Economy & Work

The euro crisis has exposed a range of intra-European problems long hidden from the harsh light of day. Not the least of these is German exceptionalism. Over the last two generations one goal of the European project has been to narrow the differences between Germany and the rest of Europe. But recent economic difficulties have only amplified those dissimilarities.

Overview The European Union is the new sick man of Europe. The effort over the past half century to create a more united Europe is now the principal casualty of the euro crisis. The European project now stands in disrepute across much of Europe. Support for European economic integration – the 1957 raison d’etre for […]

A political, economic and demographic divide has opened up between France and Germany. The two countries, which have for decades been the driving force behind European integration, increasingly see the world through different lenses. This new evidence of a dramatic divergence of public opinion raises new questions about prospects for the European Project.

College is a pretty pricey proposition, even after grants and scholarships are factored in. And the millions of students graduating this spring will soon learn just how expensive their degrees were when they start getting student-loan bills. As a Pew Research Center analysis noted last year, nearly one in five U.S. households (19%) owed money […]

With the stock market hitting new highs and home prices marking their strongest gains since before the bubble burst, it’s starting to feel like a real economic recovery. But which is the better investment over time? That depends largely on your definition of “long term.” As the accompanying charts show, since the formal end of the […]

Optimism in an Era of Growing Inequality and Economic Difficulty Despite an extended period of economic difficulty, Pew Research Center pollsters Andrew Kohut and Michael Dimock show that Americans’ core values and beliefs about economic opportunity, and the nation’s economic outlook, remain largely optimistic and unchanged. There is also little evidence that economic class is […]

Tuesday’s report on the S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index showed a 9.3% increase between February 2012 and February 2013 — the biggest year-over-year increase in the 20-city composite index since before the housing bubble burst. Is housing, at long last, on the road to recovery? Many Americans already think so. A Pew Research survey in March found that 52% of people […]

Overview As Washington sprang into action late last week to end the furlough of federal air-traffic controllers and delays at airports across the country, the public blamed both sides for the situation. Nearly equal percentages say congressional Republicans (34%) and the Obama administration (32%) are more to blame for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) budget […]

During the first two years of the nation’s economic recovery, the mean net worth of households in the upper 7% of the wealth distribution rose by an estimated 28%, while the mean net worth of households in the lower 93% dropped by 4%, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of newly released Census Bureau […]

Pew Internet Director Lee Rainie will discuss the Project’s latest research into internet trends, mobile connectivity, and use of social media and what they mean for marketers.