As has long been the case, American values differ from those of Western Europeans in many important ways. Most notably, a new survey by the Pew Research Center’s Global Attitudes Project finds that Americans are more individualistic and are less supportive of a strong safety net than are the publics of Spain, Britain, France and Germany.

Americans also are somewhat more inclined than Western Europeans to say that it is sometimes necessary to use military force to maintain order in the world. Moreover, Americans more often than their Western European allies believe that obtaining UN approval before their country uses military force would make it too difficult to deal with an international threat. And Americans are less inclined than the Western Europeans, with the exception of the French, to help other nations.

These differences between Americans and Western Europeans echo findings from previous surveys conducted by the Pew Research Center. However, the current polling shows the American public is coming closer to Europeans in not seeing their culture as superior to that of other nations.

Read the full report for more information on comparative views on the following subjects:

• Use of military force
• Isolationism vs. engagement
• Cultural superiority
• Individualism and the role of the state
• Importance of religion
• Religious vs. national identity
• Homosexuality

In the decade since the Sept. 11 attacks, America’s global image has followed a remarkable, if now familiar, trajectory. Initially, there was a global outpouring of sympathy for the United States, but it was short-lived. As the Bush Administration pivoted from Afghanistan to Iraq, and as American anti-terrorism efforts expanded, many around the world turned against the U.S. Widespread anti-Americanism remained a key feature of international public opinion throughout the Bush years, before fading significantly following the election of Barack Obama.

However, at the same time as ratings for the U.S. were waning and waxing, other changes in perceptions of America and its role in the world were also evident. In particular, views about American power have changed over the course of the decade, as economic issues have trumped security concerns. Early in the post-Sept. 11 era, the projection of American military strength led to pervasive fears of an unleashed, and unchecked, hyperpower. More recently, however, the global financial crisis has turned the spotlight to America’s declining economic prowess. Once the fearsome colossus, many now see the financially-strapped U.S. as a great power in decline.

Read the full analysis by Richard Wike, Associate Director of the Pew Global Attitudes Project at pewglobal.org

In most regions of the world, opinion of the United States continues to be more favorable than it was in the Bush years, but U.S. image now faces a new challenge: doubts about America’s superpower status. In 15 of 22 nations, the balance of opinion is that China either will replace or already has replaced the United States as the world’s leading superpower. This view is especially widespread in Western Europe, where at least six-in-ten in France (72%), Spain (67%), Britain (65%) and Germany (61%) see China overtaking the U.S.

Majorities in Pakistan, the Palestinian territories, Mexico and China itself also foresee China supplanting the U.S. as the world’s dominant power. In most countries for which there are trends, the view that China will overtake the U.S. has increased substantially over the past two years, including by 10 or more percentage points in Spain, France, Pakistan, Britain, Jordan, Israel, Poland and Germany. Among Americans, the percentage saying that China will eventually overshadow or has already overshadowed the U.S. has increased from 33% in 2009 to 46% in 2011.

At least some of this changed view of the global balance of power may reflect the fact that the U.S. is increasingly seen as trailing China economically. This is especially the case in Western Europe, where the percentage naming China as the top economic power has increased by double digits in Spain, Germany, Britain and France since 2009.

In other parts of the globe, fewer are convinced that China is the world’s leading economic power. Majorities or pluralities in Eastern Europe, Asia, and Latin America still name the U.S. as the world’s dominant economic power. In the Middle East, Palestinians and Israelis agree that America continues to sit atop the global economy, while in Jordan and Lebanon more see China in this role. Notably, by an almost 2-to-1 margin the Chinese still believe the U.S. is the world’s dominant economic power.

These are among the key findings from a survey by the Pew Research Center’s Global Attitudes Project, conducted March 18 to May 15.¹ The survey also finds that, in the U.S., France, Germany, Spain and Japan, those who see China as the world’s leading economic power believe this is a bad thing. By contrast, those who name the U.S. tend to think it is good that America is still the top global economy. In developing countries those who believe China has already overtaken the U.S. economically generally view this as a positive development. Meanwhile, in China, those who believe the U.S. is still the world’s leading economy tend to see this as a negative.

Compared with reaction to China’s economic rise, global opinion is more consistently negative when it comes to the prospect of China equaling the U.S. militarily. Besides the Chinese themselves, only in Pakistan, Jordan, the Palestinian territories and Kenya do majorities see an upside to China matching the U.S. in terms of military power. Meanwhile, the prevailing view in Japan and India is that it would not be in their country’s interest if China were to equal the U.S. militarily; majorities across Western and Eastern Europe, and in Turkey and Israel, share this view.

U.S. Image Largely Favorable

Despite the view in many countries that China either has or will surpass the U.S. as the leading superpower, opinion of America remains favorable, on balance. The median percentage offering a positive assessment of the U.S. is 60% among the 23 countries surveyed. The U.S. receives high marks in Western Europe, where at least six-in-ten in France, Spain, Germany and Britain rate the U.S. positively. Opinion of the U.S. is also consistently favorable across Eastern Europe, as well as in Japan, Kenya, Israel, Brazil and Mexico.

As in years past, U.S. image continues to suffer among predominantly Muslim countries, with the exception of Indonesia, where a majority expresses positive views of the U.S. One-in-five or fewer in Egypt, the Palestinian territories, Jordan, Pakistan and Turkey view America favorably. In Lebanon, opinion of the U.S. is split, reflecting a religious and sectarian divide; the country’s Shia community has overwhelmingly negative views of America, while Lebanese Sunnis and Christians are more positive.

Views of the U.S. in the Muslim world reflect, at least in part, opposition to the war in Afghanistan and U.S. efforts to fight terrorism. Moreover, few in predominantly Muslim countries say the U.S. takes a multilateral approach to foreign policy. Fewer than a quarter in Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Pakistan and Turkey say the U.S. takes the interests of countries like theirs into account when making foreign policy decisions.

In Western Europe, fewer than half in Britain (40%), France (32%) and Spain (19%) say the U.S. takes the interests of other countries into account when making foreign policy decisions. Only in Germany does a majority feel otherwise. In Eastern Europe, a third or less believe America acts multilaterally.

Interestingly, a majority of Chinese (57%) credit America with considering the interests of other nations, although last year more (76%) held this view. Elsewhere, majorities in Israel, India, Japan, Brazil and Kenya describe the U.S. as multilateral in its approach to foreign policy.

