While the stereotype of hard-working Americans is often a positive one , the United States has also been criticized in recent years as a workaholic culture . In '' The Huffington Post '' , Tijana Milosevic , a Serbian who had traveled to Washington , D.C. for a degree , wrote , " In fact my family and friends had observed that I should n’t have chosen America , since I would probably feel better in Western Europe — where life is not as fast paced as in the US and capitalism still has a ' human face . ' " She noted that " Americans still work nine full weeks ( 350 hours ) longer than West Europeans do and paid vacation days across Western Europe are well above the US threshold . " Researchers at Oxford Economics hired by the US Travel Association estimated that in 2014 " about 169m vacation days , equivalent to $ 52.4 bn in lost benefits " , went unused by American workers . Professor Gary L. Cooper argued Americans " have a great deal to learn from Europeans about getting better balance between work and life " and wrote : The notion that working long hours and not taking holidays makes for a more productive workforce is , in my view , a managerial myth , with no foundation in organizational or psychological science . The human body is a biological machine , and like all machines can wear out . In addition , if employees do n't invest personal disposal time in their relationships outside , with their family , loved ones and friends , they will be undermining the very social support systems they may need in difficult and stressful times . Along with many stereotypes , nations view the United States as one of the most powerful nations in the world . However , this view is partnered with the view that the United States is corrupt , arrogant , cold and bloodthirsty . Whether speaking about the United States ’ government or the nation 's people as a whole , these views seem to stand even though these views are not exhaustively shared by the whole world . Peter Glick , co-author of " Anti-American Sentiment and America 's Perceived Intent to Dominate : An 11-Nation Study " , conducted research on 5,000 college students from eleven countries using the stereotype content model ( SCM ) and the image theory ( IT ) measure . " Consistent with the SCM and IT measure was the view that the United States is a nation intent on domination also with predicted perceptions that the nation is lacking warmth , and that the nation is arrogant , but out of incompetence . " As a result of similar views , anti-American sentiment can develop , and the United States ’ security can be put at risk . For example , one of the most infamous anti-American acts against the United States was the 9/11 attacks . American stereotypes were not the main proponent of these attacks , but stereotypes become self-fulfilling and normative . If America is seen as arrogant , power hungry , intrusive , etc. , then it is perceived that most American individuals exhibit this behavior , at least to some degree , and that the nation as a whole involves itself in situations in which it may have no business interfering
9/11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Stereotypes of Americans