Has the economy and the situation for the average americans been improved substainially since 2009? No. Has the stock market been going up since 2009? Yes. Is there any correlation between the economy and the stock market? No. Why? Because it is programmed. It's traded by computers programmed to push the market higher and millions of dollars from QE. That's it.
You don't understand equities. They are ownership in companies. The stock market went up because companies are worth more, making larger profits. Today's economy best serves big corporations and rich people, if you want a piece of that action you buy part of some companies. Computers don't push markets higher at all. Once you begin to understand that equities are ownership in companies, you will understand how absurd ideas can be on the economy vs stock market, and various conspiracy theories that are popular on this site. If you believe the average american is losing out these days ( and this may be true ), blame the US governments of the last 30 years for enabling policies that are ultra pro-corporation and rich guys. Don't blame the stock market that merely reflects on the earning power of those entities. Any "average american" that invested in the US markets via retirement funds has done rather well; if many can't afford to do so, it's the economy that's broken not the corporations that benefit from it.