Majorities or pluralities in nearly every country surveyed say the U.S. and NATO should remove their troops from Afghanistan as soon as possible; the only exceptions are Spain, Israel, India, Japan and Kenya, where more say troops should remain in that country until the situation is stabilized than say they should be removed. However, in many parts of the world, there is strong support for the broader, American-led effort to combat terrorism. About seven-in-ten in France (71%), two-thirds in Germany, 59% in Britain and 58% in Spain back U.S. anti-terrorism efforts. Majorities in Eastern Europe also support the U.S.-led fight against terrorism, as do most in Israel and Kenya.

U.S. Viewed More Favorably Than China

Across the nations surveyed, the U.S. generally receives more favorable marks than China: the median percentage rating China favorably is 52%, eight points lower than the median percentage offering a positive assessment of the U.S.

However, the number of people expressing positive views of China has grown in a number of countries, including the four Western European countries surveyed. China’s image has also improved in Indonesia, Japan, Egypt and Poland. Opinion of China has worsened substantially in only two countries surveyed: Kenya (down 15 percentage points from last year) and Jordan (9 points lower than in 2010).

U.S. image, meanwhile, has declined in most countries for which there are trends. Compared with last year, favorable views of America are lower in Kenya (11 percentage points), Jordan (8 points), Turkey (7 points), Indonesia (5 points), Pakistan (5 points), Mexico (4 points), Poland (4 points) and Britain (4 points). However, the largest downward shift has occurred in China, where the number expressing a positive view of the U.S. has fallen 14 points – from 58% in 2010 to 44% today.

In Japan, by contrast, opinion of the U.S. has improved dramatically. A year ago, roughly two-thirds (66%) held a favorable view of America; today, more than eight-in-ten (85%) assess the U.S. favorably. This huge boost in U.S. image is attributable in part to America’s role in helping Japan respond to the devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck the island nation’s northeast coast in March. A majority (57%) of Japanese say the U.S. has done a great deal to assist their country in responding to this dual disaster.

Read the full report, including views abroad of President Obama, at pewglobal.org where more information can be found on the Pew Global Attitudes Project. Read an analysis of the study in the Wall Street Journal by Pew Research Center president Andrew Kohut. (Registration may be required).

_{1. Throughout this report results for Pakistan are from interviews conducted in May 2011, following the death of Osama bin Laden. In all other countries, interviews were concluded in April 2011. A survey was also conducted in Pakistan prior to bin Laden’s death. For more information, see “”U.S. Image in Pakistan Falls No Further Following bin Laden Killing,” June 21, 2011.}

Overview

As the global economy begins to rebound from the great recession, people around the world remain deeply concerned with the way things are going in their countries. Less than a third of the publics in most nations say they are satisfied with national conditions, as overwhelming numbers say their economies are in bad shape. And just about everywhere, governments are faulted for the way they are dealing with the economy.

Yet in most countries, especially in wealthier nations, President Barack Obama gets an enthusiastic thumbs up for the way he has handled the world economic crisis. The notable exception is the United States itself, where as many disapprove of their president’s approach to the global recession as approve.

This pattern is indicative of the broader picture of global opinion in 2010. President Barack Obama remains popular in most parts of the world, although his job approval rating in the U.S. has declined sharply since he first took office.

In turn, opinions of the U.S., which improved markedly in 2009 in response to Obama’s new presidency, also have remained far more positive than they were for much of George W. Bush’s tenure.

Ratings of America are overwhelmingly favorable in Western Europe. For example, 73% in France and 63% in Germany say they have a favorable view of the U.S. Moreover, ratings of America have improved sharply in Russia (57%), up 13 percentage points since 2009, in China (58%), up 11 points, and in Japan (66%), up 7 points. Opinions are also highly positive in other nations around the world including South Korea (79%), Poland (74%) and Brazil (62%).

The U.S. continues to receive positive marks in India, where 66% express a favorable opinion, although this is down from last year when 76% held this view. America’s overall image has also slipped slightly in Indonesia, although 59% still give the U.S. a positive rating in the world’s largest predominantly Muslim nation.

Publics of other largely Muslim countries continue to hold overwhelmingly negative views of the U.S. In both Turkey and Pakistan — where ratings for the U.S. have been consistently low in recent years — only 17% hold a positive opinion. Indeed, the new poll finds opinion of the U.S. slipping in some Muslim countries where opinion had edged up in 2009. In Egypt, America’s favorability rating dropped from 27% to 17% — the lowest percentage observed in any of the Pew Global Attitudes surveys conducted in that country since 2006.

Closer to home, a special follow-up poll found America’s favorable rating tumbling in Mexico in response to Arizona’s enactment of a law aimed at dealing with illegal immigration by giving police increased powers to stop and detain people who are suspected of being in the country illegally.

Only 44% of Mexicans gave the U.S. a favorable rating following the signing of the bill, compared with 62% who did so before the bill passed.

The new survey by the Pew Research Center’s Global Attitudes Project, conducted April 7 to May 8, also finds that overall opinion of Barack Obama remains broadly positive in most non-Muslim nations. In these countries, the national median confidence in Obama to do the right thing in world affairs is 71%, and overall approval of his policies is 64%. In particular, huge percentages in Germany (88%), France (84%), Spain (76%) and Britain (64%) say they back the president’s policies. Similarly in the two African nations polled Obama gets high marks — 89% of Kenyans and 74% of Nigerians approve of his international policies.

Muslims Grow Disillusioned About Obama

Among Muslim publics — except in Indonesia where Obama lived for several years as a child — the modest levels of confidence and approval observed in 2009 have slipped markedly. In Egypt the percentage of Muslims expressing confidence in Obama fell from 41% to 31% and in Turkey from 33% to 23%.

Last year only 13% of Pakistani Muslims expressed confidence in Obama, but this year even fewer (8%) hold this view. And while views of Obama are still more positive than were attitudes toward President Bush among most Muslim publics, significant percentages continue to worry that the U.S. could become a military threat to their country.

Obamamania Tempers

In countries outside of the Muslim world, where the president’s ratings remain generally positive, his standing is not quite as high in 2010 as it was a year ago. The new poll found fewer in many Asian and Latin American countries saying they have confidence in Obama and approve of his policies generally, and even in Europe the large majorities responding positively to his foreign policy are not quite as large as they were in 2009.

Besides declines in overall confidence in some countries, strong endorsement of Obama eroded in countries where he remains broadly popular. Notably, in Britain, France, Germany and Japan, fewer this year say they have a lot of confidence in Obama’s judgment regarding world affairs, while more say some confidence; still there was no increase in the percentage expressing no confidence in Obama in these countries.

