According to the New Retirement Mindscape 2011 City Pulse index, 75 per cent of Americans have taken steps over the past year to prepare financially for retirement. However, when asked if they believe they'll achieve their dreams when retirement comes, only 18 per cent said they do compared to 21 per cent in 2010. Likewise, 24 per cent said they were "worried" about the retirement stage, from 21 per cent previously; 21 per cent said they were "anxious," from 17 per cent; and 10 per cent said they felt "depressed," from 8 per cent. 

The index examined the 30 largest US metropolitan areas to determine where consumers are the most prepared for and confident about retirement. 

"A bit of pessimism is understandable considering that the financial markets have been highly volatile, unemployment remains high and many have seen the value of their homes continue to decline," said Suzanna de Baca, vice president of wealth strategies at Ameriprise Financial.

"While all these issues can make focusing on retirement difficult, they also underscore the need for careful planning that doesn't just take in account the things you can control, but also factors in the impact of those you can't," added de Baca.

The results tie in with a study released earlier this year by Prudential, which showed that mass affluent Americans have become much more worried about their retirement preparations over the last five years. Meanwhile, recent research from Russell Investments found that there was "no consensus" in how advisors approach retirement income planning challenges.

Among the US states, residents in Californian cities appeared to have the most positive outlook on retirement, with 51 per cent saying they feel "happy," 42 per cent saying they are "optimistic," and 19 per cent saying they feel "empowered." The most negative outlooks came from residents of Indianapolis, New York and Atlanta, where only 27 per cent, 30 per cent and 31 per cent of respondents respectively said they were "hopeful" about retirement.

The New Retirement Mindscape 2011 City Pulse index was based on responses from 11,611 US adults ages 40 to 75. The survey was commissioned by Ameriprise Financial and conducted online by Harris Interactive from 4 to 12 August 2011.