20 49 29

Apr. 2009 1 14 84 22 51 27

Apr. 2010 4 13 82 18 53 28

The equity you have built up in your home

Apr. 2002 18% 14% 60% 24% 40% 33%

Apr. 2003 25 15 55 25 42 30

Apr. 2004 24 19 50 25 38 34

Apr. 2005 25 19 49 26 41 31

Apr. 2006 22 17 57 26 34 35

Apr. 2007 20 25 51 30 39 28

Apr. 2008 16 15 65 26 37 34

Apr. 2009 21 17 56 24 39 33

Apr. 2010 20 19 60 20 41 37

Note: * Difference in numbers with previous questions due to question wording; ―your major source‖ vs. ―a major

source.‖

For each, please tell me how satisfied or dissatisfied you are with your current job in this regard. First, are you

completely satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, completely dissatisfied with the retirement plan your

employer offers?

Completely Somewhat Somewhat Completely


Aug. 1999 Gallup 31% 30% 10% 19%

Aug. 2001 Gallup 31 34 8 16

Aug. 2002 Gallup 29 33 10 16

Aug. 2003 Gallup 35 31 9 14

Aug. 2004 Gallup 36 28 10 13

Aug. 2005 Gallup 27 31 9 18

Aug. 2006 Gallup 31 31 12 11

Aug. 2007 Gallup 32 30 9 14

Aug. 2008 Gallup 34 26 11 14

Aug. 2009 Gallup 35 26 9 19

How confident are you that you will retire with enough income and assets to last for the rest of your life – would you say

you‘re very confident, somewhat confident, not so confident or not confident at all?

Very Somewhat Not so Not confident

confident confident confident at all

Jul. 1996 ABC/Wash Post 16% 29% 25% 21%




Nov. 2005 ABC/Wash Post 30 39 16 13

Nov. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 10 34 25 24



44

Thinking now about retirement, please tell me how concerned you are about each of the following – very concerned,

somewhat concerned, not too concerned, or not concerned at all? How about

-----------------------------------Non-retired adults--------------------------------

Gallup/USA Today Very Somewhat Not too Not concerned


Not having enough money to live

comfortably in retirement

Jun. 2006 42% 32% 16% 10%

Losing a sense of purpose in your

life after you stop working

Jun. 2006 20 13 29 35

Running out of money before you die

Jun. 2006 40 26 20 14

How concerned are you about not having enough money for retirement – very concerned, somewhat concerned, or not

at all concerned?



Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 38% 37% 24%

Mar-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 43 39 17

Apr. 2009 CBS/NYT 49 33 18

Looking ahead to your retirement, how confident are you that you will have enough money to live comfortably in

retirement?


confident confident confident confident

Feb. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 10% 35% 22% 31%

Apr. 2009 AP/Roper GfK 13 38 22 25

Looking ahead to your retirement, how confident are you that you will have the financial resources to live comfortably

during your retirement?

----------------------------Non-retired adults------------------------


confident confident confident confident

Feb. 2005 AP/Ipsos 29% 36% 19% 15%

How do your current living expenses in retirement compare with what you expected?

------------------------------Retired Adults-------------------------------

Much Slightly Same as Slightly Much

higher higher expected lower lower

May-Jun. 2006 WSJ/Harris Interactive 14% 22% 45% 10% 8%

How do your current living expenses in retirement compare with what you expected?

Higher than About the same Lower than

I expected as I expected I expected

Sep. 2007 WSJ/Harris Interactive 31% 47% 22%

Note: Sample is retired adults.

How much do you currently rely on Social Security--as your main source of income, as a minor source of income, or not

at all?

Main source of income Minor source of income Not at all

Jan. 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 44% 40% 14%

Note: Sample is retired adults.

45

When you retire, how much do you expect to rely on Social Security as your main source of income, a minor source of

income, or not at all?

--------Retired adults-------- ------Non-retired adults------

Main Minor Not a Main Minor Not a

source source Source source source source

Jul. 1998 Gallup/CNN/USA Today -- -- -- 17% 58% 23%

Aug. 2000 Gallup/CNN/USA Today -- -- -- 17 55 26

Jan. 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 44% 40% 14% 18 57 24

What is your major source of income--Social Security, an employer-sponsored pension plan, or your own retirement

savings?

Looking ahead to your retirement, what do you expect to be your major source of income – Social Security, an

employer-sponsored pension plan, or your own retirement savings?

-------------Retired Adults-------------- --------------Non-retired adults------------

Social Employer Own Social Employer Own

Security sponsored retirement Security sponsored retirement

pension savings pension savings

Mar. 1995 CBS/NYT -- -- -- 22% 30% 39%

Feb. 2001 CBS -- -- -- 15 23 56

Jan. 2002 CBS -- -- -- 16 24 52

Jan. 2005 CBS/NYT 45% 23% 24% 17 22 55

Feb. 2005 PSRA/Pew 46 25 17 20 19 53

Jun. 2005 CBS/NYT 39 20 25 20 29 45

In the last 12 months, as a result of bad economic conditions, have you taken money out of any savings account,

including retirement savings, in order to make ends meet, or haven‘t you taken money out of savings?

Yes No

Jul. 2010 CBS 44% 54%

At what age would you like to retire?

Mar. 2008 CNN/ORC

50 or younger 11%

51-55 16

56-59 4

60-64 30

65-69 28

70 and older 10

Note: Sample is those who are currently employed.

(Follow up question) Do you think you will be able to retire at that age, or do you think you will have to

continue working?

Retire at that age Continue working

44% 56%

Note: Responses are of those who picked an age they would like to retire at from the previous question.

Which source do you think will provide you and your spouse with the largest share of income in retirement…? (non-

retired adults)

Which source provides you and your spouse with the largest share of income in retirement …? (retired adults)

2005 Retirement Confidence Survey

(Workers) (Retirees)

Will provide your Provides your

largest share of income largest share of income

Workplace retirement savings plan 21% 3%

Personal savings or investments that are not in a

46

work-related retirement plan 18 10

Social Security 18 45

Employer-provided pension 16 26

Employment 14 3

Sale or refinancing of your home 3 1

Inheritance 3 3

A lump-sum distribution from an employer-provided

cash balance or defined benefit plan 2 1

Support from children or other family members 1 3

Don‘t know/refused 4 7

Note: Married couples were asked, ―you and your spouse with the largest…?‖

When you reach retirement age, do you plan to work full-time, work part-time or not work at all?

---------------------Non-retired adults-------------------

Work full-time Work part-time Not at all

Jun. 2006 Gallup/USA Today 12% 51% 35%

(Of those who plan to work) Is this because you will need the money, or mainly because you would still enjoy

working?

Need the money Enjoy working

30% 67%

In the past 12 months, did you or another family member in your houseful have any problems paying medical bills, or

not?

Yes No

Mar. 2002 Kaiser Family Foundation 21% 79%

Apr. 2005 Kaiser Family Foundation 23 77

Sept. 2006 Kaiser Family Foundation 25 75

Oct. 2008 Kaiser Family Foundation 32 68

Feb. 2009 Kaiser Family Foundation 22 78

Apr. 2009 Kaiser Family Foundation 26 73

Jun. 2009 Kaiser Family Foundation 26 73

Jul. 2009 Kaiser Family Foundation 21 79

Aug. 2009 Kaiser Family Foundation 24 76

Sept. 2009 Kaiser Family Foundation 33 67

Nov. 2009 Kaiser Family Foundation 31 69

Dec. 2009 Kaiser Family Foundation 30 70

Mar. 2010 Kaiser Family Foundation 30 69

Jun. 2010 Kaiser Family Foundation 21 78

Over the past 12 months, has there been a time when you have been unable to afford necessary health care for yourself

or a family member, or not?

Yes No

Oct. 2004 PSRA/Pew 25% 75%

Dec. 2006-Jan. 2007 PSRA/Pew 26 74

Note: Forty-one percent of African Americans say they have been unable to afford necessary health care for

themselves or a family member over the past 12 months. Twenty-three percent of whites said the same thing.

Health Cost Anxiety

Americans are worried about health care costs. In 2009 in Kaiser Family Foundation surveys

around three in ten said they or a family member had had trouble in the past 12 months paying

a health care bill. In June 2010, 21 percent gave that response. Around two in ten said they had

skipped a test in the June 2010 survey; three in ten said they had skipped dental care.

47

In the past 12 months, have you or another family member living in your household______ because of the cost, or not?

