Some Small Glimmers of Optimism by Americans on the Economy

NEW YORK, Nov. 30, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- The latest Harris Poll on the economy finds some small glimmers of optimism on the overall economy; less on employment. Three in ten Americans (31%) give President Obama positive ratings on his handling of the economy while 69% give him negative ratings. Last month, one-quarter of U.S. adults (27%) gave the President positive marks while 73% gave him negative ratings on the economy.

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These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,151 adults surveyed online between November 8 and 15, 2010 by Harris Interactive.

Other interesting findings include:

• Looking ahead to the coming year, one-third of Americans (34%) expect the economy to improve while 41% say it will stay the same and one-quarter (25%) believe it will get worse. In October, three in ten U.S. adults both believed the economy would improve in the coming year (30%) and get worse (30%) while four in ten (40%) thought it would stay the same;
• When it comes to the state of the job market, just one in ten Americans (11%) believe the job market in their region of the country is good while 23% say it is neither good nor bad and two-thirds (66%) believe it is bad. Last month, 13% of U.S. adults thought the job market was good while 66% thought it was bad;
• Different regions of the country have slightly different views on the job market. Things seem "best" in the South where 14% say the job market is good and 62% believe it is bad. In the Midwest, 12% say it is good, but 70% believe the job market is bad;
• There is a sense of optimism looking forward for the job market as three in ten (30%) believe the job market will be better over the next six months, up from 23% who said this in October. Half of Americans (50%) say the job market will stay the same and 21% believe it will get worse over the next six months;
• One in ten Americans (10%) believe the job market has already started growing, up from 7% who said this in October, while 11% say it will start growing in the next 6 months. One in five U.S. adults (22%) believe the job market will start growing between 6 and 12 months from now but two in five (41%) say it will not be for another year or longer; and,
• One question is if the government even has the power to create jobs—almost two-thirds of Americans (65%) say it does while one-quarter (27%) disagrees. Democrats are more likely than both Independents and Republicans to agree that the government has the power to create jobs (77% vs. 62% and 52%).

So What?

While the signs of optimism are slight, they are detectable when Americans discuss the economy. Some of this may be due to the general sense of optimism many have during the holiday season, or possibly due to the hope that the results of the recent election will produce the change that the public demands. Regardless of the reason, the fact is the optimism will not last if there is nothing to sustain it. President Obama and the new Republican leaders in the House of Representatives will need to work together to not only show people they can, but also to produce results. Otherwise, the pessimism will definitely return.

TABLE 1

PRESIDENT OBAMA'S JOB RATING ON THE ECONOMY - TREND

"Now, turning to something different, how would you rate the overall job that President Barack Obama is doing on the economy?"

Base: All adults

TABLE 2

EXPECTATIONS FOR THE ECONOMY IN THE COMING YEAR - TREND

"In the coming year, do you expect the economy to…?"

Base: All adults

TABLE 3

RATING OF CURRENT JOB MARKET - TREND

"How would you rate the current job market of your region of the nation?"

Base:  All adults

TABLE 4

 RATING OF CURRENT JOB MARKET IN YOUR REGION – BY REGION

"How would you rate the current job market of your region of the nation?"

Base:  All adults

TABLE 5

EXPECTATIONS FOR JOB MARKET IN SIX MONTHS – TREND

"How do you think that the job market in your region of the nation will change over the next 6 months?"

Base:  All adults

TABLE 6

WHEN WILL JOB MARKET IMPROVE - TREND

"When do you believe the job market will start to improve?"

Base:  All adults

TABLE 7

CAN GOVERNMENT CREATE JOBS?

"Do you agree or disagree that the government has the power to create jobs?"

Base:  All adults

Methodology

This Harris Poll was conducted online within the United States between November 8 to 15, 2010 among 2,151 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words "margin of error" as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in the Harris Interactive panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

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

J38848

Q705, 710, 715, 720, 725, 730

The Harris Poll^® #147, November 30, 2010

By Regina A. Corso, SVP, Harris Poll, Public Relations and Youth Research, Harris Interactive

About Harris Interactive

Harris Interactive is one of the world's leading custom market research firms, leveraging research, technology, and business acumen to transform relevant insight into actionable foresight. Known widely for the Harris Poll and for pioneering innovative research methodologies, Harris offers expertise in a wide range of industries including healthcare, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer package goods. Serving clients in over 215 countries and territories through our North American, European, and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms, Harris specializes in delivering research solutions that help us – and our clients – stay ahead of what's next. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.

SOURCE Harris Interactive

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