WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Â鶹´«Ã½AV.com provides a retrospective of 2011, summarizing some of the top findings of the year.
January
- The majority of Americans begin the new year with .
- A median of in their communities, compared with 24% of Americans.
- With the GOP Republican field undetermined, of the potential contenders.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV's new global employment metrics reveal that 19% worldwide were underemployed in 2009 and 2010, while .
February
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV reveals that a , even as GDP in those countries increased.
- , with 41% of Americans saying the economy is getting better.
- After Egyptians toppled the regime of longtime president Hosni Mubarak, , and 44% don't.
- With a government shutdown looming, on the federal budget than to stick to their principles and not strike a deal.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV-Healthways tracking finds .
March
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV finds median remained largely unchanged in 2010 after surging in 2009.
- A new low 44.6% of Americans report getting their .
- Boulder, Colo.; Lincoln, Neb., .
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV's global research reveals that .
- , 46% in the U.S. say the nation's new healthcare law is a good thing, while 44% say it is a bad thing.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV reports that actively disengaged workers .
April
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV documents a , largely erasing its job creation advantage over state and local governments.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV-Healthways tracking of U.S. health insurance coverage reveals that .
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV's global employment tracking reveals that .
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV's global research reveals that .
May
- Americans greatly praise the U.S. mission that killed Osama Bin Laden,
- in his job approval rating, following the bin Laden assassination.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV reveals that 47% of Pakistanis in 2010 .
- Newt Gingrich officially announces his presidential candidacy with .
- Marking a new two-year high, .
- For the first time in Â鶹´«Ã½AV history, .
June
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV finds following the revolution in their country.
- A strong majority of Americans .
- Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann enters the Republican race tied with Herman Cain for the .
- Americans .
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV finds that more than Americans who are less educated.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV finds that than U.S. nongovernment workers.
July
- since March 2009 as U.S. lawmakers debate whether or not to raise the U.S. debt ceiling.
- The majority of Republicans .
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV-Healthways research reveals that $25.2 billion in lost U.S. worker productivity each year.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV finds that the world's roughly 630 million .
- For the first time in Â鶹´«Ã½AV history, .
August
- More Americans
- following debt ceiling debate and downgrade of the U.S. credit rating.
- Shortly after announcing his official candidacy for the Republican nomination, Texas Gov. for their party's 2012 presidential nomination.
- the lowest level since December 2008.
- , nearing the high seen in 2009.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV finds that .
September
- Ten years into the war on terror, .
- Americans express .
- , with 80% saying it is getting worse.
- Three years after the collapse of Lehman Brothers, .
- since July 2009.
- since the new healthcare law began allowing young adults to stay on their parents' plans up to age 26.
- , to 25%.
October
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV's worldwide research reveals that when more people are employed full-time with employers.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV's employment tracking reveals that .
- to get by on their current income.
- Most Americans say they do not know enough about the .
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV tracking of Americans' weight reveals a decline in the percentage of Americans who are overweight or obese, so that .
- to historic lows.
- A record-high 50% of Americans say , up from 46% last year.
- President Obama averages a new low in office, ranking very low historically.
November
- Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are .
- The percentage of .
- in Republicans' positive intensity.
- are higher than in previous years.
- A majority of Americans for failing to reach an agreement.
December
- Greeks are the , with just 2% saying their local economy is getting better.
- , easily dwarfing concerns about big business and big labor.
- Â鶹´«Ã½AV finds that .
- The majority of Republicans .
- , following the same "rainbow" pattern as several previous Republican front-runners.
- Congress ends 2011 with .
- during the month leading up to Christmas compared with a year ago.
Stay with Â鶹´«Ã½AV.com for more news and reactions to the news in 2012.
Survey Methods
Â鶹´«Ã½AV surveys 1,000 national adults, aged 18 and older, every day and also conducts additional surveys. In most cases, the maximum margin of sampling error is ±2 to ±4 percentage points. For detailed survey methods on any results reported here, please visit the original story.
Interviews are conducted with respondents on land-line telephones (for respondents with a land-line telephone) and cellular phones (for respondents who are cell-phone only).
In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.