Kaiser Family Foundation

Skipped a recommended medical test or treatment

Jan. 2000 15% 85%

Apr. 2005 17 82

Apr. 2008 23 76

Oct. 2008 31 68

Feb. 2009 23 77

Apr. 2009 27 73

Jun. 2009 27 73

Jul. 2009 21 78

Sept. 2009 28 71

Nov. 2009 22 78

Dec. 2009 23 76

Mar. 2010 28 72

Jun. 2010 22 78

Not filled a prescription for a medicine

Jan. 2000 13 87

Apr. 2005 20 79

Apr. 2008 22 78

Oct. 2008 27 72

Feb. 2009 21 78

Apr. 2009 29 71

Jun. 2009 26 74

Jul. 2009 20 80

Sept. 2009 26 73

Nov. 2009 26 74

Dec. 2009 24 76

Mar. 2010 26 74

Jun. 2010 20 79

Cut pills in half or skipped doses of medicine

Apr. 2005 16 84

Apr. 2008 18 81

Oct. 2008 22 78

Feb. 2009 15 85

Apr. 2009 18 81

Jun. 2009 19 80

Jul. 2009 15 84

Sept. 2009 21 78

Nov. 2009 17 83

Dec. 2009 18 81

Mar. 2010 21 79

Jun. 2010 16 84

Had problems getting mental health care

Jan. 2000 4 9 6

Apr. 2005 7 93

Apr. 2008 8 90

Oct. 2008 12 87

Feb. 2009 7 92

Apr. 2009 8 90

Jun. 2009 8 91

Jul. 2009 7 92

Sept. 2009 9 90

Nov. 2009 6 92

Dec. 2009 10 89

Mar. 2010 10 89

Jun. 2010 9 90

Put off or postponed getting health care you

needed

Mar. 2008 29 70

Oct. 2009 36 64

Feb. 2009 27 72

Apr. 2009 33 67

Jun. 2009 31 68

Jul. 2009 27 72

Sept. 2009 33 67

Nov. 2009 30 69

Dec. 2009 29 71

Mar. 2010 30 69

Jun. 2010 26 73

Skipped dental care or checkups

Feb. 2009 34 66

Apr. 2009 36 64

Jun. 2009 35 64

Jul. 2009 29 71

Sept. 2009 35 65

Nov. 2009 34 65

Dec. 2009 31 69

Mar. 2010 35 64

Jun. 2010 31 69

Relied on home remedies or over the counter

drugs instead of going to see a doctor

Feb. 2009 35 65

Apr. 2009 42 57

Jun. 2009 37 63

Jul. 2009 33 67

Sept. 2009 44 56

Nov. 2009 34 66

Dec. 2009 34 66

Mar. 2010 39 61

Jun. 2010 28 71

Within the last twelve months, have you or a member of your family put off any sort of medical treatment because of

the cost you would have to pay?

Yes No

Jan. 1991 Gallup 22% 77%





48






In the past 12 months, have you had any problems paying medical bills, or not?

Yes No

Apr. 2006 Harvard/Robert Wood Johnson/ICR 20% 79%

Apr. 2007 Harvard/Robert Wood Johnson/ICR 22 78

Mar. 2008 Harvard/Robert Wood Johnson/ICR 22 77

Was there a time over the past 12 months when you or another family member living in your household needed medical

care, but did not get it?

Yes No



Mar. 2008 Harvard/Robert Wood Johnson/ICR 17 82

-- (If yes) Was it mainly for financial reasons or some other reasons?

Yes No



Please tell me whether you are confident, somewhat confident, not too confident, or not confident at all about each of

the following?

Mar. 2009 CNN/ORC

Very/somewhat Not too/Not

Confident confident at all

Your ability to pay your bills if someone in your family has

a major medical emergency 64% 36%

The chances that no one in your household will lose health

insurance coverage in the next six months 78 21

How concerned are you, if at all, about . . . ?

Dec. 2008 ABC/Wash Post



Being unable to afford necessary health care

when a family member gets sick 33% 20% 17% 29%

Being able to heat your home this winter 16 20 20 43

Not having enough money to pay your rent

or mortgage 21 16 16 41

In the past year, have you or another family member living in your household _________ because of the cost or not?

Apr. 2008 Kaiser Family Foundation

Have Have not

Skipped a recommended medical test or treatment 24% 76%

Not filled a prescription for a medicine 23 76

Cut pills in half or skipped doses of medicine 19 80

Had problems getting mental health care 8 90

Put off or postponed getting health care you needed 29 70

49

How much of a problem is it for you or your family to pay for prescription medicines that you need?

A problem but Not much of

Serious problem not serious a problem

Mar. 2008 KFF/Harvard/USA Today 16% 25% 58%

$25,000- $50,000-

<$25,000 $49,999 $74,999 $75,000+

Serious problem for you and your family

to pay for drugs 29% 19% 13% 5%

Last 2 years, ever not filled a prescription

because of the cost 40 33 28 1

Last 2 years, ever skipped doses or cut pills

in half 31 28 19 14

Have insurance that helps pay for drugs 63 78 88 95

Usually talk to doctor about cost of medicine 57 47 37 34

Self or family member ever applied for a

discount from a pharmaceutical company 29 15 13 8

Right now, are you or is anyone in your household staying in a job they want to leave mainly because of fear of losing

your health coverage or not?

Yes No

Oct. 2007 LA Times/Bloomberg 13% 86%

What about the health care you receive? Are you generally satisfied or dissatisfied with the quality of the health care

you receive? Would you say you are very satisfied/dissatisfied or somewhat satisfied/dissatisfied?

---------------------Quality of Health Care You Receive--------------------



Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 41% 36% 8% 12%

Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with your health care costs, both expenses not covered by insurance and the cost of

your insurance if any? Would you say you are very satisfied/dissatisfied or somewhat satisfied/dissatisfied?

----------------------------Health Care Costs---------------------------------



Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 20% 23% 19% 33%

How concerned are you about the health care costs you and your family might face in the coming years – very

concerned, somewhat concerned, or not at all concerned?



Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 52% 37% 10%

Mar.-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 59 27 14

How concerned are you about the possibility that you will have major health care bills in the next few years – very




Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 36% 43% 20%

In general, how concerned are you about not having enough money to pay for your current health care costs – very




Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 26% 38% 35

Mar-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 42 29 28

50

In recent years, has the employer of you or anyone in your household cut back on health care benefits or made the wage

earner pay more for those benefits?

Yes No

Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 49% 46%

Note: Sample is those with health insurance.

In the past 12 months have you put off any major purchases because of the cost of health care?

Yes No

Feb. 2007 CBS/NYT 24% 76%

In the past 12 months, was there any time when you or anyone in your household had no health insurance of any kind?

Yes No

Feb. 2007 CBS NYT 20% 79%

Note: Sample is those with health insurance.



May 2006 Gallup

------------------Over the past year------------------


up the same down



as heating/electricity/water 78 15 2%













Mar. 2008 Gallup

------------------Over the past year------------------


up the same down

The value of your home 34% 25% 35%



I‘m going to read you a list of things that some people worry about and others do not. I‘d like you to tell me how

worried you are about each of the followings. How worried are you about …? Are you very worried, somewhat

worried, not too worried, or not at all worried?

