That's the assessment of a new report released on Thursday by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS). There is growing concern about a contradiction in the U.S. economy: jobs are plentiful and economic growth is strong, especially compared with other advanced economies, but surveys show many Americans are sour about the outlook. A key part of the report is a new tool developed to measure the well-being of Americans, which combines 11 different measures. Researchers around the world have long sought to find better ways to gauge the well-being of people that look beyond measures such as economic growth or unemployment. Reuters GraphicsOne unique part of the measure is an attempt to quantify the "political voice" of Americans.

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Persons: Gaelen Morse, Matthew Slaughter, Nicholas Lemann, there's, Lemann, Jacob Hacker, Timothy Aeppel, Paul Simao Organizations: REUTERS, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Dartmouth College's Tuck School of Business, Federal Reserve, U.S . Census, Columbia Journalism School, Reuters, Yale University, Thomson Locations: Columbus , Ohio, U.S, America