Corrupt government officials, illness among the biggest fears of 2024

Just in time for spooky season’s candy-filled conclusion, Chapman University released its annual Survey of American Fears for 2024. For the ninth year in a row, the fear of corrupt government officials tops the list. 

“This year, all of our Top 10 fears were expressed by more than half of Americans, and many were high throughout the rest of the survey,” Chapman University sociologist Christopher Bader said in a statement. “This tells me Americans are becoming more afraid in general, about everything.”

[Related: How horror movie soundtracks prey on our fears.]

In the survey, 1,008 people across the United States were asked about 85 fears, including natural disasters, crime, ghosts, public speaking, and more. The top American fears in 2024 are:

Corrupt government officials – 65.2%

People I love becoming seriously ill – 58.4%

Cyberterrorism – 58.3%

People I love dying – 57.8%

Russia using nuclear weapons – 55.8%

Not having enough money for the future – 55.7%

U.S. becoming involved in another world war – 55% [TIED]

North Korea using nuclear weapons – 55% [TIED]

Terrorist attacks – 52.7%

Biological warfare – 52.5%

According to Bader, recent world events have stirred fears about war and terror attacks, as six of the top fears have to do with fears of war or warfare. Interestingly, the fear of running out of money had moved down to the tenth spot on the 2023 list, but bounced back to the sixth spot in 2024. Climate change-related fear has been consistent year-over-year, with roughly 49% of Americans responding that they were afraid or very afraid of the effects of climate change.

Not surprisingly, political fears have also intensified in the survey results as the country has a divisive presidential election only a few weeks away. More than half of Americans (51.6%) fear the outcome of the election, with 48.6% of respondents worried about potential civil unrest following the results. 

“The fear of government corruption has consistently been one of the top fears expressed by Americans,” Chapman University sociologist Steve Pfaff said in a statement. “What that tells us is there is a profound mistrust; that American citizens are worried about their government and afraid that powerful or resourceful interests may have undue influence over the government.”

The survey also detected how the sources people are getting information from have changed over time–and not for the better. You can also read the full survey results. 

[Related: How to learn to not fear heights.]

“Social media and websites target people by showing them things that they are afraid of,” said Bader. “Through algorithms, people are being fed their fears and we believe that’s increasing people’s overall level of fear.”

Conducted for Chapman by SSRS, this nationally representative survey utilizes a probability-based method. The survey was fielded in the spring of 2024 over the web. There were 1,008 respondents, with a margin of error of +/- 4%