Kaiser Family Foundation

-----------------------------------Right now---------------------------------


worried worried worried worried

Having to pay more for your health care

or health insurance^

Feb. 2004 47% 31% 10% 12%

51

Oct. 2005 40 32 12 16

Feb. 2006 38 33 11 17

May-Jun. 2007 41 34 14 11

Oct. 2007 39 34 13 13

Nov. -Dec. 2007 41 32 13 13

Feb. 2008 (Registered voters) 34 33 17 13

Apr. 2008 37 34 11 17

Sep. 2008 34 33 15 17

Oct. 2008 38 34 13 14

Feb. 2009 45 32 14 9

Apr. 2009 37 35 16 11

Jul. 2009 31 38 17 13

Dec. 2009 41 34 13 12

Mar. 2010 39 35 12 13

Jun. 2010 38 33 14 13

Your health plan being more concerned

about saving money for the plan than

about what is the best treatment for you^

Feb. 2004 35% 32% 15 15

Oct. 2005 30 31 16 20

Feb. 2006 27 35 15 21

May-Jun. 2007 31 33 18 16

Oct. 2007 32 34 16 16

Nov. -Dec. 2007 33 34 16 14

Apr. 2008 28 33 16 21

Sep. 2008 24 33 19 23

Oct. 2008 27 32 16 23

Not being able to afford the health care

services you think you need

Feb. 2004 38% 24% 18% 19%

Oct. 2005 34 27 15 24

Feb. 2006 32 25 18 24

Mar.-Apr. 2006# 23 27 20 29

Black men 38 22 17 24

Black women 37 21 17 24

White men 21 27 20 32

White women 16 29 22 32

May-Jun. 2007 36 27 19 18

Oct. 2007 34 28 17 20

Nov.-Dec. 2007 35 30 15 13

Apr. 2008 29 26 19 25

Sep. 2008 28 28 20 24

Oct. 2008 31 29 17 23

Feb. 2009 38 29 18 15

Apr. 2009 34 32 20 14

Jul. 2009 34 28 21 17

Dec. 2009 32 30 17 20

Mar. 2010 29 28 19 22

Jun. 2010 31 30 19 19

The quality of health care services

you receive getting worse

Feb. 2004 29% 29% 19% 22%

Oct. 2005 28 28 18 24

Feb. 2006 27 31 16 24

May-Jun. 2007 32 28 19 20

Oct. 2007 29 30 18 20

Nov.-Dec. 2007 33 29 17 19

Apr. 2008 26 30 18 24

Sep. 2008 24 28 22 26

52

Oct. 2008 26 27 21 25

Not being able to afford the prescription

drugs you need

Feb. 2004 36% 23% 18% 22%

Oct. 2005 32 21 17 30

Feb. 2006 28 22 18 30

May-Jun. 2007 33 23 22 22

Oct. 2007 31 25 18 26

Apr. 2008 27 23 17 32

Sep. 2008 27 22 20 31

Oct. 2008 25 24 20 31

Jul. 2009 27 25 25 22

Dec. 2009 27 29 21 24

Mar. 2010 28 24 19 28

Jun. 2010 26 26 22 25

Losing your health insurance coverage^

Feb. 2004 32% 19% 19% 29%

Oct. 2005 27 22 19 33

Feb. 2006 26 19 21 34

May-Jun. 2007 34 20 20 25

Oct. 2007 29 21 19 30

Nov.-Dec. 2007 29 22 21 27

Apr. 2008 26 19 19 35

Sep. 2008 23 20 22 35

Oct. 2008 29 20 19 31

Feb. 2009 34 20 22 24

Mar. 2009 30 27 22 21

Jul. 2009 29 23 24 22

Dec. 2009 26 28 20 26

Mar. 2010 24 24 18 32

Jun. 2010 26 24 26 23

Having to stay in your current job instead

of taking a new job for fear of losing health

benefits*

Feb. 2004 17% 14% 16% 51%

Oct. 2005 12 16 19 51

Feb. 2006 14 15 19 51

May-Jun. 2007 17 14 24 45

Oct. 2007 14 18 21 46

Apr. 2008 13 16 19 50

Sep. 2008 16 14 22 47

Oct. 2008 14 17 21 47

Dec. 2009 19 23 24 34

Mar. 2010 14 17 21 47

Jun. 2010 12 18 27 41

You or a family member getting HIV or AIDS

Mar.-Apr. 2006 11% 16% 25% 47%

Black men 34 18 19 28


White men 5 13 27 54


Note: * Question asked of those who are employed. ^ Question asked of those who are insured. # Wording changed to

not getting the healthcare you need.‖

53






Not being able to pay medical

costs for normal health care

Apr. 2001 Gallup 22% 22% 24% 31%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 18 17 26 36

Apr. 2003 Gallup 17 20 24 36

Apr. 2004 Gallup 21 16 24 36

Apr. 2005 Gallup 23 19 24 32

Apr. 2006 Gallup 23 22 26 27

Apr. 2007 Gallup 21 15 31 30

Apr. 2008 Gallup 23 21 24 29

Dec. 2008 Gallup 24 22 24 27

Apr. 2009 Gallup 26 20 28 26

Apr. 2010 Gallup 22 26 27 21


in the event of a serious illness or accident

Apr. 2001 Gallup 27% 23% 24% 25%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 21 24 25 28

Apr. 2003 Gallup 24 22 23 29

Apr. 2004 Gallup 26 21 24 27

Apr. 2005 Gallup 30 22 25 22

Apr. 2006 Gallup 33 21 21 22

Apr. 2007 Gallup 28 21 27 23

Apr. 2008 Gallup 34 22 20 21

Apr. 2009 Gallup 34 24 22 18

Apr. 2010 Gallup 33 28 20 17




Very Moderately Not too Not

worried worried worried at all worried



Apr. 2001 Gallup 10% 14% 28% 44%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 8 14 26 47

Apr. 2003 Gallup 11 14 27 43

Apr. 2004 Gallup 11 13 26 42

Apr. 2005 Gallup 10 13 30 43

Apr. 2006 Gallup 11 16 29 37

Apr. 2007 Gallup 11 15 31 38

Housing Anxiety

In an April 2010 Gallup poll, 38 percent were very or moderately worried about not being able to

pay their rent, mortgage, or other housing costs. Kaiser’s responses have been a little higher. In

their June 2010 poll, 47 percent said they were very or moderately worried about not being able to

pay the rent or mortgage. Jobs and rising prices are a much bigger concern for Americans than

declining real estate values.

54

Apr. 2008 Gallup 18 18 24 35

Apr. 2009 Gallup 17 18 26 33

Apr. 2010 Gallup 18 20 28 28

I‘m going to read you a list of things that some people worry about and others do not. I‘d like you to tell me how

worried you are about each of the following. How worried are you about …? Are you very worried, somewhat worried,

not too worried, or not at all worried?

Not being able to pay your rent or mortgage



Feb. 2004 KFF 27% 16% 19% 37%

Oct. 2005 KFF 22 20 19 39

Feb. 2006 KFF 23 17 19 41

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 25 19 20 34

Oct. 2007 KFF 24 19 19 37

Nov.-Dec. 2007 KFF 27 20 19 33

Apr. 2008 KFF 21 18 19 41

Sep. 2008 KFF 21 20 21 39

Oct. 2008 KFF 25 21 16 36

Jul. 2009 KFF 29 25 19 25

Dec. 2009 KFF 22 23 21 34

Mar. 2010 KFF 25 19 19 36

Jun. 2010 KFF 25 22 22 30

(If own a home) At any time within the last 12 months did you fall behind in paying your mortgage?

Yes, fell behind No

Feb.-Mar. 2009 Quinnipiac 7% 90 %

In the last 12 months, as a result of bad economic conditions, have you been threatened with foreclosure or eviction for

not paying your mortgage or rent, or haven‘t you?

Yes, and lost Yes, but didn‘t

home lost home No

Jul. 2010 CBS 2% 6% 91%

(If own a home) How concerned are you, if at all, about not having enough money to pay your mortgage - very

concerned, somewhat concerned, not too concerned, or not at all concerned about this?

Very Somewhat Not too Not at

concerned concerned concerned all concerned

Feb.-Mar. 2009 Quinnipiac 15% 21% 18% 42%

How concerned are you, if at all, about not having enough money to pay your rent or mortgage – very concerned,

somewhat concerned, not too concerned, or not at all concerned about this?

Very Somewhat Not too Not at

concerned concerned concerned all concerned

Dec. 2008 ABC/Wash Post 21% 16% 16% 41%


How concerned are you about being able to pay your housing costs—very concerned, somewhat concerned, not very

concerned, or not at all concerned?



Jan. 2009 CBS/NYT 24% 36% 19% 22%

55

As you may know, in many areas of the country, home values have declined over the last year. How much has the

decline in home values affected you personally – a lot, some, not much, or not at all?

A lot Some Not much Not at all

Jan. 2009 CBS/NYT 17% 22% 23% 38%

Do you personally have any close friends or relatives who have filed for bankruptcy or have had a foreclosure during

the past year, or not?

Yes No

Mar. 2008 CBS/NYT 22% 78%

Jan. 2009 CBS/NYT 27 73

At any time within the last 12 months did you fall behind in paying your rent or mortgage?

Yes, fell behind No

Feb. 1991 NORC/GSS 9% 91%

Jan. 2005 NORC/GSS 7 93


Do you currently rent your home, or are you buying it with a mortgage, or is it entirely paid for?

Rent Mortgage Paid for

Nov. 1990 CBS/NYT 25% 39% 34%

Mar. 2005 CBS/NYT 28 45 25

Jun. 2005 CBS/NYT 25 46 25

Dec. 2006 CBS 21 48 28

Feb. 2008 CBS/NYT 21 49 28

Sep. 2008 CBS/NYT 22 50 26

Oct. 2008 CBS/NYT 25 45 25

Jan. 2009 CBS/NYT 22 46 29

Feb. 2009 CBS/NYT 23 47 25

--(Among those who have mortgage) How concerned are you about not being able to pay your mortgage

very concerned, somewhat concerned, or not at all concerned

Very Somewhat Not at

concerned concerned all concerned

Feb. 2008 CBS/NYT 13% 24% 63%

How concerned are you about being able to pay your housing costs – very concerned, somewhat concerned, or not at all

concerned



Mar.-Apr. 2008 CBS /NYT 31% 38% 30%

Do you think what you are currently paying for housing is more than you can afford, about as much as you can afford,

or could you afford more if you wanted?

More than I As much as I Could afford

can afford can afford more

Apr. 1991 CBS/NYT 10% 56% 31%

Mar.-Apr. 2008 CBS/NYT 13 56 25

First, what, if anything, worries you most about your personal financial situation in the . . . ?

Sep. 2007 Gallup

Worry about my personal financial situation in the

Short-term Long-term

Income is not enough to meet expenses 11% 7%

Health insurance/cost of healthcare 9 13

56

Job security concerns/possible loss of job 7 3

Rising cost of living/inflation 6 7

Housing costs 4 4

College expenses 4 6

Taxes 3 3

Debt (non-specific) 3 2

Social Security benefits 3 8

Stock market downturn/crash 3 4

Recession 2 3

Paying mortgage/rent 2 --

Gas prices 2 --

Interest rates 2 --

Energy/home heating prices 1 --

Credit card debt 1 --

Retirement savings/retirement income -- 18

Note: Wordings slightly varied between short term and long term.

Have you ever had any unexpected expenses in the past 12 months that seriously set you back financially, or hasn‘t this

happened to you?

Yes No

Oct.-Nov. 2006 PSRA/Pew 34% 66 %

(If yes) What kind of expenses were these?

Medical 34%

Cars 24

Home and housing 20

Life events & children: wedding, divorce,

birth, death, moving 9

Work related 3

Travel/vacation 2

Taxes 2

Pets/veterinary bills 1

Note: Based on those who had unexpected expenses in the past 12 months.