Even though Obama has called the Arizona immigration law “misdirected,” it is nonetheless having a negative impact on views of him in Mexico. Prior to the law’s passage, 47% of Mexicans had confidence in Obama’s international leadership, but after passage only 36% held this view. More specifically, 54% of Mexicans say they disapprove of the way Barack Obama is dealing with the new law, and as many as 75% say that about Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer.

Disagreeing While Not Disapproving

Perhaps more significant than Obama’s small declines in ratings is that a generally positive view of him and the U.S. coexists with significant concerns about the American approach to world affairs and some key policies.

This was not the case in the global surveys taken during President Bush’s terms in office, when specific criticism ran hand in hand with anti-American and anti-Bush sentiment.

Then, as now, one of the most frequent criticisms of U.S. foreign policy is that in its formulation it does not take into account the interests of other countries. This is the prevailing point of view in 15 of 21 countries outside of the U.S. Somewhat fewer people in most countries level this charge than did so during the Bush era. Currently, the median number saying that the U.S. acts unilaterally is 63%; in 2007 a median of 67% expressed that view.

Mixed Reactions to American Policies

In contrast to the Bush years, there is substantial majority support for U.S. anti-terrorism efforts in Britain, France, Spain and Germany. The new poll also found major increases in support of the American efforts in two countries that have been struggling with terrorism of late: Indonesia and Russia, where roughly seven-in-ten say they back the U.S. in this regard. Publics in India, Brazil, Kenya and Nigeria also express strong support for U.S.-led efforts to combat terrorism. However, opposition to these policies is particularly strong in most Muslim countries, and it is also substantial in many nations where the U.S. is fairly well-regarded, including Japan and South Korea.

The war in Afghanistan remains largely unpopular. In Germany, which has the third largest contingent of allied troops in Afghanistan, nearly six-in-ten people favor withdrawal from that country. Opinions are more divided in NATO allies Britain, France and Poland. In most other countries surveyed, majorities or pluralities also oppose the NATO effort.

Global opinion of Barack Obama’s dealing with world trouble spots parallels general opinion of U.S. policies in these areas. With regard to Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran, the polling found as many countries approving as disapproving of his handling of these issues. However, the American president gets his worst ratings for dealing with another world problem for which the U.S. is often criticized: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Of 22 nations surveyed including the U.S., in only three nations do majorities approve of Obama’s handling of the dispute: France, Nigeria and Kenya.

In sharp contrast to criticisms and mixed reviews of Obama’s handling of geo-political problems, Obama not only gets good grades for the way he has handled the world economic crisis, but also for dealing with climate change. In most countries, people approve of Obama’s climate change efforts. France is a notable exception, with a 52%-majority disapproving, despite the country’s approval of his other policies.

Modest Economic Optimism

Global publics are mostly glum about the way things are going in their countries. And, despite signs of economic recovery in many parts of the world, people nearly everywhere, with the notable exception of China, India and Brazil, complain that their national economy is doing poorly. Moreover, there is little optimism about the economic future. And in the wake of Europe’s sovereign debt crisis, more Europeans say integration has hurt their economies, although overall ratings for the EU remain favorable.

In 20 of 22 countries surveyed, less than half the population is satisfied with the direction of the country, including only 30% of Americans. Lebanese (11%) are the least satisfied. Only in China does an overwhelming portion of the population (87%) express satisfaction with national conditions. Overall, assessments are up in nine countries and down in only five.

Few people are happy with the current state of their national economy. In only four countries: China (91%), Brazil (62%), India (57%) and Poland (53%) do publics say economic conditions are good. All four of these nations weathered the global recession relatively well. Economic gloom is most widespread in Japan, France, Spain and Lebanon, where roughly one-in-eight believes the economy is doing well. But there are signs that an economic recovery may be taking hold. In ten of the countries surveyed, people’s assessment of the economy improved significantly from 2009 to 2010. Only in four nations did it recede.

Still, global publics are taking a wait-and-see attitude about the economic future. In only seven of 22 societies does a majority of those surveyed think economic conditions will improve over the next year. The economic bulls in the survey are the Chinese (87%), Nigerians (76%) and Brazilians (75%). The Japanese (14%) are the most bearish.

Disgruntled people generally fault their government for their country’s economic troubles, although many also blame banks and themselves; few blame the U.S. The most satisfied with their government’s economic performance are also those who have experienced some of the strongest growth in the last year. Roughly nine-in-ten Chinese (91%) say Beijing is doing a good job. Indians (85%) and Brazilians (76%) are also quite pleased with their government’s economic management.

Despite some of the worst recent economic conditions since the Depression, support for free markets remains strong, with some of the most tepid backing in Argentina (40%) and Japan (43%). And people continue to favor trade and globalization, with the weakest — but still majority — support in Turkey (64%) and the U.S. (66%).

China Ascendant

A growing number of people around the globe see China’s economy as the most powerful in the world. Looking at the 20 countries surveyed in each of the last three years, China’s economic star keeps rising. The median number naming China as the world’s leading economy has risen from 20% to 31%. Meanwhile, the percentage naming the U.S. has dropped from 50% to 43%. The publics of the countries surveyed vary in their views of China’s growing economic clout. In the West, opinion is divided in Britain, while majorities in Germany, France and Spain and a plurality in the U.S. see China’s economic strength as a bad thing for their country.

The Pakistanis (79%), Indonesians (61%) and Japanese (61%) regard China’s rising economic power as a positive development. Indians and to a lesser extent South Koreans do not. Latin American, Middle Eastern and African publics see their countries benefiting from China’s economic growth. The Turks (18%) overwhelmingly see it the other way.

China is clearly the most self-satisfied country in the survey. Nine-in-ten Chinese are happy with the direction of their country (87%), feel good about the current state of their economy (91%) and are optimistic about China’s economic future (87%). Moreover, about three-in-four Chinese (76%) think the U.S. takes into account Chinese interests when it makes foreign policy.

Europeans on Europe

In the midst of growing economic concerns in Europe, there is little indication of a broad public backlash against the European Union. Large majorities in Poland, Spain, France and Germany and nearly half in Britain remain supportive of the Brussels-based institution. And European publics continue to have a positive view of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is well-regarded in Britain, Spain and France. In fact, as in the past, Merkel gets better ratings in France than in Germany itself for her leadership in world affairs. And French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s ratings are, if anything, somewhat better in Germany than in France. The French leader is less well-regarded in Britain and Spain, but that has been so in previous surveys.

