Economix Blog: Your Economic Outlook: Mixed Up

Screen shot of The Times’s interactive feature.

Contradictory data are nothing new in economics, but amid the slump in the United States and Europe, readers may find themselves paying increasing attention to indicators that seem to point every which way.

Corporate earnings in the United States grew in 2011 — but that growth has slowed. Household income has fallen farther since the recession officially ended in June 2009 than it did during the recession itself. The American economy gained 103,000 new jobs in September, according to figures released Friday, but unemployment remained high at 9.1 percent. And of course, all this information is available through more and more channels, media, devices and platforms.

With this in mind, The Times last week presented an interactive feature, “What’s Your Economic Outlook?” We asked readers to express their views on four topics: their job status, their upcoming spending plans, job prospects for the next generation and the state of the economy next year. Participants were asked to choose from a list of words to summarize their view, and to explain in a few words.

More than 5,600 completed submissions, and the results show a broad range of results. Some of the results were unsurprising: people who described themselves as unemployed were mostly more pessimistic than people with jobs. But the distinctions between groups were suggestive: respondents in their 60s seemed a bit more pessimistic about the next generation than did respondents in their 20s.

Even more notable, perhaps, were the comments that readers left to explain their views. Readers who seemed most optimistic often explained themselves with reference to plans they were following or had made. One wrote:

We scaled back our lifestyle years before the downturn, so this recession hasn’t affected us like people who are in debt.

Another:

We have budgeted well for upcoming expenses and I feel comfortable with our income streams.

Many comments from readers with a negative outlook described dire circumstances, and more than a few sounded a note of desperation:

Seven people used to do my job. Now there are only two of us. Nobody cares. Drowning.

And:

I have no money. Barely buying food. No help available for single men.

Many younger contributors saw their own opportunities as narrowing, with high levels of debt and few well-paying jobs:

Because previous generations have left my generation with crushing burdens and almost no safety net.

And:

There is nothing left for the next generation, only a small percentage will see the success of previous generations.

A few young contributors sounded an exuberant note about potential development:

There are so many incredible opportunities arising in new fields.

And:

Because my generation was raised to be innovative, and we will find a way to improve the current landscape.

In what could be interpreted as a sign of optimism, on the whole, contributors seemed to be slightly more hopeful about their own prospects — for work and for spending — than for the economy as a whole or for the next generation. That view jibes with some recent statistical evidence, suggesting that the disparity in outlooks reflects sentiments just as mixed as the other economic signals.

The full interactive feature will remain online.

Article source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=2d41b94d0710812a3e815bdd99ee9888