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It's worth noting that Americans who plan to spend less don't always do so. The survey found that of those who made a budget for last year's holiday gift buying, 44% spent more than they had intended

The poll also found that 6% of adults still carry holiday debt from last year, unchanged from last year.

How many days of your hard-earned income will you spend that could otherwise be used to pay off long-standing consumer debt or added to your emergency savings?

Too many Americans are what Stanley calls "aspirational spenders" -- people who spend money to make themselves look richer or more successful than they are.But their "hyperconsumption" effectively torpedoes any chances they would have at accumulating real wealth, which typically requires spending significantly less than you earn and investing the difference

The "keeping up with the Joneses" mentality means the fancier the neighborhood, the less wealth we may accumulate, Stanley said. The opposite is also true: When our surroundings are more modest, we tend to spend less, regardless of our incomes

Yes, people have cut back their spending because of job losses, less access to credit and the desire to build up savings, Stanley said. But that cutback is likely to be reversed as the economy improves, he said

Of those 65-plus, nearly half (45 percent) say they’ll spend less than $300

“We shop every week and buy gifts all year long,” says Fowler, who retired from IBM in 1990. “We don’t wait till the season. It’s easier, and we get as good a deal as ever because we shop while the stores have sales.

Most people seem to want to avoid racking up debt this holiday season. More than three-quarters (78 percent) say they plan to buy their gifts with cash, check or a debit card.

The explosion in wealth created by the postwar boom had not made a dent, he discovered. Although the average family was 60 percent richer in 1974, levels of contentment remained unchanged from 1945” (USC Trojan Family Magazine, Winter 2007).

The United States is far richer in 2008 than it was 1974 and yet again these figures show no improvement. In fact, every measurement of personal well-being—psychological, emotional, and spiritual—demonstrates that despite our increased abundance we are less satisfied and more depressed than ever

As Easterlin has confirmed, as we acquire possessions, our aspirations rise in proportion to the gains, leaving us no happier than before. Indeed the more we earn, the more we want! This misguided expectation sets us up for perpetual disappointment because as the evidence demonstrates, prosperity fails as a source of true happiness and life satisfaction.

When do you think it is appropriate for stores to start decorating for and promoting the winter holidays? Before Labor Day1%Between Labor Day and Halloween5%Between Halloween and Thanksgiving36%After Thanksgiving54%Never1%Don't Celebrate Holidays1%Don't Know1%Refused to Answer1%Source: Consumer Reports National Research Center

Black Friday Hysteria Revealed