We're All Teachers' Pets

In the 32 years since the Harris Poll first began surveying Americans about jobs they consider the most prestigious/important, the percentage pointing the finger at their educators as having the most prestige has shot up from 29% to 51%, according to a news release about the latest Harris survey on the issue.

Also since then, scientists have dropped nine points to 57% and lawyers have shed 10 points to 26%. Two have remained unchanged – priests/ministers/clergy at 41% and journalists at 17%, and another two very stable – entertainers, down one point to 17%; and bankers, down one point to 16%, according to the announcement.

Among the occupations with a deficit of public support : business executives are still near the bottom of the list with 62% of Americans saying they have only some prestige or hardly any prestige at all. Farmers shed five points to 36% and accountants four points to 11%.

In all, the top three slots in the latest poll went to firefighters, scientists and doctors while the bottom three were taken up with stock brokers, accountants and real estate broker/agents.

So what’s the takeaway about Americans’ occupational viewpoint? Harris said professions near the top of the list are not high-paying jobs – such as firefighters, nurses and teachers – while ones at the bottom may have a lot of fame attached to them – athletes, actors, entertainers – or are ones that have the potential to earn large salaries – business executives, stockbrokers, real estate agents.

The bottom line: people apparently do not equate money and fame with prestige, Harris contended.

The full survey results are available here .

The poll was conducted by telephone within the United States between July 7 and 14, 2009 among a nationwide cross section of 1,010 adults (aged 18 and over).

Source: The Harris Poll