Page 47 - Šolsko polje, XXVIII, 2017, no. 3-4: Education and the American Dream, ed. Mitja Sardoč
P. 47
c. ghosh ■ livin’ the meritocratic dream!
value the core tenets of the American Dream. They see hard work and ef-
fort as the most effective and fairest ways to get ahead in life. In one 2015
survey, 72 percent of the respondents said they are either living the Amer-
ican dream or expect to do so (Baer and Penn, 2015). Barely two years since
the start of the financial crisis of 2008, a 2010 Public Opinion Quarterly
report on the continuing relevance of the American Dream pointed out
that, among those surveyed, working hard is the most important element
of getting ahead in America (Hanson & Zogby, 2010). In the same year,
in one poll two-thirds of the respondents believed they could achieve the
American Dream.2 According to a 2009 New York Times/CBS poll, 72
percent of Americans, even in the midst of a recession, continued to be-
lieve that in America, it was possible to start out with nothing, work hard,
and become rich, which is, according to the New York Times, “a classic
definition of the American Dream” (Seelye, 2009; Ghosh, 2013). Equal-
ly, a 2005 poll conducted by the New York Times found that the majori-
ty of Americans remain upbeat about their prospects of upward mobility
(Scott & Leonhardt, 2005). The survey revealed that 40 percent of Amer-
icans believe that the chance of moving up from one class to another has
risen over the last 30 years, a period in which scholarly research has shown
that it has not. A 2004 poll confirmed that majorities of those polled in
every demographic, geographic, and political sub-group are confident that
their children or the next generation will have a fair shot at the Ameri-
can Dream.3 This is consistent with what Jennifer Hochschild reported
in 1995: most Americans say their standard of living is better today than
their parents’ and imagine that their children will do better still. Fewer
than one-fifth of Americans see race, gender, religion, or class as very im-
portant for “getting ahead in life” (Hochschild, 1995: p. 19). In 1994, Cit-
rin et al. reported: “The pervasive agreement that getting ahead on one’s
own is important in making one a ‘true American’ reflects the country’s
persistent cultural emphasis on individual achievement. Polls typical-
ly show that two-thirds of both white and black Americans believe that
hard work will lead to success and that people should strive hard to get
ahead” (Citrin, J. Haas, E.B., Muste, M. & B. Reingold, B., 1994: p. 14).
Since 1994, despite enormous exogenous structural shocks, like 9/11, the
Global War On Terror, and the current recession, nothing has essential-
ly changed about this pattern of beliefs (Bybee & Ghosh, 2009; Seelye,
2009; Hanson & Zogby, 2010; Ghosh, 2013).
2 Xavier University Institute for Politics and the American Dream, “The American Dream
Survey,” (2010).
3 National League of Cities, “The American Dream in 2004: A Survey of the American
people” (Washington D.C, 2004).
45
value the core tenets of the American Dream. They see hard work and ef-
fort as the most effective and fairest ways to get ahead in life. In one 2015
survey, 72 percent of the respondents said they are either living the Amer-
ican dream or expect to do so (Baer and Penn, 2015). Barely two years since
the start of the financial crisis of 2008, a 2010 Public Opinion Quarterly
report on the continuing relevance of the American Dream pointed out
that, among those surveyed, working hard is the most important element
of getting ahead in America (Hanson & Zogby, 2010). In the same year,
in one poll two-thirds of the respondents believed they could achieve the
American Dream.2 According to a 2009 New York Times/CBS poll, 72
percent of Americans, even in the midst of a recession, continued to be-
lieve that in America, it was possible to start out with nothing, work hard,
and become rich, which is, according to the New York Times, “a classic
definition of the American Dream” (Seelye, 2009; Ghosh, 2013). Equal-
ly, a 2005 poll conducted by the New York Times found that the majori-
ty of Americans remain upbeat about their prospects of upward mobility
(Scott & Leonhardt, 2005). The survey revealed that 40 percent of Amer-
icans believe that the chance of moving up from one class to another has
risen over the last 30 years, a period in which scholarly research has shown
that it has not. A 2004 poll confirmed that majorities of those polled in
every demographic, geographic, and political sub-group are confident that
their children or the next generation will have a fair shot at the Ameri-
can Dream.3 This is consistent with what Jennifer Hochschild reported
in 1995: most Americans say their standard of living is better today than
their parents’ and imagine that their children will do better still. Fewer
than one-fifth of Americans see race, gender, religion, or class as very im-
portant for “getting ahead in life” (Hochschild, 1995: p. 19). In 1994, Cit-
rin et al. reported: “The pervasive agreement that getting ahead on one’s
own is important in making one a ‘true American’ reflects the country’s
persistent cultural emphasis on individual achievement. Polls typical-
ly show that two-thirds of both white and black Americans believe that
hard work will lead to success and that people should strive hard to get
ahead” (Citrin, J. Haas, E.B., Muste, M. & B. Reingold, B., 1994: p. 14).
Since 1994, despite enormous exogenous structural shocks, like 9/11, the
Global War On Terror, and the current recession, nothing has essential-
ly changed about this pattern of beliefs (Bybee & Ghosh, 2009; Seelye,
2009; Hanson & Zogby, 2010; Ghosh, 2013).
2 Xavier University Institute for Politics and the American Dream, “The American Dream
Survey,” (2010).
3 National League of Cities, “The American Dream in 2004: A Survey of the American
people” (Washington D.C, 2004).
45