Which one or two of the following elements of the economy, if any, concerns you the most?

Jul. 2007 NBC/WSJ

The cost of health care 44%

Jobs going overseas 34

The gap between the rich and the poor 22

The cost of higher education 17

The federal budget deficit 16

Lack of good-paying jobs 15

The cost of housing 14

As I read each item, tell me if this is one of your household‘s regular expenses, or not?


Yes No

Mortgage* 67% 32%

A car loan 42 57

A store payment plan for home furnishings

or electronics 12 87

A credit card payment 58 41

Alimony or child support 7 92

57

Child care 13 86

School tuition 25 75

A school loan 16 84

Cable or satellite television 78 22

Cell phone 74 26

Internet service 65 35

Health club or other sports facility 21 79

Landscaping or lawn maintenance 19 81

Housecleaning 16 83

Note: * Sample is based on homeowners.

Now I‘d like to ask something a little bit different. Which of the following economic concerns worry you the most?

Mar. 2006 EPI/GQR

Facing major unexpected medical expenses 36%

Losing your job 21

Seeing the value of your stocks and retirement

savings drop 18

Being unable to keep up with mortgage and

credit card payments 12

Seeing the value of your home level off or

decline 4

To begin, I‘d like you to think about you and your family‘s economic security. By economic security I mean your

security in being able to keep your job, maintain your income, have health insurance coverage, and retire comfortably.

Overall how worried are you about ________?

Feb. 2007 Rockefeller Foundation/Yankelovich

Very Fairly Slightly Not worried


Your economic security 12% 12% 29% 46%

Paying your rent 13 9 18 60

Buying a home 16 9 19 54

Paying your mortgage 5 3 14 76

Getting out of debt 13 7 21 59

Having enough money to retire on 21 9 26 43

Paying for child care 10 3 12 75

Caring for a parent financially 10 5 17 67

Losing your job 8 6 17 69

Finding a job 17 8 20 55

Having enough money to put food

on the table 7 4 14 75

Paying for your children‘s education 24 11 25 40

Keeping up with the cost of living 18 11 28 43

Paying for your children‘s college

Education 28 12 25 35

For the following list, please tell me how worried you are that this might happen to you personally.




Being the victim of a violent crime

like rape or assault 11% 24% 30% 33%

Getting cancer 18 32 22 24

Losing your house in a natural disaster

like an earthquake, fire,

tornado, or hurricane 11 27 27 35

58

Being hurt or killed in a major terrorist

attack, similar to September 11th 11 22 26 40

Being the victim of identity theft 21 48 17 14

Not having enough money to pay all

your bills 19 29 19 32

Not being able to have a secure

retirement 30 26 16 25

Having to file for bankruptcy 8 8 22 61

Falling deep into debt because of

medical expenses 15 29 25 30

Falling deep into debt from paying

high interest rates on

your mortgage 10 13 19 55

Home Values

As you think about your own financial situation, which of the following economic issues worries you most right now?

PSRA/Pew

Worries me the most

Rising prices

Mar. 2008 49%

Oct. 2008 38

Dec. 2008 31

Feb. 2009 21

Mar. 2009 22

June. 2009 29

Aug. 2009 26

Sept./Oct. 2009 27

Problems in the financial markets

Mar. 2008 14%

Oct. 2008 31

Dec. 2008 29

Feb. 2009 21

Mar. 2009 21

Jun. 2010 15

Aug. 2009 14

Sept./Oct. 2009 14

The job situation

Mar. 2008 19%

Oct. 2008 18

Dec. 2008 26

Feb. 2009 45

Mar. 2009 42

Jun. 2009 42

Aug. 2009 44

Sept./Oct. 2009 46

Declining real estate values

Mar. 2008 12%

Oct. 2008 8

Dec. 2008 9

Feb. 2009 9

Mar. 2009 10

Jun. 2009 8

Aug. 2009 9

Sept./Oct. 2009 7

59

Here are a number of events that have happened in the past several months. For each one, please tell me how much this

has affected you personally–a great deal, quite a bit, just some, or not at all?

NBC/WSJ

Great deal Quite a bit Just some Not at all

The slowdown in the economy

Jan. 2001 12% 12% 40% 36%

Jan. 2009 22 20 42 16

The decline in the stock market

Jan. 2001 16% 13% 29% 41%

Jan. 2009 22 16 30 31

The decrease in home values

Jan. 2009 14% 11% 27% 47%

What‘s your impression about the real estate market in your area? Over the past year, have home prices gone up a lot,

gone up a little, gone down a little, gone down a lot?

Gone up Gone up Gone down Gone down

a lot a little a little a lot

Sep. 2007 PSRA/Pew 28% 22% 25% 15%

Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 28 18 23 18

Jul. 2008 PSRA/Pew 20 13 32 24

Oct. 2008 PSRA/Pew 19 14 29 25

Dec. 2008 PSRA/Pew 11 11 33 34

Sept./Oct. 2009 PSRA/Pew 8 13 35 31



May 2006 Gallup



up the same down



as heating/electricity/water 78 15 2%













Mar. 2008 Gallup



up the same down

The value of your home 34% 25% 35% The amount of money you are able to put away


60

Reuters/University of Michigan Survey of Consumer Data

--------------------------Evaluations of Trends in Home Prices Among Homeowners----------------------------

Change in Home Value in the Past Year Expected annual change in value of home…

During the year ahead During the next five years

Decrease Increase Decrease Increase Decrease Increase

2007 Q2 17% 49% 14% 35% 7% 65%

2007 Q3 21 44 17 33 9 66

2007 Q4 29 35 22 25 9 63

Jan. 2008 29 29 20 23 9 60

Is your home now worth more or less than it was worth when you bought it?

More Less

Mar. 2008 CNN/ORC 82% 11%

Note: Asked of homeowners.

Is your home now worth more or less than it was five years ago?

More Less

Mar. 2008 CNN/ORC 70% 18%


Has the value of your home increased or decreased over the past few years? Would you say it has increased a little or

increased a lot/decreased a little or decreased a lot?

Increased Increased Decreased Decreased

a little a lot a little a lot

Jan.-Feb. 2008 PSRA/Pew 25% 42% 11% 10 %


(Kaiser Family Foundation) I‘m going to read you a list of things that some people worry about and others do not. I‘d

like you to tell me how worried you are about each of the followings. How worried are you about…? Are you very

worried, somewhat worried, not too worried, or not at all worried?

(Gallup) Next, please tell me how concerned you are right now about each of the following financial matters, based on

your current financial situation – are you very worried, moderately worried, not too worried, or not worried at all. If a




Your income not keeping up with rising

prices

Feb. 2004 KFF 40% 29% 14% 16%

Oct. 2005 KFF 40 30 13 16

Feb. 2006 KFF 36 32 14 17

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 45 30 12 13

Oct. 2007 KFF 41 30 14 14

Feb. 2008* KFF 39 33 16 10

Apr. 2008 KFF 43 31 11 14

Comparative Anxiety

Here we show a variety of questions about things people worry about from being a victim of crime

or of a terrorist attack to losing health insurance. The Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard polling

team asks about being “very” or “somewhat” worried, and Gallup asks about being “very” or

“moderately” worried. These produce some differences in responses.

61

Sept. 2008 KFF 41 32 13 13

Oct. 2008 KFF 47 32 10 11

Feb. 2009 KFF 53 28 12 8

Apr. 2009 KFF 46 32 13 9

Jul. 2009 KFF 37 35 17 12

Dec. 2009 KFF 40 32 16 12

Mar. 2010 KFF 40 33 13 13

Jun. 2010 KFF 40 32 15 13

Note: * Sample is registered voters.

Not having enough money to pay your bills

Mar.-Apr. 2006 KFF 19% 32% 21% 28 %

Black men 33 26 18 22


White men 12 32 22 34




Not having enough to pay

your normal monthly bills

Apr. 2001 Gallup 12% 20% 29% 39%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 11 19 27 42

Apr. 2003 Gallup 12 18 29 40

Apr. 2004 Gallup 12 20 28 39

Apr. 2005 Gallup 13 17 32 37

Apr. 2006 Gallup 14 24 30 30

Apr. 2007 Gallup 14 19 32 34

Apr. 2008 Gallup 20 24 25 30

Sep. 2008 Gallup 20 24 24 30

Apr. 2009 Gallup 19 25 26 28

Apr. 2010 Gallup 18 26 28 26

Not being able to make the minimum

payments on your credit cards

Apr. 2001 Gallup 9% 9% 22% 41%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 7 8 21 48

Apr. 2003 Gallup 7 9 21 47

Apr. 2004 Gallup 7 10 22 46

Apr. 2005 Gallup 7 9 22 45

Apr. 2006 Gallup 9 8 24 41

Apr. 2007 Gallup 9 9 23 41

Apr. 2008 Gallup 11 12 19 42

Sep. 2008 Gallup 13 12 19 39

Apr. 2009 Gallup 10 13 20 37

Apr. 2010 Gallup 11 13 21 37



Apr. 2001 Gallup 10% 14% 28% 44%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 8 14 26 47

