Top Public Worries in the U.S.

The report identifies government corruption, the cost of living, and the economy as the primary concerns for the general U.S. population, while global warming is a top priority only for the 'Alarmed' segment. It analyzes these worries across political ideologies and the 'Six Americas' framework, suggesting that climate communicators can broaden their appeal by linking climate action to these more prevalent economic and governance concerns.

• The most prevalent worries for Americans overall are government corruption (54%), the cost of living (48%), and the economy (47%). Global warming is a significant concern for only 29% of the population.
• Public worries vary sharply by the 'Six Americas' segments: the Alarmed prioritize global warming (92%), government services, and democracy (82%); the Concerned prioritize the economy (56%), cost of living (54%), and government corruption (53%); while the Doubtful and Dismissive prioritize illegal immigration (47% and 59% respectively).
• Political affiliation strongly influences worry levels: Liberal Democrats report high concern for democracy (81%) and government corruption (77%), while Conservative Republicans' only majority concern is illegal immigration (55%).
• Individuals identifying with the 'Make America Great Again' (MAGA) movement report lower levels of worry across almost all categories compared to the broader sample, except for crime and illegal immigration.
• The authors suggest that climate communication can be more effective by connecting climate action to widespread concerns such as reducing energy costs, creating economic opportunities, and ensuring government accountability.

APA

M., V., C., C., S., R., E., G., M., G., E., S., E., M., J., K., & A., L. (2025). Top Public Worries in the U.S. Center for Climate Change Communication. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/top-public-worries-in-the-u-s/

Chicago

M., Verner,, Carman, C., Rosenthal, S., Goddard, E., Goldberg, M., Scheuch, E., Maibach, E., Kotcher, J., and Leiserowitz, A. Top Public Worries in the U.S. Center for Climate Change Communication, 2025. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/top-public-worries-in-the-u-s/.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{m2025top, author = {M., Verner, and C., Carman, and S., Rosenthal, and E., Goddard, and M., Goldberg, and E., Scheuch, and E., Maibach, and J., Kotcher, and A., Leiserowitz,}, title = {{Top Public Worries in the U.S.}}, institution = {Center for Climate Change Communication}, year = {2025}, month = sep, url = {https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/top-public-worries-in-the-u-s/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }