The American Dream Endures in Tough Times

“American Idol” returned this week and handily recaptured its crown as television’s most-watched show. Now in its 11^th season, “Idol’s” phenomenal success can be traced to its roots in the American Dream: that with talent, hard work, a little luck, and opportunity will come fame and fortune.

But the Dream, like “Idol,” is showing some signs of fatigue (ratings for the Wednesday night season premier dropped 24 percent from last year’s season 10 launch). The prolonged economic downturn that has devastated millions of households has led to questions of whether the traditional vision of the American Dream, as some contend, needs to be downsized.

That depends, of course, on what the American Dream means to you, and for a majority of investors surveyed this month by Millionaire Corner, even in tough times, its basic tenets endure. Sixty-four percent said that the American Dream to them means equal opportunity for all, while 63.5 percent said that it meant retirement security after a life of hard work.

Educational opportunities define the American Dream for 56 percent of respondents, while 51 percent believe it is job security. One holds on to the belief that the two are interlinked. As we recently reported, a Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce study found that those with a Bachelor’s Degree are much more likely to find a good paying job than for those with only a high school diploma or high school dropouts, for whom the unemployment rate is a staggering 31.5 percent.

Owning a home personifies the Dream for 54 percent, but the collapse and stalled recovery of the housing market have made this piece of the dream especially challenging for those who have found they can no longer count on their primary residence as source of income. A reported 12 million homeowners are underwater on their mortgages, meaning they owe more than what the house is worth. This makes today’s news that existing home sales rose in December for the third consecutive month a welcome way to begin the New Year.

Just under half (49.5) have a more far-reaching vision of the American Dream. They believe it means that future generations will do better than the current generation. But not many believe this will be achieved without a struggle. Eighty-four percent of respondents said that the next generation will have it tougher than them. This is up from a 2011 Millionaire Corner survey in which 79 percent said the next generation will not be better off.

But Americans are as ever resilient. Despite the challenges and obstacles, they are pursuing their own vision of the American Dream and making it their own.