Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Opinions of Iran remain largely unfavorable across much of the world, and in some predominantly Muslim countries, higher numbers express negative views of the Islamic Republic this year than in previous years. Majorities or pluralities in 17 of 23 countries express an unfavorable opinion of Iran, including most of those surveyed in Egypt, Jordan, and […]
Americans are considerably more likely than other publics polled to say that parents do not put enough pressure on their children, while China is the only country in which a majority sees parents putting too much pressure on students. More than six-in-ten Americans say that parents do not put enough pressure on their children to do well in school, while about two-thirds of the Chinese public take the opposite position.
Many around the world believe the global balance of power is shifting. In 15 of 22 nations, majorities or pluralities say China either will replace or already has replaced the United States as the world’s leading superpower. This view is widespread in many nations where the U.S. is popular, as well as in nations where […]
As the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks approaches, a comprehensive public opinion survey finds no indication of increased alienation or anger among Muslim Americans in response to concerns about home-grown Islamic terrorists, controversies about the building of mosques and other pressures that have been brought to bear on this high-profile minority group in recent years.
Overview Amid continued worries about the health of the nation’s economy and persistent unemployment, the debate in Washington over President Obama’s jobs legislation topped the public’s news interest last week. Nearly a quarter of the public (23%) says they followed the back and forth over Obama’s proposal more closely than any other news last week, […]
Muslim and Western publics continue to largely agree that relations between them are poor, and disagree about who is at fault – Muslims largely blame Westerners, while those in the West generally blame Muslims. However, in both Western and predominantly Muslim nations, there is a shared concern about the threat posed by Islamic extremism.
Worries about Islamic extremism are widespread among the nations surveyed, with majorities in the U.S., Russia, Western Europe and Israel as well as among most Muslim publics in the Middle East and Asia expressing concern about the presence of extremists within their borders. Compared with five years ago, however, worries have subsided somewhat in several […]
Despite signs that some countries are recovering from the Great Recession of 2008-2009, economic times remain tough for many around the world. In most of the nations surveyed, people are dissatisfied with the way things are going in their country and downbeat about their national economy. The few exceptions to this pattern include publics in […]
In most parts of the world, publics continue to express more confidence in U.S. President Barack Obama than in key European leaders tested in the survey. As in previous surveys, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is popular in European countries, but not well-known in the rest of the world. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Russian President […]
China’s overall image is positive in most of the nations surveyed, with European views, in particular, improving over the past year. In Asia, opinion is mixed: majorities in Pakistan and Indonesia are favorably inclined toward China, while Indians tend to be uncertain about the region’s other growing economic powerhouse, and a majority of Japanese have […]