Apr. 2003 Gallup 11 14 27 43

Apr. 2004 Gallup 11 13 26 42

Apr. 2005 Gallup 10 13 30 43

Apr. 2006 Gallup 11 16 29 37

Apr. 2007 Gallup 11 15 31 38

Apr. 2008 Gallup 18 18 24 35

Apr. 2009 Gallup 17 18 26 33

Apr. 2010 Gallup 18 20 28 28

62

Not being able to maintain the

standard of living you enjoy

Apr. 2001 Gallup 16% 27% 30% 26%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 12 23 31 32

Apr. 2003 Gallup 14 24 32 29

Apr. 2004 Gallup 16 23 29 31

Apr. 2005 Gallup 14 27 31 28

Apr. 2006 Gallup 18 31 28 22

Apr. 2007 Gallup 18 23 32 26

Apr. 2008 Gallup 25 30 24 20

Sep. 2008 Gallup 24 32 24 19

Apr. 2009 Gallup 21 32 28 18

Apr. 2010 Gallup 23 31 30 15

Not being able to get a loan to pay

for a home, car, tuition, or business

Sep. 2008 Gallup 20% 15% 22% 33%



Having to pay more for your health care

or health insurance^

Feb. 2004 KFF 47% 31% 10% 12%

Oct. 2005 KFF 40 32 12 16

Feb. 2006 KFF 38 33 11 17

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 41 34 14 11

Oct. 2007 KFF 39 34 13 13

Feb. 2008* KFF 34 33 17 13

Apr. 2008 KFF 37 34 11 17

Sep. 2008 KFF 34 33 15 17

Oct. 2008 KFF 38 34 13 14

Feb. 2009 KFF 45 32 14 9

Apr. 2009 KFF 37 35 16 11

Jul. 2009 KFF 31 38 17 13

Dec. 2009 KFF 41 34 13 12

Mar. 2010 KFF 39 35 12 13

Jun. 2010 KFF 38 33 14 13

Your health plan being more concerned

about saving money for the plan than

about what is the best treatment for you^

Feb. 2004 KFF 35% 32% 15% 15%

Oct. 2005 KFF 30 31 16 20

Feb. 2006 KFF 27 35 15 21

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 31 33 18 16

Oct. 2007 KFF 32 34 16 16

Apr. 2008 KFF 28 33 16 21

Apr. 2008 KFF 28 33 16 21

Sep. 2008 KFF 24 33 19 23

Oct. 2008 KFF 27 32 16 23

Not being able to afford the health care

services you think you need

Feb. 2004 KFF 38% 24% 18% 19%

Oct. 2005 KFF 34 27 15 24

Feb. 2006 KFF 32 25 18 24

Mar.-Apr. 2006# KFF 23 27 20 29

Black men 38 22 17 24


White men 21 27 20 32


May-Jun. 2007 KFF 36 27 19 18

63

Oct. 2007 KFF 34 28 17 20

Nov.-Dec. 2007 KFF 35 30 15 13

Apr. 2008 KFF 29 26 19 25

Sep. 2008 KFF 28 28 20 24

Oct. 2008 KFF 31 29 17 23

Feb. 2009 KFF 38 29 18 15

Apr. 2009 KFF 34 32 20 14

Jul. 2009 KFF 34 28 21 17

Dec. 2009 KFF 32 30 17 20

Mar. 2010 KFF 29 28 19 22

Jun. 2010 KFF 31 30 19 19

The quality of health care services

you receive getting worse

Feb. 2004 KFF 29% 29% 19% 22%

Oct. 2005 KFF 28 28 18 24

Feb. 2006 KFF 27 31 16 24

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 32 28 19 20

Oct. 2007 KFF 29 30 18 20

Apr. 2008 KFF 26 30 18 24

Sep. 2008 KFF 24 28 22 26

Oct. 2008 KFF 26 27 21 25

Not being able to afford the prescription

drugs you need

Feb. 2004 KFF 36% 23% 18% 22%

Oct. 2005 KFF 32 21 17 30

Feb. 2006 KFF 28 22 18 30

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 33 23 22 22

Oct. 2007 KFF 31 25 18 26

Apr. 2008 KFF 27 23 17 32

Sep. 2008 KFF 27 22 20 31

Oct. 2008 KFF 25 24 20 31

Jul. 2009 KFF 27 25 25 22

Dec. 2009 KFF 27 29 21 24

Mar. 2010 KFF 28 24 19 28

Jun. 2010 KFF 26 26 22 25

Having to stay in your current job instead

of taking a new job for fear of losing health

benefits*

Feb. 2004 KFF 17% 14% 16% 51%

Oct. 2005 KFF 12 16 19 51

Feb. 2006 KFF 14 15 19 51

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 17 14 24 45

Oct. 2007 KFF 14 18 21 46

Apr. 2008 KFF 13 16 19 50

Sep. 2008 KFF 16 14 22 47

Oct. 2008 KFF 14 17 21 47

Dec. 2009 KFF 19 23 24 34

Mar. 2010 KFF 14 17 21 47

Jun. 2010 KFF 12 18 27 41



Not being able to pay medical

costs for normal health care

Apr. 2001 Gallup 22% 22% 24% 31%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 18 17 26 36

Apr. 2003 Gallup 17 20 24 36

Apr. 2004 Gallup 21 16 24 36

Apr. 2005 Gallup 23 19 24 32

64

Apr. 2006 Gallup 23 22 26 27

Apr. 2007 Gallup 21 15 31 30

Apr. 2008 Gallup 23 21 24 29

Apr. 2009 Gallup 26 20 28 26

Apr. 2010 Gallup 22 26 27 21


in the event of a serious illness or accident

Apr. 2001 Gallup 27% 23% 24% 25%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 21 24 25 28

