That, at least, might be the conclusion from a new poll from the Allstate Corporation and National Journal. Although 70 percent of Americans believe the country is generally on the “wrong track,” and more people say their financial situation is in only fair or poor shape than say it is in good or excellent shape, 60 percent said they were still living the American dream.

The poll, which has been conducted quarterly since early 2009 by FTI Consulting, defined the American dream as “the opportunity to go as far as your talents and hard work will take you and to live better than your parents.”

Sounding a bit like a candidate on the campaign trail, Jeremy Ruch, assistant vice president at FTI Consulting, attributed what might look like a disconnect to “the enduring optimism of the American public.”

“It’s no surprise that there’s been some economic difficulties facing the country over the last few years, and Americans are disappointed and disenchanted with political leaders in Washington and also to some extent the business community and corporate America,” he said. “And on the personal front people have taken a hit to their personal finances, but despite all that, the optimism of the American people shines through here.” That positive outlook, he said, “surpasses all those other indicators that are dragging different parts of the economy and the mood down.”

The 11th quarterly Heartland Monitor poll also specifically surveyed a larger group of adults aged 50 and older to gauge their views of retirement. The survey found that overall, 73 percent were confident they would have enough money to retire in financial security.

But the view of those who are already retired compared with those who are yet to retire differed quite dramatically. Of those who had already retired, 42 percent said they were more secure in their sunset years than their parents, with nearly a third saying they had similar security levels to their parents. But among those 50-plus people who have yet to retire, 47 percent of them predicted that they would be less secure than their parents in retirement and only slightly more than a quarter said they would be more secure than their parents.

And while slightly more of the retired respondents said their finances were in good or excellent shape than rated them in only fair or poor condition, those who had yet to retire faced gloomier financial landscapes: 58 percent said their finances were in only fair or poor condition.

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