American Public Vastly Overestimates Amount of U.S. Foreign Aid

Abstract

This November 2010 poll examined Americans' estimates of the amount of the federal budget that is devoted to foreign aid. A total of 848 randomly selected adults aged 18 and older participated. When asked to estimate how much of the federal budget goes to foreign aid, respondents' median estimate was 25 percent. Asked how much they thought would be an "appropriate" percentage, the median response was 10 percent. In fact, just 1 percent of the federal budget goes to foreign aid.