by WorldTribune Staff, July 2, 2025 Real World News
As Independence Day approaches, what exactly is the “American dream” in 2025?
“Although many people say owning a home, having a successful career, and becoming wealthy are important to them, they do not place the same value on these achievements as freedom, meaning, and family,” said the latest American Dream report from the Archbridge Institute.
The report found that the American dream has a deeper meaning which 7 in 10 Americans believe is achievable.
“’Freedom of choice in how to live’ and ‘having a good family life’ are the most essential achievements for all age, education, ethnic, income, and political groups. Just 15% of Americans overall view ‘becoming wealthy’ as essential to the American Dream,” the Archbridge Institute found in its survey of 2,100 adults jointly done with NORC at the University of Chicago and its AmeriSpeak panel.
Other key findings:
• Most Americans (69%) believe they have achieved the American Dream or are on their way to achieving it, regardless of race, income, or education. This positive attitude is consistent with past surveys and represents a small increase from last year. Only 30% of people said the American Dream is out of reach.
• Across all demographics, a majority of Americans agree that most people believe in the American Dream and that Americans can be united around a shared belief in the American Dream (66% and 65%, respectively). These beliefs are slightly more popular than a year ago.
• Most Americans regard living better and fuller lives—rather than simply becoming wealthy—as essential to the American Dream. “Freedom of choice in how to live” (83%) and “having a good family life” (80%) continue to be the most important achievements associated with the American Dream. In comparison, only 15% of people say becoming wealthy is essential, down from 19% last year. Other factors include retiring comfortably (72%), owning a home (52%), having a successful career (45%), and making valuable contributions to the community (34%).
• Intergenerational mobility is an important tenet of the American Dream. Most of today’s U.S. adults believe they have more or about the same opportunities as their parents, with just 23% saying they have fewer opportunities than their parents.
• A majority of American parents are similarly optimistic about their children’s opportunities. However, nearly a quarter of parents worry that their children will have fewer opportunities than they did, a trend that has increased over the past three years.
• When asked about advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), most Americans are ambivalent about the effects of technology on the American Dream. About half (51%) of U.S. adults think AI will not affect their pursuit of the American Dream; 31% of people think it will have a negative effect, and 16% think it will have a positive effect.
The report states:
To paraphrase President Ronald Reagan: The American Dream is never more than one generation away from extinction.
We must continue to foster support—economic, psychological, and cultural—for the American Dream to flourish. In a follow-up question, most Americans identified economic conditions as the biggest barrier to their American Dream. This suggests the need for policy reforms, outreach, and education to remove economic barriers at the state and federal levels. We can also embrace the unifying nature of the American Dream to reinvigorate our shared national identity and pursue positive-sum solutions.
Finally, each of us can continue to propel the American Dream by taking actionable steps in our own lives to overcome obstacles and reach our fullest potential.
Report: In 2025, the ‘American dream’ is more about freedom and family than wealth added by Editor Two on July 2, 2025
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