However, Europeans are divided in their views about major economic issues. They are supportive of the euro, but disagree about the merits of European economic integration and the bailing-out of EU member countries in trouble. Opinion of Greece, the recipient of EU financial aid, is on balance positive in Britain and France. But, a majority of Germans express an unfavorable opinion of it.

At a time when NATO is developing a new strategic concept, majorities in major Europeans nations surveyed continue to hold a favorable view of it, as do most Americans. However, many fewer Germans express a positive assessment of it currently (57%) than did so in 2009 (73%). Germans who express opposition to the NATO effort in Afghanistan are far less likely to hold positive views of this defense organization (45%) than do those who back it (76%). This is also true, but to a lesser extent, in the other EU countries surveyed as well as in the U.S.

Limited Support for Extremism

Support for terrorism remains low among the Muslim publics surveyed. Many fewer Muslims in 2010 than in the middle of the past decade say that suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilians are justified to defend Islam from its enemies. However, the new poll does show a modest increase over the past year in support for suicide bombing being often or sometimes justifiable, with a rise in Egypt from 15% to 20% and in Jordan from 12% to 20%. Still, these are below the levels of support observed mid-decade.

Overall attitudes toward Osama bin Laden have followed a similar trend line among the Muslim publics surveyed by the Pew Global Attitudes Project. Views of the al Qaeda leader have been far more negative in recent years than they were mid-decade. And the poll shows considerably less positive regard for him in Jordan than was apparent in 2009. Support for bin Laden has also declined among Nigerian Muslims, although 48% still express confidence in the al Qaeda leader.

Iran and Its Nuclear Weapons Program

Among the nations surveyed, there is widespread opposition to Iran acquiring nuclear weapons and considerable support for tougher economic sanctions against the Islamic Republic. For instance, more than three-quarters of those who oppose the Iranian nuclear program in Spain (79%), Britain (78%), Germany (77%) and France (76%), as well as 67% in Russia and 58% in China, approve of tougher sanctions. Many are also willing to consider using military force to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear capabilities, including about half of those who oppose Iran’s program in Poland, Germany, Spain and Britain, and roughly six-in-ten in France.

Still, the Pew Global Attitudes survey foreshadows potential tension between the U.S. and other leading powers over what to do about the Iranian nuclear program. Among those who oppose Tehran acquiring nuclear weapons, Americans are more likely than Europeans, Japanese, Chinese, Indians or Russians to approve of economic sanctions against Iran and to support taking military action to stop Tehran from acquiring nuclear armaments.

Pakistan is the only country in which a majority (58%) favors Iran acquiring nuclear weapons. Elsewhere among largely Muslim nations, public opinion on balance opposes a nuclear-armed Iran, although significant numbers of Jordanians (39%) and Lebanese (34%) do want Iran to have such capabilities. In predominantly Muslim countries, those who oppose Iranian nuclear weapons tend to favor tougher economic sanctions, and although fewer support using the military to prevent the Islamic Republic from developing these weapons, majorities or pluralities in four of the six countries surveyed favor this option.

Views on Climate Change

As in 2009, the new poll found substantial majorities of the publics in most countries seeing global climate change as a serious problem. The intensity of concern about this issue is less evident in the U.S., China, Russia, Britain and France than it is among the publics of other major carbon-emitting nations, such as Germany, India, Japan and South Korea.

The publics of the 22 nations surveyed are more divided about paying increased prices to combat climate change. Willingness to do so is nearly universal in China and clear majorities in India, South Korea, Japan, Turkey and Germany also favor consumers paying higher bills. Most people express opposition in the U.S., France, Russia and many of the less affluent countries surveyed, while views are more mixed in Britain, Spain and Brazil.

Also of Note:

• Somewhat more Americans than in 2005 (35% vs. 26%) think the U.S. is well-liked around the world. However, fully 60% think the U.S. is generally disliked. As in 2005, only Americans and Turks are more likely to say their country is disliked than to say it is liked.
• Americans are no more isolationist than Europeans. Asked whether their country should deal with its own problems and let others take care of themselves, 46% of Americans agree, as do 44% of Germans and 49% of British. The French are the most isolationist; 65% oppose helping other nations cope with their challenges.
• But Americans are among the least supportive of international trade among the 22 nations surveyed; nevertheless 66% think it is good for their country.
• While most Europeans and Japanese think Americans are too religious, people in the rest of the world — in 18 of 22 countries — think Americans are not religious enough. This includes the U.S., where 64% say their country should be more religious. Criticism of American secularism is particularly strong in the three Arab nations surveyed.
• Confidence in Russian President Dmitri Medvedev is on the rise, with his assessment up in all five EU member nations surveyed. The strongest backing is in Germany (50%) and the greatest improvement in Poland, where confidence in Medvedev has more than doubled in the last year, to 36%.

Continue reading the full report and explore global public opinion with interactive graphics in our updated database at pewglobal.org.

Also, watch a press conference featuring Pew Research Center President Andrew Kohut, former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright and by former Sen. John C. Danforth presenting this year’s findings at the National Press Club.

As in much of the world, America’s image has bounced back in Canada over the last year. Positive ratings for the United States have become more common, and President Barack Obama receives considerably higher marks than George W. Bush did when he was in the White House. Even so, as Obama prepares to meet with visiting Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, many Canadians say that the U.S. economy is having a negative impact on their country, and many disagree with Obama on one of his top foreign policy priorities: the war in Afghanistan.

U.S. Image Up in Canada

During the years of the Bush presidency, America’s image never grew quite as negative in Canada as it did in much of Western Europe, but it nonetheless declined substantially. In 2002, 72% of Canadians expressed a positive opinion of the U.S.; by 2007 only 55% held this view.

However, the most recent Pew Global Attitudes survey, conducted in May and June of this year, finds that 68% of Canadians now have a favorable view of the U.S., while just 28% express an unfavorable opinion.

Ratings for the U.S. are slightly less positive among younger Canadians — 58% of those ages 18-29 have a positive view, compared with 69% of 30-49 year-olds and 70% of those ages 50 and older. Residents of Quebec (56% favorable) and British Columbia (57%) also tend to give slightly less positive ratings than those from other regions.

Obviously, much of the change in Canada and elsewhere is tied to the new American administration. Nearly nine-in-ten (88%) Canadians say they have confidence in Barack Obama to do the right thing regarding world affairs. More than three-quarters (78%) say they generally approve of his international policies. Attitudes toward former President George W. Bush were quite different — in 2007, only 28% had confidence in Bush to do the right thing.

