No country is perfect, but no citizens are as happy with the direction of their country as China/st1 :country-region>. According to a new survey by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, a staggering eighty-six percent of Chinese are satisfied with the country direction, up from forty-eight percent just six years ago. Eighty-two percent say the economy is good, up thirty percent from 2002. Not surprisingly, these high numbers put China/st1 :country-region> as the top-rated country out of 24 countries polled./span>
Perhaps a large part of this growing optimism stems from the upcoming Olympics. Ninety-six percent of citizens say they will be successful or very successful, ninety-three percent say it will help China/st1 :country-region>'s image, and seventy-nine percent say they're of personal importance. One of the reasons for such Olympic optimism stems from the view held by seventy-seven percent of Chinese, that other countries have a positive impression of China/st1 :place>./span>
This optimism might be a bit overstated, since according to the results of another Pew Global Attitudes Project, international opinions towards China are a bit more mixed. A majority of people in countries including Japan Germany and South Africanbsp;have unfavorable opinions towards China and even in the U.S. forty-two percent views Chinanbsp;unfavorably, versus the thirty-nine percent with a favorable opinion of China/st1 :place>. Chinese don't have the most positive impressions of America/st1 :country-region>, either, however, with thirty four percent considering it "an enemy." versus only fourteen percent who view it as a partner./span>
Nonetheless, the results of these surveys highlight a common theme: there's a lingering gap between the way Chinaviews itself, versus the way the rest of the world views China/st1 :place>. It will be interesting to see whether or not the Olympics will help to bridge this gap, but at the very least it's increased international awareness of China/st1 :country-region>./span>
Not all of the coverage has portrayed China/st1 :country-region> in the most positive or even most accurate light. Just a quick peek at anti-cnn.com reveals much dissatisfaction with the Western media coverage. Despite these criticisms, as interest in Chinaincreases worldwide, there are more options for those unfamiliar to increase their knowledge of China/st1 :country-region>, so they can contrast competing views to make educated decisions. /span>
Even though Chinese citizens are happy with the overall national trajectory, they're not blind to social problems within their country. Most say the economy is good, but 96% say rising prices are a problem, and seventy-eight percent say corrupt officials are also problematic. Other concerns include the income inequality, air pollution, water pollution, and unemployment. Their satisfaction with their family life and income is only in the bottom half of countries surveyed./span>
All things considered, China/st1 :country-region> has made great strides over the past several years, and citizens should be rightfully proud of its several accomplishments. At the same time, many feel there's still room for improvement.
While these surveys provide unique insight into current public opinions, it will be even more interesting to see the way these attitudes evolve over the next several years. /span>
