(Kitco News) – The The significant setback that struck the crypto sector in 2022 has had an impact on public opinion regarding the asset class. According to the results of a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center from March 13-19.

OverallAccording to the survey, 17% of Americans have used, traded, or invested in cryptocurrency. Which is roughly the same as surveys taken in 2021 and 222.

Despite The years of advocacy by cryptocurrency proponents, awareness of the asset class remains high. 88% reported that they know something about cryptocurrency and have some basic understanding. 75% stated they did not believe the current ways of investing, trading, or using cryptocurrencies were safe and reliable.

That This means that approximately two-thirds of U.S. adults have an unfavorable opinion of the crypto market in its current state.

Among Those surveyed, 39% said they had no confidence in crypto, and 36% reported they were not very confident. Just 2% reported they were extremely confident and 4% very confident. 18% said they felt somewhat confident.

A notable age divide was found, with people over 50 more likely to report that they didn’t feel safe or reliable (85%), compared to their younger counterparts (66%). Additionally, the majority of women expressed more doubts about using, trading, and investing in cryptocurrencies than the 71% of men. 80% said they were not confident.

Cryptocurrency Holders were more likely to answer positively than non-crypto holders. However, Crypto investors also expressed concerns about its safety. 43% said they were not very or not at all confident in it.

The Young crypto ecosystem is still dominated by men. 41% of respondents aged 18-29 said they had invested in crypto, compared with 16% for women.

There Were also notable differences among racial and ethnic groups. Asian Adults and 21% of Black or Hispanic Adults said they had used or invested in cryptocurrency, as opposed to 14% of White adults. Those who have higher incomes have used the asset class more than those with middle incomes (22% vs. 19%) and lower incomes (13%).

The A majority (74%) used cryptocurrency for the first time in one to five years ago. However, only 16% of those who had used it in the past year have done so, indicating the impact of the crypto winter on adoption.

The The down year also saw 31% of those previously involved in crypto selling their holdings. LowerIn general, households of low-income (43%) were more likely to abandon cryptocurrency than those with middle-income (30%) or higher-income (21%). Women were also more likely to sell their holdings than men (37% vs. 29%).

Roughly 20% of cryptocurrency investors reported that their investments had an adverse effect on their finances, while 60% said they had helped or hurt. Only 7% felt that cryptocurrency had made their finances more secure, and 3% felt that it had made them less secure. ­

OverallThe crypto market has not performed as expected. 45% of respondents reported that their investments did worse than they expected. This compares to 15% who said that they had done better than expected, 32% who said that they had done roughly the same as expected, and 7% who were unsure.