Concerns About Afghanistan, America’s Economic Impact

While Obama and his overall foreign policy are very popular, his approach to Afghanistan, where nearly 3,000 Canadian troops are currently deployed, is not. Half of Canadians say U.S. and NATO forces should withdraw as soon as possible, while just 43% believe troops should remain until the situation has stabilized. And most (55%) say they disapprove of Obama’s decision earlier this year to send additional troops to Afghanistan; only 42% approve.

Canadians are somewhat less likely than publics in some other key NATO allies to say troops should stay in Afghanistan — 50% in France, 48% in Germany and 46% in Britain think troops should stay in Afghanistan until it is more stable. When the poll was conducted in May and June, 57% of Americans wanted troops to remain, although a recent ABC News poll, conducted Aug. 13-17, suggests American support for the war is declining.

There are clear differences on this issue among supporters of the two major Canadian political parties. A majority (56%) of those who identify with Prime Minister Harper’s Conservative Party say the U.S. and NATO should keep troops in Afghanistan, compared with just 44% of those who identify with the opposition Liberal Party.

There is also a sizeable gender gap on this question, with men (49%) more likely than women (38%) to think troops should remain.

Another challenge for Obama and American policy toward Canada is the way Canadians currently assess the economic influence of their neighbor to the south. Nearly eight-in-ten (78%) say that right now the U.S. economy is having a negative impact on Canada’s economy. Of the 24 nations outside of the U.S. included in the Pew Global Attitudes survey, Canadians are the most likely to say the U.S. economy has had a negative impact on their country. Only 12% of Canadians think the U.S. is having a positive influence.

Many Canadians also believe the U.S. is in relative economic decline. Indeed, they are about as likely to identify China as the world’s leading economic power (37%) as they are to name the U.S. (35%). And just over half believe China either will replace (44%) or has already replaced (8%) the U.S. as the world’s leading superpower.

The planet is a happier place these days, at least in many parts of the world where incomes are low and life is tough … but economies are improving. In particular, as economic growth has surged in much of Latin America, East Europe and Asia over the past five years, people are expressing greater satisfaction with their personal lives, family incomes and national conditions. The picture is considerably different in most advanced nations, where per capita GDP gains have been less robust and citizen satisfaction has changed little since 2002.

The Pew Global Attitudes Project’s 47-nation survey finds that measures of personal and economic satisfaction remain modest in the developing world when compared with measures for advanced nations, but this gap has narrowed. The increasing contentment in developing nations is clearly correlated with sizable increases in per capita gross domestic product that, in most cases, far outpaced the rate of growth prior to 2002.¹

Publics in Latin America and Eastern Europe – where per capita GDP has risen markedly in recent years – rate their lives and national conditions far more favorably than they did in Pew’s 2002 wave of interviewing. The same is true in China and India, both of which have experienced sizable gains in real income, and where publics are substantially happier today. The pattern is less pronounced, however, elsewhere in Asia. And in sub-Saharan Africa, where per capita GDP has increased in many nations, overall satisfaction measures are up modestly, at best.

In contrast, levels of personal contentment and satisfaction with annual incomes have been much more stable in North America, Western Europe and Japan, where income growth has been less impressive. Also, unlike in the developing world, satisfaction with national conditions is flat or has declined in most advanced nations where trends are available.

In addition to examining how people around the world view their own lives, national conditions, and national and international institutions, the survey also provides a detailed look at specific trends within different regions of the world. Most notably, the survey finds large and growing numbers of Muslims in the Middle East and elsewhere rejecting Islamic extremism.

The percentage of Muslims saying that suicide bombing is justified in the defense of Islam has declined dramatically over the past five years in five of eight countries where trends are available. In Lebanon, for example, just 34% of Muslims say suicide bombings in the defense of Islam are often or sometimes justified; in 2002, 74% expressed this view. However, Palestinians stand out for their broad acceptance of suicide bombing. Seven-in-ten-Palestinians say this tactic is at least sometimes justified.

The regional analyses also shed light on other major issues. For instance, there is broad support for free-market economic policies across Latin America, despite the election in the past decade of leftist leaders such as Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez. In Africa, poverty and widespread deprivation have not diminished optimism about the future. And Muslim publics, particularly those in closest proximity to Iraq, express significant concern that the Sunni-Shia divide driving violence in that country is turning into a broader problem worldwide.

Globally, Pew’s 47-nation survey shows a clear linkage between real economic growth and views of national conditions. An analysis of changes between 2002 and 2007 finds a correlation between the percentage growth in per capita GDP and the share of a nation’s citizens who are satisfied with the way things are going in their country, and the proportion giving positive overall economic ratings.

GDP growth also is tied to rising levels of personal satisfaction. The number of people who report making personal progress in their lives is up substantially from 2002 in most countries with rapidly growing economies, and is flat or down in many countries where per capita GDP has been relatively stagnant. The same is generally true with measures of overall quality of life and satisfaction with household income. But changes in GDP are not related to all aspects of people’s lives. Other measures of personal contentment, such as job satisfaction or happiness with family life, show no correlation with economic growth.

In spite of the economic gains across a broad swath of developing and emerging economies, citizens of rich countries remain far happier and more satisfied than those in poorer nations. In addition, large percentages in many developing countries – even in some where the gains in contentment have been the greatest – report they have not been able to afford food, clothing, and medical care over the past 12 months.

Among the populations of the seven Latin American nations surveyed, no fewer than a quarter (in Argentina) and as many as six-in-ten (in Bolivia and Peru) say there have been times in the past year when they have been unable to afford food. These figures are comparable in the 10 countries surveyed in Africa; in developing countries throughout Asia and the Middle East; as well as in most of the East European nations surveyed. This compares with 16% in the United States, and even fewer in Canada, Japan, and most of Western Europe.

Rising per capita GDP appears to have had only a modest impact in Africa compared with other parts of the developing world. In absolute terms, Africans remain relatively unhappy with their lives and living conditions. This is the case even in countries like Nigeria, where per capita GDP has increased by 26% over the past five years. Only about a third of Nigerians express a high level of satisfaction with their lives, which is not significantly different from 2002.

Yet as was the case in previous Global Attitudes surveys, more people in Africa than in the other regions surveyed express the view that their lives will be better five years from now. In addition, majorities in most African nations say that when children in their countries grow up they will be better off than people are today. The belief that life will be better for the next generation also is widespread in other poor and emerging countries – notably, 86% of Chinese respondents in the Pew survey look ahead to a better life for their country’s children.

