87% Believe Average Citizens Care More About the Country than Politicians

Only 18% Think Politicians Do a Good Job of Encouraging Community Service

Just One in Seven Believe Politicians "Practice What They Preach"

69% Think Government Should Educate Individuals on How to Get Involved

At least our hearts are in the right place.

Americans believe overwhelmingly that it's important to contribute to the greater good but most of us believe we can do a much better job, according to the results of a groundbreaking study released here today by Tiller, LLC, one of the nation's leading consultancies on the design and implementation of advocacy marketing programs.

Asked to rate the contribution they are currently making to the greater good on a 10-point scale, only 26% of Americans gave themselves a "7" or better. Eighty-three percent of Americans said they would like to do more to help others/contribute to the greater good, 73% said they'd be willing to do more if someone asked, and 64% wished they were "part of something bigger than themselves."

At the same time, Americans strongly believe that political discourse has obscured the common good and that politicians and the media alike should be doing a much better job of encouraging and facilitating good works.

The 2006 Tiller Social Action Survey was designed to better understand Americans' attitudes and behaviors relative to civic and charitable activities. It was conducted via the Internet between October 24 and October 27, 2006 by the national polling firm of Mathew Greenwald & Associates. All respondents were at least 21 years of age. The margin of error for the 1,039 interviews is +/-3.1%.

"We are a blessed nation; our cup runneth over," said Rob Densen, Founder and CEO of Tiller, LLC. "But when it comes to helping others, is the cup of loving kindness half full or half empty? For every one of us extending a helping hand, there's someone else who is not reaching out."

Nearly eight out of 10 survey respondents said that compared with past generations, Americans today are less interested in serving the good of the country. Asked to evaluate their contemporaries' social and civic involvements, 78% of those surveyed believe Americans their age don't spend enough time volunteering, 78% believe they are not as politically involved as they should be, and 70% believe they do not donate as much money as they should.

"The good news is this: Americans want to help others," Densen said. "The charitable taproot runs deep - and politicians, business leaders, and the media alike must do more to nourish it."

Of Family Ties, Time Constraints and Individual Responsibility

When it comes to good works, volunteering was seen, hands down, as the activity that makes the most difference. Sixty-two percent of respondents said volunteering makes a very significant difference. It was followed by donating money (42%).

Among the almost half (48%) of those surveyed who expressed disappointment in themselves for not being more involved, the desire to be with family (24%) and lack of time (23%) were the leading reasons for not doing more.

Fifty-eight percent of all respondents at least somewhat agreed with the statement, "I feel stretched so thin, I have nothing left to give." On the other hand, 93% of Americans believe someone who really feels the need to help usually finds a way to do so, 67% believe there are really no good excuses for not getting involved, and 79% say they have skills and expertise they could use to make a difference.

Of course, world improvement does not always require formal efforts.

The survey evidenced the strong sense that individual actions matter. Ninety-four percent of Americans believe it's important to take actions in their personal lives (recycling, giving blood, conserving energy, etc.) to address social issues, and 96% believe that doing things on a regular basis to make the world a better place is just as important as participating in a formal, organized effort. Seventy-seven percent disagree with the notion that the "world's problems are so profound that the actions of one individual don't really matter."

"Americans believe good works, like charity, begin at home," Densen said. "You may not have the time to coach Little League, mentor a young person, or volunteer at a soup kitchen, but everyone has the time to flip off a light switch or deposit a bottle in a recycling bin. The cumulative effects of millions of individual actions can be transformational."

But When It Comes to the Good of the Country,Many of Us Not Sure Where to Begin

One of the major impediments to greater individual involvement is not knowing how to get started. Among Americans wanting to do more, 36% cited "not knowing where to begin" or "not having found the right opportunity" as the main reasons they aren't more involved.

Only 19% of respondents said they were aware of the federal network of local, state and national service programs that connects Americans to service opportunities in education, public safety, health and the environment. Interestingly, when probed, less than 1% could correctly name the Corporation for National and Community Service.

