Eight out of 10 Chinese say they are satisfied with the way things are going in China, according to survey results, in a sign that robust economic growth is outweighing social tensions over the income gap between rich and poor.

The 81 percent satisfaction rate is an increase from the 72 percent recorded in 2005, the Pew Global Attitudes Project said in a public opinion poll of 15 countries. Those Chinese who were unhappy with the state of the nation dropped to 13 percent, from 19 percent a year ago, according to results released Tuesday.

Aside from China, citizens of only two other countries, Egypt and Jordan,  were content with national conditions, said the survey, which covered a range of topics, from national attitudes to global warming, bird flu and the Iran nuclear crisis.

Contentment at home also reflected well in Chinese opinions of foreign countries, except Japan, whose relations with China have deteriorated from disputes over territory and wartime history. Only 21 percent held a favorable opinion of Japan, the survey said, while views of the United States, France and Germany grew more positive over the year.

The survey has a 2 percent margin of error. It interviewed 2,180 people between the ages of 18 and 60 and was skewed toward urban China, with the interviews mostly conducted in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xinxiang, Jinzhong and Luzhou.

Years of nearly double-digit or higher economic growth has favored cities, creating more comfortable lives for many. In response they've promised to increase funding for rural areas to address a yawning income gap.

On other issues, the Pew poll found that 93 percent of Chinese had heard about bird flu, which has been endemic in the country for years and has killed at least 128 people worldwide since it began spreading in Asia in 2003.

While 78 percent of Chinese have heard of global warming, only a fraction, 20 percent, say they are worried, the survey said. Some 37 percent express little or no concern about the problem, it said, although China is the world's second biggest producer of greenhouse gases after the United States.

Chinese are paying less attention to events in the Middle East. Only 37 percent have heard of the Iran nuclear standoff, tying China with Pakistan as having the lowest level of awareness on the issue among the countries polled, the survey said.

Chinese also have little knowledge of the election victory of Hamas and reports of abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison, it said.