Misperceptions about politics and health can undermine public debate and distort people’s choices and behavior. Why do people hold these false or unsupported beliefs and why is it so difficult to change their minds? An emerging literature examines the difficulty of correcting false or unsupported beliefs and the reasons for […] Read more »
Americans Continue to Express Highest Confidence in Military
While Americans’ faith in many U.S. institutions has fallen from the levels of previous decades, the public’s confidence in the military has remained consistently high. The average confidence level across all 14 institutions tested in 2004 was 43%, compared with 32% this year. In contrast, the 73% confidence rating that […] Read more »
Confidence in Banks Still Languishing Below 30%
Americans’ confidence in banks is unchanged from a year ago and remains below 30% for the eighth straight year after tumbling during the 2007-2009 recession. CONT. Justin McCarthy, Gallup Read more »
Confidence in Police Recovers From Last Year’s Low
Americans’ confidence in the police has edged back up this year after dropping last year to its lowest point in 22 years. Currently, 56% of Americans have “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in the police, four percentage points higher than in 2015. Confidence is essentially back […] Read more »
Confidence in Newspapers at New Low
The 20% of Americans who are confident in newspapers as a U.S. institution hit an all-time low this year, marking the 10th consecutive year that more Americans express little or no, rather than high, confidence in the institution. CONT. Lydia Saad, Gallup Read more »
Confidence in Institutions Stays Low
Americans’ confidence in the nation’s major institutions continues to lag below historical averages, with two institutions — newspapers and organized religion — dropping to record lows this year. The overall average of Americans expressing “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in 14 institutions is below 33% for […] Read more »