When it comes to the national interest, not knowing how to help is as much of an issue as not knowing where.

Ninety-one percent of respondents agreed - 47% strongly - with President John F. Kennedy's famous statement, "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." At the same time, 46% of respondents said they weren't sure what the good of the country is and 82% thought the tone of the political discussion makes it hard to know what's best for our nation.

"In terms of advancing the nation's interests, the path has never been more obscure," said Tiller principal James Marren. "We think that reflects, in large part, the acrimony and extreme partisanship of today's political discourse."

Eighty-two percent of those surveyed said the political climate would improve if Americans spent more time helping others.

The survey also evidenced the sense that 9/11 was a missed opportunity for greater civic and social engagement.

Sixty-five percent of respondents wish they could have done more to help the country after 9/11, 54% believe we missed an opportunity to motivate Americans to do more for the country after 9/11, and 55% said they would have been willing to do more if asked.

"The tragedy of 9/11 has been compounded by what has not happened in the years since," Marren said. "Many Americans viewed 9/11 as the tipping point for a resounding call to individual action - a call that, unfortunately, was never sounded."

Politicians Get Low Marks

Americans believe that ordinary citizens are most responsible for calling others to contribute to the greater good and most effective at getting people to take action.

Politicians are viewed as having the second greatest responsibility for engaging the public, but Americans believe they've done a poor job of it. In fact, politicians are deemed as the least effective group in inspiring the public to action, trailing, among others, business leaders, entertainers and professional athletes.

"It is hugely ironic that politicians - who are, at least nominally, public servants - should be viewed as so ineffective at encouraging others to do good works," Densen said. "It bespeaks a profound skepticism about politicians and their motivations. As applied to politicians, the term 'public servant' is bordering on the oxymoronic."

Only 18% of those surveyed believe politicians do a good job of encouraging public service and only one in seven thinks politicians "practice what they preach."

Of those surveyed, 87% believed that average citizens care more about the country than politicians do.

The vast majority of those surveyed (83%) thought politicians should actively encourage community service. Asked how politicians should do so, 80% thought politicians should use their own actions to set a good example. Fifty-four percent of those surveyed thought politicians should sponsor educational programs or websites to inform people about opportunities to contribute to the greater good, the same percentage who were in favor of creating tax incentives to encourage good works.

"Politicians, in particular, come off as uncaring, uninvolved, and uninspiring," Densen said. "Maybe they should spend less time running for office and more time running charitable 5Ks."

In terms of government more generally, half of all respondents said the federal government was "not too" or "not at all effective" in creating and encouraging opportunities for Americans to help others, and 69% thought the government should create programs to educate Americans on how to take action on critical social issues.

At the same time, the vast majority of respondents - 88% - believe the media does not pay enough attention to people's good deeds.

Making It Everybody's Business

American businesses are not thought to be particularly responsible for fostering greater social involvement, nor are they seen as particularly effective. Only 4% of respondents viewed business as the most effective group at getting people to take action to support a cause, just slightly ahead of politicians.

At the same time, the public thinks there's plenty that business can do to help.

Seventy-three percent of respondents thought businesses should create incentives for their employees to participate in community or social service programs, 66% thought they should make significant contributions to community or social services organizations and causes, 63% thought businesses should create or sponsor their own community or social services programs, and 60% thought they should develop socially responsible business practices or products.

"When it comes to social responsibility, we think there is a gaping leadership void that business - by dint of its financial resources, reach and expertise - is uniquely positioned to fill," Densen said. "The really good news is that there are ways to do so that can have a dramatic, even transformational impact on brand as well as bottom line. Americans are looking for social innovation and leadership, and the shelves are bare."
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New York City-based Tiller, LLC is one of the nation's leading consultancies in the creation and implementation of advocacy marketing programs for major U.S. corporations. For more information on the 2006 Tiller Social Action Survey, a checklist of 10 things you can do now, and contact information for volunteer opportunities, please go to the Tiller website: www.tillerllc.com.

Mathew Greenwald & Associates is a premier full service market research firm headquartered in Washington, D.C.