66 percent of Americans say kids treated with dignity, respect

WASHINGTON, Jan. 26 (UPI) -- Wealthier Americans in the United States are more apt than poorer ones to say children are treated with dignity and respect, a Gallup Poll indicates.

Sixty-six percent of people age 15 and older said children in the United States are treated with dignity and respect. The figure rose to 74 percent among the wealthiest part of the sample -- the top 20 percent of survey respondents, while 53 percent of those in the bottom 20 percent in wealth were likely to say the nation's children were treated with dignity and respect, Gallup reported.

Americans' opinions about whether children were respected varied by gender as well. Seventy percent of men, compared with 61 percent of women, said children in the country were treated with respect and dignity.

The survey found 80 percent said in 2012 most U.S. children have the opportunity to learn and grow every day. That response ranked 26th -- ahead of Greece, Lithuania and Estonia -- among 29 advanced countries that were surveyed and asked the same question in 2012.

Ninety-five percent of Swiss adults said most children in their country have the opportunity to learn and grow every day, followed by Norway at 93 percent, Luxembourg at 93 percent, Finland at 92 percent and Denmark at 90 percent.

The survey of 1,000 people age 15 and older -- employing both telephone and face-to-face interviews -- was conducted in 2012 in 29 countries. The surveys' margin of error ranged from 2.1 percentage points to 4.1 percentage points.