Apr. 2003 Gallup 24 22 23 29

Apr. 2004 Gallup 26 21 24 27

Apr. 2005 Gallup 30 22 25 22

Apr. 2006 Gallup 33 21 21 22

Apr. 2007 Gallup 28 21 27 23

Apr. 2008 Gallup 34 22 20 21

Apr. 2009 Gallup 34 24 22 18

Apr. 2010 Gallup 33 28 20 17



Losing your health insurance coverage^

Feb. 2004 KFF 32% 19% 19% 29%

Oct. 2005 KFF 27 22 19 33

Feb. 2006 KFF 26 19 21 34

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 34 20 20 25

Oct. 2007 KFF 29 21 19 30

Apr. 2008 KFF 26 19 19 35

Sep. 2008 KFF 23 20 22 35

Oct. 2008 KFF 29 20 19 31

Feb. 2009 KFF 34 20 22 24

Apr. 2009 KFF 30 27 22 21

Jul. 2009 KFF 29 23 24 22

Dec. 2009 KFF 26 28 20 26

Mar. 2010 KFF 24 24 18 32

Jun. 2010 KFF 26 24 26 23

Being a victim of a terrorist attack

Feb. 2004 KFF 20% 27% 27% 26%

Oct. 2005 KFF 18 28 25 29

Feb. 2006 KFF 21 26 22 30

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 25 29 25 19

Oct. 2007 KFF 22 29 23 25

Apr. 2008 KFF 18 28 24 30

Sep. 2008 KFF 18 29 25 27

Oct. 2008 KFF 19 27 25 29

Jul. 2009 KFF 20 29 27 23

Dec. 2009 KFF 16 26 29 28

Mar. 2010 KFF 21 24 25 29

Jun. 2010 KFF 20 25 29 25



Being a victim of violent crime

Feb. 2004 KFF 19% 25% 29% 26%

Oct. 2005 KFF 16 27 29 28

Feb. 2006 KFF 17 24 28 30

Mar.-Apr. 2006 KFF 11 29 31 28

Black men 26 25 22 26



65


May-Jun. 2007 KFF 21 28 31 20

Oct. 2007 KFF 20 26 29 25

Apr. 2008 KFF 18 24 28 29

Sep. 2008 KFF 17 25 30 28

Oct. 2008 KFF 18 23 28 30

Not being able to pay your rent or mortgage

Feb. 2004 KFF 27% 16% 19% 37%

Oct. 2005 KFF 22 20 19 39

Feb. 2006 KFF 23 17 19 41

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 25 19 20 34

Oct. 2007 KFF 24 19 19 37

Nov.-Dec. 2007 KFF 27 20 19 33

Apr. 2008 KFF 21 18 19 41

Sep. 2008 KFF 21 20 21 39

Oct. 2008 KFF 25 21 16 36

Jul. 2009 KFF 29 25 19 25

Dec. 2009 KFF 22 23 21 34

Mar. 2010 KFF 25 19 19 36

Jun. 2010 KFF 25 22 22 30

Losing your job*

Feb. 2004 KFF ` 21% 16% 23% 40%

Oct. 2005 KFF 16 18 22 43

Feb. 2006 KFF 20 16 21 43

Mar.-Apr. 2006 KFF 8 15 20 45

Black men 23 16 19 36




May-Jun. 2007 KFF 19 15 25 41

Oct. 2007 KFF 19 17 23 40

Apr. 2008 KFF 21 18 21 41

Sep. 2008 KFF 21 15 23 41

Oct. 2008 KFF 27 19 22 32

Jul. 2009 KFF 28 27 23 22

Dec. 2009 KFF 26 27 27 20

Mar. 2010 KFF 24 22 23 31

Jun. 2010 KFF 24 25 26 25

Losing your savings in the stock market

Feb. 2004 KFF 23% 17% 15% 43%

Oct. 2005 KFF 14 19 16 50

Feb. 2006 KFF 15 18 18 47

May-Jun. 2007 KFF 14 13 22 48

Oct. 2007 KFF 16 16 18 47

Apr. 2008 KFF 17 18 16 47

Sep. 2008 KFF 19 17 18 45

Oct. 2008 KFF 32 19 11 36



Not having enough

money for retirement+

Apr. 2001 Gallup 24% 29% 24% 19%

Apr. 2002 Gallup 25 29 19 22

Apr. 2003 Gallup 24 30 22 20

Apr. 2004 Gallup 26 26 21 23

Apr. 2005 Gallup 30 30 18 19

Apr. 2006 Gallup 30 30 19 16

Apr. 2007 Gallup 27 29 24 18

66

Apr. 2008 Gallup 35 28 18 16

Sep. 2008 Gallup 33 31 16 15

Apr. 2010 Gallup 34 32 18 14

Apr. 2009 KFF 43 30 14 12

Jul. 2009 KFF 35 31 17 16

Dec. 2009 KFF 37 28 17 17

Mar. 2010 KFF 39 29 14 17

Jun. 2010 KFF 36 30 15 17

Not having enough money

to pay for your children‘s college

Apr. 2007 Gallup 18% 16% 10% 16%

Apr. 2008 Gallup 25 14 8 14

Note: Forty percent volunteered the response, ―doesn‘t apply‖ in 2007 and 39 percent did in 2008. + Asked of non-

retied adults.



Being arrested

Mar.-Apr. 2006 KFF 6% 6% 20% 68%

Black men 22 13 18 46


White men 4 8 19 69


Your child not getting into a good college

Mar.-Apr. 2006 KFF 12% 19% 20% 37%

Black men 29 24 17 25




You or a family member getting HIV or AIDS

Mar.-Apr. 2006 KFF 11% 16% 25% 47%

Black men 34 18 19 28




Being a victim of racial discrimination

Mar.-Apr. 2006 KFF 7% 15% 24% 54%

Black men 28 26 21 25


White men 2 8 21 67


Being unfairly treated by the police

Mar.-Apr. 2006 KFF 11% 17% 29% 44%

Black men 37 25 16 22




Note: * Question asked of those who are employed. ^ Question asked of those who are insured. + asked of non-retired

adults. # Wording is ―not getting the healthcare you need.‖

67

Thinking about the next 12 months, how likely is it that _____?

Pew Research Center

Likely Not likely

Your employer may go out of business or relocate to another city

Jan. 2008 12% 87%

Feb. 2009 13 85

Mar. 2010 13 85

You may have your health benefits reduced or eliminated by

your employer

Jan. 2008 20% 74%

Feb. 2009 24 69

Mar. 2010 23 67

You may be asked to take a cut in pay

Jan. 2008 13% 86%

Feb. 2009 25 73

Mar. 2010 25 73

You may be laid off

Jan. 2008 15% 84%

Feb. 2009 21 77

Mar. 2010 24 74

You may have your retirement benefits reduced or eliminated by

your employer

Feb. 2009 18% 75%

Mar. 2010 22 68

Generally speaking, would you say in _____ are going in the right direction or have they pretty seriously gotten off on

the wrong track?

Aug. 2008 Harris Interactive

In the country Your state Your life personally

Are going in the right direction 18% 41% 76%

Have pretty seriously gotten off on the wrong track 76 53 20

How much do you worry about each of the following? Do you worry a lot, some, not much or not at all about ____?

AP/Roper GfK

Worry a lot Some Not much Not at all

Facing major unexpected medical expenses

Feb. 2009 38% 26% 16% 19%

Apr. 2009 38 27 10 25

July 2009 35 27 13 25

Sep. 2009 37 31 13 19

Losing your job

Feb. 2009 28% 19% 10% 22%

Apr. 2009 27 18 9 26

July 2009 25 18 11 26

Sep. 2009 25 18 10 29

Note: Twenty-one percent in both askings said ―does not apply.‖

Seeing the value of your stocks and retirement

investments drop

Feb. 2009 48% 21% 7% 12%

Apr. 2009 41 23 8 16

July 2009 39 25 9 18

68

Sep. 2009 40 28 9 16

Being unable to pay your bills

Feb. 2009 38% 26% 12% 22%

Apr. 2009 34 26 10 29

July 2009 31 28 13 28

Sep. 2009 31 26 15 28

Having enough money to send your children

to college

Feb. 2009 34% 14% 5% 16%

Apr. 2009 33 16 6 20

July 2009 30 17 4 23

Sep. 2009 29 18 6 24

Being unable to keep up with your mortgage and

credit card payments

Feb. 2009 32% 22% 11% 26%

Apr. 2009 28 19 11 33

July 2009 27 21 14 31

Sep. 2009 24 22 13 34

For each of the following please tell me whether or not it is something that happened to you in the past year. Have you

____?

Pew Research Center

Has happened

in the past year Has not

Had trouble getting or paying for medical care for

yourself or your family

Aug. 1999 (KFF/Harvard/WP) 21% 78%

Jan. 2008 23 76

Feb. 2009 23 77

Mar. 2010 26 74

Had problems paying your rent or mortgage

Aug. 1999 (KFF/Harvard/WP) 13 87

Jan. 2008 16 83

Feb. 2009 20 80

Mar. 2010 24 76

Been laid off or lost your job

Jan. 2008 14 85

Feb. 2009 18 82

Mar. 2010 21 79

Gotten a pay raise at your current job or gotten

a better job


Jan. 2008 41 57

Feb. 2009 29 70

Mar. 2010 24 74

Had a mortgage, other loan, or credit card

application denied

Feb. 2009 17 83

Mar. 2010 19 80

Had problems with collection or credit agencies


Feb. 2009 20 80

Mar. 2010 21 78

69

For the following list, please tell me how worried you are that this might happen to you personally.




Being the victim of a violent crime

like rape or assault 11% 24% 30% 33%

Getting cancer 18 32 22 24

Losing your house in a natural disaster

like an earthquake, fire, tornado, or hurricane 11 27 27 35

Being hurt or killed in a major terrorist

attack, similar to September 11th 11 22 26 40

Being the victim of identity theft 21 48 17 14

Not having enough money to pay all

your bills 19 29 19 32

Not being able to have a secure retirement 30 26 16 25

Having to file for bankruptcy 8 8 22 61

Falling deep into debt because of

medical expenses 15 29 25 30

Falling deep into debt from paying high

interest rates on your mortgage 10 13 19 55

How often do you worry about the following things – frequently, occasionally, rarely, or never?

Mar. 2005 AP/Ipsos

Frequently Occasionally Rarely Never

Getting hurt in a car accident 20% 34% 30% 16%

Not being able to pay your bills 30 21 24 25

A terrorist attack using nuclear weapons 13 31 32 23

Becoming a victim of terrorism 12 28 35 25

A nuclear attack by one country on another 11 28 34 27

How concerned are you about each of the following?

Sep. 2006 Fox /OD



The price of health care 44% 43% 9% 4%

The situation in Iraq 43 45 8 2

The decline of moral values 36 40 16 6

Gas prices 35 42 19 4

Terrorist attacks 35 39 21 3

The nation‘s economy 32 44 19 5

Being able to pay your bills 30 37 22 11

Illegal immigration 29 39 24 6

Sep. 2008 Fox/OD



The price of health care 39% 45% 12% 3%

The situation in Iraq 37 50 10 2

The decline of moral values 33 43 17 5

Gas prices 46 41 10 3

Terrorist attacks 28 44 33 5

The nation‘s economy 49 44 6 1

Being able to pay your bills 36 39 19 6

70

Money Anxiety

In the past six months, have you and your family had to do any of the following as a result of recent changes in

economic conditions?

Mar. 2008 CNN/ORC

Yes, cutback No

Cut back on daily necessities such as

food or medicine

Mar. 2008 30% 70%

Mar. 2009 32 68

Cut back on heating your home or

using electricity at home

Mar. 2008 46 54

Cut back on purchases of clothes or

other apparel

Mar. 2008 59 41

Mar. 2009 58 42

Cut back on leisure activities such as

travelling for pleasure or going out

to movies or restaurants

Mar. 2008 75 25

Cut back on household or personal

services such as telephone service,

internet access or cable TV

Mar. 2008 31 69

Postponed making major purchases such

as furniture or appliances

Mar. 2008 61 39

Mar. 2009 62 38

How worried are you that you and your family may have to do any of the following as a result of recent changes in

economic conditions?

