AARP Survey Finds Public Confidence and Reliance on Social Security Increased as Program Celebrates 70th Anniversary
To coincide with the 70th anniversary of Social Security, the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) released a new survey that tracks public perceptions about Social Security over three decades. Not only has public confidence in Social Security increased in recent years according to the poll, but Social Security has also surpassed pensions and savings as the top source of income Americans expect to rely on in retirement. The survey, titled Social Security 70th Anniversary Survey Report: Trends over Time, repeats previous surveys conducted by AARP for the 50th (1985) and 60th (1995) anniversaries of Social Security.
While all the previous surveys demonstrated the high regard that the American public has for Social Security, this latest installment shows that Americans are becoming increasingly informed about the program and are aware of the role it plays for beneficiaries. The survey shows an increase of 8 percentage points among those who consider themselves to be at least fairly well informed between 1995 (70%) and 2005 (78%). This may be a result of the very public debate about the future of Social Security.