Opinions about the prospects for the next generation are much more negative in many advanced countries. Fully 80% of the French say that when their country’s children grow up, they will be worse off than people are today. Smaller but substantial majorities in Germany, Japan, Italy, Great Britain, the United States and Canada also are pessimists regarding the next generation’s overall prospects.

While the new poll finds dramatic changes in many countries in how people view their lives and financial well-being, evaluations of work and family life have remained more or less unchanged. As in 2002, more people express satisfaction with their family lives than with their jobs or incomes. And as was the case five years ago, satisfaction with family life continues to be greater in advanced nations – especially in North America – than in most developing countries.

Dissatisfaction with family life is relatively high in several African countries, especially Tanzania and Uganda. In both countries, about as many people say they are dissatisfied with the family life as say they are satisfied – the only countries surveyed where this is the case.

For the most part, job satisfaction continues to be greater than satisfaction with family income, even though the latter has risen over the past five years. Among advanced nations, worker satisfaction is greatest in Sweden, the United States and Canada; more than four-in-ten in these countries say they are very satisfied with their jobs.

Among developing nations, workers in Kuwait and India voice the most contentment with their jobs. Job satisfaction is generally low in the African countries surveyed. In addition, 66% of Jordanian workers say they are dissatisfied with their jobs, the highest of any public surveyed.

Views of National Conditions, Governments

Trends in opinions about the course of one’s country are as closely correlated with changing economic fortunes as are people’s views of their own lives. In Latin America, citizens in Argentina, Venezuela and Bolivia express far greater satisfaction with national conditions than they did five years ago, when much of the region was mired in a severe financial crisis. And in Argentina, Venezuela and Peru, robust economic growth has been accompanied by a sharp rise in positive views of national governments.

In Western Europe, the publics in Sweden and Spain express broad satisfaction with national conditions, as well as with their governments and current leaders. In contrast, people in France and Italy, which have experienced little growth since 2002, are critical of their nation’s course and their governments. In Eastern Europe, the publics in Russia and Slovakia – where per capita GDP has shown impressive gains – are happier with the course of their country and express more satisfaction with national leaders than they did five years ago.

Among surveyed countries, China has achieved by far the greatest gains in per capita income; per capita GDP has increased 58% since 2002. The Chinese also express much more satisfaction with national conditions than they did in 2002 (83% now vs. 48% then). The Chinese also give near universal support for the national government – fully 89% say the national government has a very good or somewhat good influence on the way things are going in the country.²

The Japanese are more positive about their country’s government and leadership than in 2002, but they continue to be largely critical of their country’s course. In India, by contrast, more people are satisfied with the state of their country, though evaluations of the government and national leadership have remained fairly stable.

Turkey and Jordan have experienced strong economic growth since 2002; on balance, more people in these countries express positive views of their national governments than negative opinions. The Palestinians and Lebanese almost universally deplore the way things are going – just 5% of Palestinians and 6% of Lebanese express satisfaction with conditions – but they express a fair degree of support for their governments and leaders.

Africans tend to express dissatisfaction with national conditions but endorse their national governments. Nigerians are the exception in expressing divided opinions of their government and new leader, despite strong economic trends over the past five years.

While economic growth is linked with more favorable views of one’s national government, the survey points to several important exceptions to this pattern. For example, Great Britain and the United States have experienced fairly strong economic growth since 2002 when compared with other advanced countries, yet in both countries positive views of the government have declined significantly. And in the Czech Republic, the percent saying that the government is having a good influence on national conditions has fallen from 57% in 2002 to 36% in the new survey, despite robust growth in that country.

Dwindling Muslim Support for Terrorism

Even as many people around the world express more positive views of their lives and countries than they did five years ago, opinions about regional issues and concerns are a mix of good and bad news.

Among the most striking trends in predominantly Muslim nations is the continuing decline in the number saying that suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilians are justifiable in the defense of Islam. In Lebanon, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Indonesia, the proportion of Muslims who view suicide bombing and other attacks against civilians as being often or sometimes justified has declined by half or more over the past five years.

Wide majorities say such attacks are, at most, rarely acceptable. However, this is decidedly not the case in the Palestinian territories. Fully 70% of Palestinians believe that suicide bombings against civilians can be often or sometimes justified, a position starkly at odds with Muslims in other Middle Eastern, Asian, and African nations.

The decreasing acceptance of extremism among Muslims also is reflected in declining support for Osama bin Laden. Since 2003, Muslim confidence in bin Laden to do the right thing in world affairs has fallen; in Jordan, just 20% express a lot or some confidence in bin Laden, down from 56% four years ago. Yet confidence in bin Laden in the Palestinian territories, while lower than it was in 2003, remains relatively high (57%).

Opinion about Hezbollah and Hamas varies among Muslim publics. Views of both groups are favorable among most predominantly Muslim countries in the Middle East and Asia. And Palestinians have strongly positive opinions of both militant groups. But majorities in Turkey have negative impressions of both Hezbollah and Hamas.

The survey also finds that, amid continuing sectarian strife in Iraq, there is broad concern among the Muslim publics surveyed that tensions between Sunnis and Shia are not limited to that country. Nearly nine-in-ten Lebanese (88%), and solid majorities in Kuwait (73%) and Pakistan (67%), say Sunni-Shia tensions are a growing problem for the Muslim world, and are not limited to Iraq.

Africa: Bleak Present, Brighter Future

Africa remains a continent of crushing poverty, widespread deprivation – and substantial, if not universal, optimism. Majorities in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania say there have been times in the past year they have been unable to afford food. Even in South Africa, widely viewed as having Africa’s most advanced economy, 49% say they have gone without food in the past year for lack of money. Moreover, relatively large numbers throughout Africa say they have lacked money for other basic necessities – health care and clothing.

The African publics surveyed tend to express low levels of personal satisfaction, particularly when compared with people in other regions. In no African country do as many as four-in-ten rate their current lives as seven or higher on a scale of zero to 10. However, majorities in nine of 10 African countries surveyed say they believe their lives will be better five years from now than they are today.

The U.S. image is much stronger in Africa than in other regions of the world. This is reflected in the fact that the United States tops the list of dependable allies in eight of 10 African countries surveyed. Yet the U.S. is widely seen as making, at most, a minor effort to address the humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region of Sudan. Most Africans say the United Nations or the African Union is doing the most to stop the violence in Darfur.

The survey also finds that, despite overwhelming concern about the spread of AIDS and other infectious diseases throughout Africa, fewer than 30% in every country surveyed say they have taken an HIV test. In South Africa, where an estimated 5.5 million people are infected with HIV according to UNAIDS data, just 20% say they have been tested for the virus. However, majorities in South Africa and the other African countries surveyed (except for Mali) say they would be willing to take an HIV test.