Mar. 2008 CNN/ORC



Cut back on daily necessities such as

food or medicine 36% 21% 22% 21%

Cut back on heating your home or

using electricity at home 34 23 24 19

Cut back on purchases of clothes or

other apparel 25 23 33 19

Cut back on leisure activities such as

travelling for pleasure or going out

to movies or restaurants 29 27 28 15

Cut back on household or personal

services such as telephone service,

internet access or cable TV 23 26 28 23

Postponed making major purchase such

as furniture or appliances 26 25 25 23

71

You mentioned making some cutbacks in spending. Have you been cutting back because your financial situation has

gotten worse and made such cutbacks necessary, or because you worry that your financial situation might get worse in

the future?

PSRA/Pew Research center

Gotten worse Might get worse Both

Dec. 2008 28% 57% 4%

Feb. 2009 30 56 5

Jun. 2009 36 50 5

Aug. 2009 34 47 6

Dec. 2009 30 49 8

Please tell me whether you are very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident, or not confident at all about each

of the following?

CNN/ORC

Very Somewhat Not too Not confident

confident confident confident at all

Your ability to maintain your current

standard of living over the next year

Mar. 2008 45% 38% 12% 4%

Mar. 2009 39 42 15 4

Your ability to maintain your current

standard of living over the next ten years

Mar. 2008 34 40 18 6

Mar. 2009 38 43 14 4

Your ability to save enough money

to live comfortably when you retire

Mar. 2008 29 32 24 15

Mar. 2009 22 37 25 16

Your ability to pay for your children

to attend the college of their choice^

Mar. 2008 23 35 26 16

Mar. 2009 24 36 19 21

Your ability to meet your monthly

mortgage payments for the duration

of that mortgage$

Mar. 2008 58 32 6 4

Mar. 2009 50 39 5 5

The chances that your current

employer will not have to lay off

any workers in the next six months#

Mar. 2008 55 18 18 7

The chances that your current

employer will not lay you off in

the next six months#

Mar. 2008 69 16 10 5

Your ability to find a good job that

pays as much as the job you have

now if you had to leave your current

place of employment#

Mar. 2008 31 26 26 15

Note: * Sample is those who are not retired. ^ Sample is those with children under eighteen. $ Sample is those with

a mortgage. # Sample is those who are currently employed.

72

Let me read you a number of aspects dealing with the economy, for each please tell me whether this is currently

affecting you a great deal, quite a bit, just some, or very little. If this does not apply to you, just say so.

NBC/WSJ

A great deal Quite a bit Just some Very little Does not apply

The price of gasoline and

home heating oil

Dec. 2007 51% 18% 23% 5% 3%

Mar. 2008 65 14 12 5 3

The cost of groceries and household

products

Mar. 2008 50 17 21 7 4

The cost of health care

Dec. 2007 42 16 20 12 10

Mar. 2008 45 13 19 10 12

Savings and pensions for retirement

Dec. 2007 28 11 26 11 23

Mar. 2008 33 12 22 13 19

The impact trade agreements have had

on American jobs

Mar. 2008 28 13 20 13 23

Job security and layoffs

Dec. 2007 16 6 12 15 51

Mar. 2008 26 8 15 13 37

Your investments in the stock market

Dec. 2007 13 10 21 14 41

Mar. 2008 21 12 18 11 36

The cost and security of your mortgage

Dec. 2007 14 4 15 19 48

Mar. 2008 17 5 12 16 48

Overtime pay and bonuses at work

Dec. 2007 12 5 11 12 59

Mar. 2008 15 6 10 13 54

To begin, I‘d like you to think about your and your family‘s economic security. By economic security I mean your

security in being able to keep your job, maintain your income, have health insurance coverage, and retire comfortably.

Overall how worried are you about ________?

Feb. 2007 Rockefeller Foundation/Yankelovich

Very Fairly Slightly Not worried


Your economic security 12% 12% 29% 46%

Paying your rent 13 9 18 60

Buying a home 16 9 19 54

Paying your mortgage 5 3 14 76

Getting out of debt 13 7 21 59

Having enough money to retire on 21 9 26 43

Paying for child care 10 3 12 75

Caring for a parent financially 10 5 17 67

Losing your job 8 6 17 69

Finding a job 17 8 20 55

Having enough money to put food

on the table 7 4 14 75

Paying for your children‘s education 24 11 25 40

Keeping up with the cost of living 18 11 28 43

Paying for your children‘s college

Education 28 12 25 35

73

What is the most important financial problem facing your family today?

Gallup

Aug. Jul. Jun. May Apr. Feb. Dec. Nov. Oct. Sep.

2006 2006 2006 2006 2006 2006 2005 2005 2005 2005

Health care costs 15% 15% 16% 17% 18% 17% 15% 16% 12% 11%

Energy costs/

oil and gas prices 16 10 13 20 12 8 14 11 17 17

Lack of money/

low wages 11 13 12 14 12 11 12 11 11 10

Too much debt/ not

enough money to

pay debts 9 7 8 8 9 9 7 7 7 8

College expenses 8 7 8 9 8 8 7 8 6 7

Cost of owning/

renting a home 6 7 6 7 7 7 5 5 5 5

Retirement savings 6 7 7 7 6 7 5 5 4 3

Cost of living/

inflation 8 5 8 6 5 6 4 5 6 7

Lack of savings 1 2 2 2 5 2 2 2 1 1

Taxes 3 4 5 5 4 5 4 4 4 4

Unemployment/

loss of a job 3 3 2 3 3 6 6 8 6 6

Interest rates 2 2 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1

State of the economy 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 * 1 1

Controlling spending * 1 * * 1 1 1 1 * *

Transportation/

commuting costs 2 1 1 1 * 1 1 1 1 1

Feb. Oct. Jul. Jun. Apr. Jan. Dec. Nov. Oct. Sep.

2008 2007 2007 2007 2007 2007 2006 2006 2006 2006

Health care costs 13% 17% 19% 16% 16% 17% 15% 17% 14% 14%

Energy costs/

oil and gas prices 6 4 8 11 8 7 5 7 8 10

Lack of money/

low wages 7 9 15 13 11 13 17 14 12 12

Too much debt/ not

enough money to

pay debts 12 7 7 7 8 9 9 10 10 9

College expenses 5 6 6 7 9 8 9 9 8 8

Cost of owning/

renting a home 9 10 8 8 9 6 9 8 6 6

Retirement savings 6 3 6 8 7 3 7 6 7 5

Cost of living/

inflation 5 5 6 7 7 8 3 5 6 4

Lack of savings 2 2 3 2 2 1 1 2 1 1

Taxes 5 4 4 6 5 5 4 4 5 5

Unemployment/

loss of a job 4 2 4 3 4 4 2 3 2 4

Interest rates 1 1 1 1 2 * 1 2 2 2

State of the economy 2 * 1 * 2 * * 1 * 1

Controlling spending * -- * * 1 1 1 * 1 *

Transportation/

commuting costs * * * 2 1 1 1 1 1 1

Mar. Nov. Apr. Feb. Oct. Jul. Apr.

2010 2009 2009 2009 2008 2008 2008

Health care costs 16% 14% 11% 8% 9% 9% 10%

Energy costs/

oil and gas prices 3 2 3 3 12 29 14

Lack of money/

low wages 15 14 15 16 11 14 11

74

Too much debt/ not

enough money to

pay debts 13 9 10 15 9 3 9

College expenses 7 7 6 6 6 5 7

Cost of owning/

renting a home 12 9 12 9 7 9 10

Retirement savings 4 5 4 6 7 5 5

Cost of living/

inflation 7 4 6 5 10 18 10

Lack of savings 3 1 2 1 2 2

Taxes 4 5 3 3 3 2 3

Unemployment/

loss of a job 10 8 10 9 4 4 6

Interest rates 1 1 1 1 * 1 2

State of the economy 2 2 2 3 2 2 3

Controlling spending 1 * 1 * 1 * 1

Transportation/

commuting costs 1 1 2 1 1 1 1

In America, each generation has tried to have a better life than their parents, with a better living standard, better homes,

a better education, etc. How likely do you think it is that today‘s youth will have a better life than your parents – very

likely, somewhat likely, somewhat unlikely, or very unlikely?

Very Likely Somewhat Likely Somewhat Unlikely Very Unlikely

Jan. 1983 Roper GfK/NOP 19% 35% 27% 17 %

Jan. 1985 Roper GfK/NOP 28 40 19 10

Jan. 1990 Roper GfK/NOP 21 41 20 13

Oct. 1990 Roper GfK/NOP 28 46 13 4

Dec. 1995 NYT 11 38 32 17

Jul. 1996 NYT 16 42 27 13

Sep. 1996 CBS/NYT 16 42 27 13

Oct. 1996 CBS/NYT 11 40 32 14

Nov. 1996 CBS/NYT 15 41 27 15

Dec. 1996 CBS/NYT 14 37 30 17

Dec. 2001 CBS/NYT 26 45 19 8

Jan. 2003 CBS/NYT 24 42 21 10

Jan. 2008 Gallup 25 41 21 12

Mar. 2009 Gallup/USA Today 19 40 25 15

Jan. 2010 Gallup/USA Today 17 45 26 12

Which one or two of the following elements of the economy, if any, concerns you the most?

