Thirty months into the Great Recession, many Americans believe that their lives will be forever altered in ways both large and small by the crisis, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center.

Americans are generally less optimistic about their futures and their childrens’ futures, more concerned about pocketbook issues and worried about retirement security.

The nation is going through what is by far the worst recession since World War II. Unlike past recessions, the current downturn has affected the majority of the American people. In fact, over half of all the nation’s working age adults experienced work hardships, either in the form of a job loss, pay cut or involuntary reduction in hours, according to the survey. Nearly one-third of all Americans – 32 percent – have been unemployed at one time or another during the recession.

Two of the main reasons that the recession has been worse than the previous 13 since World War II are that much household wealth has been lost during the crisis and millions have been out of work for very long periods of time.

The average length of unemployment is currently 23.2 weeks, nearly doubling the previous post-war high. The survey suggests that this may be indicative of a long-term restructuring of the economy in which high levels of unemployment is the new normal.

During the recession, the average American household lost 20 percent of its wealth. Most was caused by the falling stock market and the housing crisis, but unemployment certainly played a role as well. Those who lost the most household wealth were in the middle class, the survey found. That could squeeze even more families out of the middle class and further widen the gap between rich and poor in America.

The loss of household wealth has also led man Americans to reexamine their spending habits. Sixty-two percent of respondents have cut down on their amount of household spending. Seventy-one percent of respondents said that they have bought less expensive brands in response to the economic crisis. Another 57 percent have canceled vacation plans. And 9 percent have moved back in with their parents to save money.

But, perhaps in a sign of the resiliency and hopefulness of the American people, the survey did reveal a few bright spots. Sixty-one percent of respondent believe that the damage from the recession will be temporary and 62 percent believe that their financial situations will improve by the end of the year.

However, besides those few bright spots, the picture is very bleak. Americans are even beginning to lose faith in one of the tenants of the American Dream – that their children will be fortunate enough to have a better standard of living. Just 26 percent believe that.

“Of the 13 recessions that the American public has endured since the Great Depression of 1929-33, none has presented a more punishing combination of length, breadth and depth than this one,” the survey found.

Print PDF