The survey found blame to go around: about half said steps taken by President Obama and both parties in Congress had made things "somewhat worse" or "much worse." Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, fared even worse on this question.
The poll found that one in four Pennsylvania residents has had someone living in his or her household lose a job or be laid off in the last 12 months - and two out of three had close friends or family members who were put out of work in that time.
More than three out of every four Pennsylvanians said they knew individuals or families who struggle every month to afford basic needs such as rent, utilities, health care, clothes, or food.
"The poverty question was startling," said Joseph Morris, a professor and director of the college's Center for Applied Politics, which conducted the poll, "as was the fact that a strong majority of Pennsylvanians have had to make lifestyle changes because of the economy."
More than half of respondents said they had had to alter their lifestyles in some way because of the economy.
The pollsters also tested opinions on natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale - "because it is the most pressing issue in the state right now," Morris said.
Pennsylvanians are conflicted over the drilling, the poll found: While most recognize the economic benefit of increased hiring and payments to lease land, along with less reliance on foreign oil, those surveyed were evenly divided on the potential costs of the activity for the environment and human health.
Morris said he believed the poll contained the most extensive battery of shale-related questions to date, emphasizing the extraction method known as hydraulic fracturing or fracking. The process involves using large amounts of water and sand filled with chemicals that are blasted deep underground to break apart rock and release gas.