Jul. 2007 NBC/WSJ

The cost of health care 44%

Jobs going overseas 34

The gap between the rich and the poor 22

The cost of higher education 17

The federal budget deficit 16

Lack of good-paying jobs 15

The cost of housing 14

Health Anxiety

As you may know, some people in the United States have gotten sick from E.coli bacteria found in spinach. How

worried are you that you or a member of your family will get sick from E.coli bacteria – very worried, somewhat

worried, not too worried, or not worried at all?



Sep. 2006 Gallup 6% 17% 36% 41%

75

Crime/Terrorism Anxiety

How often do you, yourself, worry about the following things—frequently, occasionally, rarely, or never? How

about…?

Gallup

Frequently Occasionally Rarely Never

Getting murdered

Aug.-Sep. 2000 6% 12% 31% 51%

Oct. 2001 4 9 31 56

Oct. 2002 6 11 30 53

Oct. 2003 6 12 30 52

Oct. 2004 6 10 29 55

Oct. 2005 5 10 31 53

Oct. 2006 6 14 35 44

Oct. 2007 7 12 33 48

Oct. 2008 6 11 35 48

Oct. 2009 7 12 32 49

Getting mugged

Aug.-Sep. 2000 9% 21% 33% 36%

Oct. 2001 6 17 36 41

Oct. 2002 8 18 33 40

Oct. 2003 9 19 35 37

Oct. 2004 9 18 35 38

Oct. 2005 7 21 35 37

Oct. 2006 9 24 33 33

Oct. 2007 10 19 37 33

Oct. 2008 11 18 34 35

Oct. 2009 11 20 35 34

Your home being burglarized

when you are not there

Aug.-Sep. 2000 16% 32% 28% 24%

Oct. 2001 12 28 33 26

Oct. 2002 15 30 30 25

Oct. 2003 17 31 31 21

Oct. 2004 12 29 35 24

Oct. 2005 15 30 30 25

Oct. 2006 21 29 33 17

Oct. 2007 18 29 32 21

Oct. 2008 18 28 33 20

Oct. 2009 21 24 35 20

Your home being burglarized when

you are there

Aug.-Sep. 2000 10% 21% 30% 39%

Oct. 2001 6 16 33 45

Oct. 2002 9 18 32 40

Oct. 2003 10 20 30 40

Oct. 2004 8 16 34 42

Oct. 2005 8 16 31 45

Oct. 2006 10 23 34 33

Oct. 2007 10 19 32 38

Oct. 2008 10 18 36 36

Oct. 2009 12 21 32 35

Being sexually assaulted

Aug.-Sep. 2000 7% 16% 24% 52%

Oct. 2001 4 15 24 57

Oct. 2002 6 12 26 55

Oct. 2003 9 14 27 50

76

Oct. 2004 6 14 27 53

Oct. 2005 6 13 29 52

Oct. 2006 6 15 30 48

Oct. 2007 6 13 28 52

Oct. 2008 7 12 27 54

Oct. 2009 5 14 29 52

Having your car stolen or broken into

Aug.-Sep. 2000 16% 32% 26% 24%

Oct. 2001 14 27 30 26

Oct. 2002 16 28 28 24

Oct. 2003 17 28 31 22

Oct. 2004 12 29 31 25

Oct. 2005 16 26 30 25

Oct. 2006 17 30 33 18

Oct. 2007 16 28 32 21

Oct. 2008 20 23 32 24

Oct. 2009 19 28 30 21

Being assaulted or killed by a co-worker or other

employee where you work

Aug.-Sep. 2000 1% 6% 18% 64%

Oct. 2001 2 5 18 62

Oct. 2002 2 4 18 61

Oct. 2003 3 6 20 56

Oct. 2004 1 4 16 67

Oct. 2005 2 4 18 64

Oct. 2006 3 5 17 61

Oct. 2007 2 4 18 62

Oct. 2008 2 4 20 59

Oct. 2009 1 3 17 61

Having a school-aged child of yours physically

harmed while attending school

Aug.-Sep. 2000 17% 17% 17% 22%

Oct. 2001 13 18 18 23

Oct. 2002 14 15 21 20

Oct. 2003 17 18 16 23

Oct. 2004 14 16 20 24

Oct. 2005 14 15 18 24

Oct. 2006 20 20 18 17

Oct. 2007 16 18 18 20

Oct. 2008 15 16 20 22

Oct. 2009 14 17 19 22

Being attacked while driving your car

Aug.-Sep. 2000 9% 20% 29% 40%

Oct. 2001 6 15 29 46

Oct. 2003 8 18 32 38

Oct. 2004 7 16 32 42

Oct. 2005 6 16 31 44

Oct. 2006 9 17 34 38

Oct. 2007 7 17 36 37

Oct. 2008 6 15 35 42

Oct. 2009 7 16 34 41

Being the victim of a hate crime

Aug.-Sep. 2000 6% 10% 26% 56%

Oct. 2001 5 8 26 60

Oct. 2003 5 12 29 54

Oct. 2004 6 10 24 59

Oct. 2005 6 11 24 58

77

Oct. 2006 7 11 29 52

Oct. 2007 6 12 27 55

Oct. 2008 7 9 29 55

Oct. 2009 5 12 28 54

Being a victim of terrorism

Oct. 2001 21% 26% 28% 25%

Oct. 2002 14 26 28 31

Oct. 2003 13 25 30 32

Oct. 2004 12 27 30 31

Oct. 2005 14 24 30 32

Oct. 2006 19 25 28 28

Oct. 2007 13 23 33 30

Oct. 2008 10 21 33 36

Oct. 2009 14 21 33 31

How worried are you that you or someone in your family will become a victim of terrorism – very worried, somewhat

worried, not too worried, or not worried at all?


Worried Worried Worried Worried

Sep. 2001* Gallup/CNN/USA Today 23% 35% 24% 16%

Sep. 2001* Gallup/CNN/USA Today 18 33 35 13

Sep. 2001* Gallup/CNN/USA Today 14 35 32 18

Oct. 2001* Gallup/CNN/USA Today 24 35 27 14



Nov. 2001 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 11 28 34 26

Nov. 2001 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 27 34 30

Feb. 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 27 39 25

Mar. 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 12 33 32 23

Apr. 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 27 39 25

May 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 9 31 37 22

Sep. 2002 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 30 37 25

Jan. 2003 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 31 36 25


Feb 2003 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 28 33 31

Mar. 2003 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 30 38 24

Apr. 2003 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 26 39 26

Jul. 2003 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 6 24 38 32

Aug. 2003 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 11 30 33 26

Dec. 2003 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 9 28 38 25



Aug. 2004 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 26 36 30

Sept. 2004 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 11 32 36 21

Oct. 2004 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 13 34 33 20



Jun. 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 8 30 36 26

Jul. 2005 Gallup/CNN/USA Today 14 33 30 23



Aug. 2006 CNN/ORC 8 28 36 29

Nov. 2006 CNN/ORC 9 31 33 27

Jun. 2007 Gallup/USA Today 12 32 33 22

Jul. 2007 Gallup/USA Today 13 34 31 21

Aug. 2007 CNN/ORC 12 30 33 24

Oct. 2007 Gallup/USA Today 13 23 33 30

Jun. 2008 CNN/ORC 9 29 32 31

Sep.2008 Gallup/USA Today 9 29 38 24

Jun. 2009 Gallup/USA Today 8 28 30 34

78

Oct. 2009 CNN/ORC 10 26 36 28

Dec. 2009 Gallup/USA Today 12 27 34 28

Jan. 2010 Gallup/USA Today 9 33 35 22

Jan. 2010 CNN/ORC 9 25 35 30

79

The data in this report come from the archive of public opinion polls at AEI and from The Roper Center‘s archive at

the University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut. The Roper Center is the oldest and largest archive of public

opinion data in the world. To learn more about the Roper Center, visit http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/.

Compiled by Karlyn Bowman, Senior Fellow

Andrew Rugg, Research Assistant

For comments or questions

contact Karlyn Bowman at [email protected] or Andrew Rugg at [email protected]

For a full listing of AEI‘s Public Opinion Studies, please see

http://www.aei.org/raBasicPages/14?page=AEI%20Studies%20in%20Public%20Opinion

Other Recent AEI Public Opinion Studies:

Public Opinion Study on Abortion

Are Attitudes Changing About the Proper

Role of the Federal Government?

Public Opinion on the War with Iraq

Taking Stock of Business

Attitudes Toward the Environment and

Global Warming

Public Opinion on Taxes

America and the War on Terrorism

Polls on NAFTA and Free Trade

Attitudes toward the Federal Government

Attitudes about Homosexuality and Gay

Marriage

Voting by Key Groups in Presidential and

House Elections, 1952-2006

Women's Attitudes: Some Poll-Based

Observations

Polls on Patriotism and Military Service

Public Opinion on the Supreme Court

Attitudes about Social Security Reform

Polls on Patriotism and Military Service

The Politics of Compassion

The Nostalgia Impulse

Attitudes toward Divided Government

Attitudes about Welfare Reform

Also from AEI’s Political Corner:

Political Report!

The American Enterprise Institute‘s Political Report is a monthly

publication that examines current trends in public opinion and

political developments. This easy-to-read report summarizes

surveys from major pollsters on topics of current interest.

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Documents

Economic Security in America: AEI Public Opinion Study, August 2010