A series of in-depth questions asked in Africa – including measures of the state of democracy in African countries and opinions about international media coverage of the region – are the result of a partnership between the Pew Global Attitudes Project and The New York Times. In addition, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation generously provided funding for the surveying in Africa, and in developing nations in other parts of the world.

Latin America: More Favorable Toward Free Markets

Latin America’s improved economic climate is seen in increasingly positive impressions of national conditions and governments. As might be expected, publics in Latin America also are much more upbeat about their nations’ economies than they were five years ago.

In 2002, shortly after the onset of a financial crisis that caused Argentina to default and cost many people their life savings, virtually no Argentines gave the economy a positive rating (1%); today, 45% see the economy as very good or somewhat good. A similar, though less dramatic, pattern is seen in other countries in the region: in Bolivia, positive views of the economy have more than tripled (from 18% to 58%); in Peru they have nearly tripled; and in Venezuela and Brazil positive impressions of the economy have doubled or more. In Mexico, where positive views of the economy were highest in 2002 (at 31%), 51% now say the economy is at least somewhat good.

Left-leaning heads of state have been elected in several Latin American countries over the past decade. However, the new survey finds Latin American respondents generally believe that people are better off in a free market economy, even though some people are rich and some are poor. Many respondents in the poll also expressed support for a strong government social safety net to help people who cannot help themselves.

Global Publics Divided about Their Nation’s Allies

The polling also underscores the lack of international consensus about the world order reported in this year’s first Global Attitudes report. Notably, the United States is named about as often as a close ally as it is named the biggest threat by respondents in the 47-nation survey. No other single country or international institution was as frequently cited as a top ally or threat, including Iran. (For a more detailed analysis of opinions about the United States and other world powers, see “Global Unease with Major World Powers,” released June 27).

The United States is singled out as a close ally by people in many African nations and in Israel and Kuwait, where the United States remains popular. The publics of two of America’s closest allies, Great Britain and Canada, also regard the United States as their closest ally, despite their criticism of U.S. foreign policies.

By contrast, the publics in many predominately Muslim countries, Latin America, and China see the United States as their greatest potential threat. For example, two-thirds of Chinese (66%) and nearly as many in Turkey and Pakistan (64% each), name the United States as the country that poses the greatest threat to their own country in the future. Majorities in Venezuela (54%) and Argentina (52%) also view the United States as a potential threat.

Top National Problems

Crime, political corruption, drugs, the spread of HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, and pollution are mentioned most frequently as top national problems by the citizens of the 47 countries surveyed. But terrorism, the poor quality of drinking water, and religious/ethnic conflict also are high on the problems list. The global findings reveal wide variations in how people in different parts of the world size up the top national problems.

Compared with 2002, somewhat fewer people globally view most of the issues tested as very big national problems. The exceptions are concerns about the poor quality of drinking water and immigration, which remain about as widespread as five years ago.

Crime is clearly the dominant issue in Latin America and in many Asian and African countries. Roughly eight-in-ten citizens in several South American countries – including Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Peru – cite crime as a very big problem. Comparably high percentages of Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Malaysians rate crime as a very big problem. In Africa, worry about crime is near universal in South Africa and quite substantial in Nigeria and the Ivory Coast.

Strong concern about illegal drugs runs parallel to worry about crime in these regions of the world and countries. But the publics in several nations – including the United States and Great Britain – voice more worry about drugs than about crime.

Corrupt political leaders rate as a major concern in a diverse group of Middle Eastern countries – Lebanon, the Palestinian territories and Israel. But the poll finds that worry about political corruption is most widespread in Nigeria and the Czech Republic.

The spread of HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases is the dominant national concern throughout Africa. In addition, majorities in every Latin American country surveyed – including 79% in Peru – see the spread of infectious diseases as a very big problem.

Concerns about pollution are evident in all parts of the world. But mentions are most frequent in Italy, Peru and India, where about eight-in-ten or more view pollution as a very big problem for their countries. Regionally, worries about pollution are lowest in Africa. In addition, fewer Americans rate pollution as a top national problem than do people in other economically advanced countries.

Poor quality schools are of greater concern in Latin American and African countries than in other regions. By contrast, concerns over poor quality schools are very low in Malaysia – where just 11% see this as a very big national problem – and Sweden (13%). The Swedes express far less concern over most of the problems tested than do the other publics surveyed.

Italians voice the greatest concern about immigration of any of the publics in the 47-nation survey. In the developing world, South Africans and the Lebanese frequently cite immigration as a very big problem. By contrast, roughly half of the residents of Pakistan, Bolivia and Mexico say that emigration – people leaving their country for jobs elsewhere – is a very big problem. For Lebanon and Pakistan, in particular, both emigration and immigration rate as frequently cited national problems.

Additional commentary on the relationship between economic growth and measures of personal contentment, by Bruce Stokes, international economics columnist for the National Journal

Notes

¹Data on trends in gross domestic product (GDP) from IMF World Economic Outlook.

²It was not possible to ask Chinese respondents to express opinions about President Hu Jintao.

In many countries around the globe, gay and lesbian couples are seeking the right to marry or enter into other legally recognized forms of domestic partnerships. The legal definition of marriage is in flux, particularly in the developed world, as governments re-examine what long seemed to be a well-established aspect of civil law.

Public Opinion

A 2007 Pew Research Center survey found that while a majority of Americans (55%) oppose same-sex marriage, a sizable minority (37%) favor it, figures that have varied only slightly since 2001. A 2006 Pew survey also found that a majority of Americans (54%) favor allowing civil unions, up from 45% in 2003.

Source: Pew Research Center, Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2007, March 22, 2007

Source: Pew Research Center, Pragmatic Americans Liberal and Conservative on Social Issues, August 3, 2006

A study released by the European Commission in 2006 found that a plurality of people in the European Union (49%) oppose gay marriage. Yet, as in the United States, the public remains divided, with 44% favoring same-sex marriage. Approval rates in individual countries vary greatly. In socially progressive Holland, for instance, 82% of all adults favor allowing same-sex marriage; in heavily Roman Catholic Poland, only 17% of adults support gay marriage.

