Satisfaction with the way the U.S. functions is at its lowest level since Gallup began the assessment two decades ago.
Measured by seven key aspects, satisfaction among Americans plummeted to 39% at the start of 2021.
That compares with 53% one year ago: the highest in more than a decade amid strong economic confidence and before the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the U.S.
The findings include satisfaction with the overall quality of life in the U.S., assessments of government, corporate and religious influence, and perceptions of the economic and moral climates.
Gallup asks Americans about their satisfaction with various aspects of the country as part of its Mood of the Nation poll, conducted almost every January since 2001. The poll was not done in 2009 and 2010, two years when satisfaction was likely depressed because of economic problems stemming from the 2008 global financial crisis.
Not only is average public satisfaction with the broad contours of the country at an extreme low today, but Americans’ satisfaction with each element of the index is at or near its lowest since 2001. This reflects declines of seven to 17 percentage points in the past year.The peak satisfaction ratings for all seven elements tracked since 2001 were recorded in 2002. That high point reflected the surge in Americans’ positive feelings about the country in the immediate post-9/11 period.