A majority of Americans (69%) say it’s essential for the U.S. to continue to be a world leader in space. As private companies become a bigger part of the industry, the public gives them more positive than negative ratings for their contributions to space exploration and spacecraft development. Still, Americans continue to say NASA has a critical role to play going forward.
Overwhelmingly, people believe the U.S. interferes in the affairs of other countries (82%), but most also believe the U.S. contributes to peace and stability around the world (61%). U.S. President Joe Biden receives mostly positive reviews from publics around the world with 54% expressing confidence in Biden, while 39% say they lack confidence in him.
People around the world see both strengths and flaws in the U.S., but they generally view the U.S. positively, according to a new survey of 24 countries.
Among 24 countries, support for legal same-sex marriage is highest in Sweden, where 92% of adults favor it, and lowest in Nigeria, where only 2% back it.
Majorities of U.S. adults have favorable views of Ukraine (64%) and NATO (62%). About seven-in-ten Republicans (71%) say the U.S. should pay less attention to problems overseas and focus on concerns at home — up from 65% in 2021.
Most Americans see little ability for the U.S. and China to cooperate on climate change policy or combating the spread of infectious disease. A majority of Americans continue to view the China-Russia partnership as a very serious problem for the U.S.
Democrats hold the edge on many issues, but more Americans agree with Republicans on the economy, crime and immigration. Inflation remains the top concern for Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, with 77% saying it is a very big problem. For Democrats and Democratic leaners, gun violence is the top concern, with about 81% saying it is a very big problem.
Most self-employed workers (62%) say they are extremely or very satisfied with their job, compared with 51% of those who are not self-employed.
As of 2021, 25% of 40-year-olds in the United States had never been married, a significant increase from 20% in 2010.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to limit affirmative action in higher education is likely to have the biggest impact on a relatively small group of schools.
About one-in-four Asian Americans (24%) consider themselves extremely or very informed about the history of Asian people in the United States.
Today, 51% of U.S. adults say they support the Black Lives Matter movement – down from 67% in June 2020. A majority of Americans say the increased focus on race and racial inequality in the past three years hasn’t led to improvement for Black Americans.
About half of Asian adults who have heard of affirmative action (53%) say it is a good thing, 19% say it is a bad thing, and 27% say they don’t know whether it is good or bad. However, about three-quarters of all Asian adults (76%) say race or ethnicity should not factor into college admissions decisions.
“A record 23 million Asian Americans trace their roots to more than 20 countries … and the U.S. Asian population is projected to reach 46 million by 2060.”

The first video in Pew Research Center’s Methods 101 series helps explain random sampling – a concept that lies at the heart of all probability-based survey research – and why it’s important.