<span >“Homosexual marriage should be allowed throughout Europe…”Percent “Agree”

Source: European Commission, Eurobarometer 66, Public Opinion in the European Union, December 2006

While public debate in many countries centers on the legal recognition of same-sex unions, in other parts of the world, the question is the acceptability of homosexuality itself. A 2002 Pew Global Attitudes survey found that strong majorities of the people polled in the African and Middle Eastern countries surveyed do not view homosexuality as a socially acceptable way of life. A 2006 report by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life similarly found that in the African and Asian nations surveyed, such as Nigeria and South Korea, at least half of the public polled believe homosexuality can never be justified.

Same-Sex Marriage Over Time

The extension of legal rights to same-sex couples began in 1989 when Denmark created “registered partnerships” that extended property and inheritance rights to same-sex couples. This marked the first time a national government guaranteed gay and lesbian households not only protection from harassment but also some of the legal rights long held by heterosexual married couples. Norway took similar action in 1993, followed by Sweden in 1995 and Iceland in 1996; other European countries followed suit in subsequent years. Other nations in Europe, South America, Australia and elsewhere expanded the rights of same-sex couples by permitting legal statuses that granted the couples some legal rights without using the term “marriage,” such as civil unions, civil partnerships or domestic partnerships.

The Netherlands was the first country to legalize same-sex marriage. In December 2000, the Dutch parliament passed legislation that gave same-sex couples the right to marry, divorce and adopt children. On April 1, 2001, the mayor of Amsterdam officiated at the ceremonies of the first four gay couples to be married. In the ensuing six years, Belgium (2003), Spain (2005), Canada (2005) and South Africa (2006) have followed the Netherlands’ lead and legalized same-sex marriage.

In 1998, the U.S. Congress passed the Defense of Marriage Act, which defined marriage as the union of a man and a woman for purposes of federal law. The statute also declared that states were not required to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. In 2004, Massachusetts became the first, and so far only, state to allow same-sex marriages, and only for in-state residents. Connecticut, New Jersey and Vermont recognize civil unions, and New Hampshire will do so beginning in 2008. Court decisions on the constitutionality of denying same-sex marriage are expected this year in California, Connecticut and Maryland.

New legislation related to same-sex relations is introduced somewhere in the world almost every month. In November 2006, Mexico City became the first of Mexico’s regional governments to recognize same-sex civil unions. That same month, Israel, which has offered common law marriage to homosexuals since 1994, legally recognized same-sex marriages performed in other countries as full marriages in Israel. In Uruguay, the parliament is debating whether to allow civil unions for same-sex couples who have lived together for at least five years.

Undoubtedly, these and other debates have been influenced by the countries that have already given same-sex couples the right to marry. The following is a short summary of the history and politics of – and public reaction toward – same-sex marriage in the five nations that currently allow the practice.

The Netherlands

The Dutch parliament passed its landmark bill legalizing same-sex marriage in 2000 by roughly a three-to-one margin. The legislation altered a single sentence in the civil marriage statute, which now reads, “A marriage can be contracted by two people of different or the same sex.”

The only opposition in parliament came from the Christian Democratic Party, which at the time was not part of the governing coalition. After the law went into effect, the Protestant Church of the Netherlands, representing about 12% of the country’s population, announced that individual congregations could decide whether to conduct same-sex ceremonies. Although Muslim and conservative Christian groups continue to oppose the legislation, as well as the practice of homosexuality itself, same-sex marriage is widely accepted by the Dutch public and, to many, is a nonissue.

About 2,400 same-sex couples married in the Netherlands within nine months of the marriage law going into effect, according to government figures. Since then, the number of same-sex marriages has declined annually from 1,800 in 2002 to 1,100 in 2005.

Belgium

Beginning in 1998, the Belgian parliament offered limited rights to same-sex couples by creating registered partnerships. Same-sex couples could register with a city clerk and formally assume joint responsibility for a household. Five years later, in January 2003, parliament legalized same-sex marriage, giving gay and lesbian couples the same tax and inheritance rights as heterosexual couples.

Support for the law came from both the Flemish-speaking north and the French-speaking south, and it generated surprisingly little controversy across the country. The long-dominant Christian Democratic Party, traditionally allied with the Roman Catholic Church, was out of power when parliament passed the measure.The original law only recognized the marriages of Belgian same-sex couples and couples from other countries where same-sex marriage was legal. Those provisions were broadened in 2004, however, to recognize any same-sex marriage as long as one member of the couple had lived in Belgium for at least three months. In 2006, parliament also granted same-sex partners the right to adopt children.

Almost 2,500 same-sex couples had married in Belgium as of July 2005.

Spain

A closely divided parliament legalized same-sex marriage in 2005, guaranteeing identical rights to all married couples regardless of sexual orientation. The new measure added brief, relatively simple language to the existing marriage statute: “Marriage will have the same requirements and results when the two people entering into the contract are of the same sex or of different sexes.”

Vatican officials as well as the Spanish Bishops Conference strongly criticized the law, and large, competing crowds demonstrated in Madrid for and against the measure. After the law went into effect, the country’s constitutional court rejected challenges from two municipal court judges who had refused marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The high court ruled that the lower court judges lacked legal standing to bring suit.

According to a survey by Instituto Opina, a private polling organization, one day before passage of the bill, approximately 62% of the public favored the legislation. Nine months later, a second poll showed 61% of the public supporting the measure.

About 1,000 same-sex couples had married in Spain as of March 2006. The first same-sex divorce was granted in June 2006.

Canada

Same-sex couples gained most of the legal benefits of marriage in 1999 when federal and provincial governments extended “common law” marriages to gay and lesbian couples. Through a series of court cases beginning in 2003, same-sex marriage gradually became legal in nine of the country’s 13 provinces and territories. In 2005, Parliament passed legislation making same-sex marriage legal nationwide. In 2006 lawmakers defeated an effort by the ruling Conservative Party to reconsider the issue, leaving the law unchanged.

A Canadian Broadcasting Corporation survey conducted three months before Parliament acted in 2005 found that 52% of Canadians opposed the legislation. But one month after passage of the law, 55% favored keeping it on the books. That number stood at 58% in December 2006.

South Africa

The South African parliament legalized same-sex marriage in November 2006, one year after the country’s highest court ruled that the existing, more restrictive marriage laws violated the constitution’s guarantee of equal rights. The new measure passed by a margin of greater than five-to-one, with support coming from both the governing African National Congress as well as the main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance. The traditional monarch of the Zulu people, who account for about one-fifth of the country’s population, maintains that homosexuality is morally wrong.

The law allows for religious institutions and civil officers to refuse to conduct same-sex marriage ceremonies, a provision that critics claim violates the rights of same-sex couples under the constitution.

For more on issues at the nexus of religion and public life, visit pewforum.org