The American public's approval of the war in Iraq is slipping, according to a recent poll conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

Following the public killing of four U.S. citizens in Fallujah last week, 57 percent of Americans say they support the war in Iraq, down from the 75 percent approval rating a year ago, but somewhat steady from a 63 percent approval in September.

A slightly more dramatic change is the public's perception of the way President Bush has handled the war. The approval rating of this administration's dealings with the Iraq conflict has dropped to 40 percent, from 75 percent a year ago. Now, 57 percent of Americans disapprove of Bush's handling of the war.

The Pew Research Center, the non-partisan group responsible for the study of 720 American adults, is an independent opinion research group that generates national surveys for current issues and public opinion. The survey was completed April 4.

Scott Bennett, a Penn State professor of political science, said this trend is nothing new in terms of the way the public views the actions of war.

"The basic fact is that as casualties mount, public support drops," Bennett said. "This is very typical of public support for war over the past 100 years."

Bennett also said it is too soon to worry about Bush's approval rating for the November elections.

"We have to watch to see what happens in September and October," Bennett said. "If we set up a constitution that the Iraqis accept, get our troops out and set up a stable regime, support could go way up."

Penn State students seem to hold the same split opinion as the rest of Americans.

Denise Lackey (senior-nutritional science) said she was completely opposed to the war in Iraq and not happy with the way Bush has handled the situation.

"He really screwed up," Lackey said. "He didn't put any forethought into what would happen after the war."

Lackey added that she thought the approach to the Iraq conflict lacked a clear-cut plan for peace in Iraq.

"The American military is obviously not respected there. They never received proper peacekeeping training, and that's extremely important," Lackey added.

Chris Lindsey (senior-history) said he absolutely supported the war in Iraq because the Bush administration has been up front with why the United States sent troops to Iraq.

"The reasons we went and the reasons we need to stay have been clearly outlined," he said. "It needed to be done eventually."

Lindsey said he approves of Bush's handling of the war, despite certain setbacks.

"Mistakes were made," he said. "But nobody has a crystal ball. Mistakes will always be made in war."

Gregory Holland (freshman-mining engineering) said he was ambivalent about the conflict.

"We've made a commitment to the people of Iraq, and we have to uphold it," Holland said. "We're losing a lot of lives, but their culture could collapse if we leave. How are we supposed to get out of this?"

Holland said despite his uncertainty about the war, he did not approve of the way Bush has dealt with it.

"If he was ready for this war, he should have had a backup plan," Holland said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.