2,000 People Nationwide Surveyed:

ANSWERS PAINT RICH, DISTURBING PORTRAIT
OF AMERICANS' VIEWS ON AMERICA

	For many Americans, "politics" can be boiled down to "Who
ya' gonna vote for?" But it is the attitudes that lie behind the
question that offer insights into the nation's political culture.
The Post-Modernity Project at the University of Virginia, led by
director and "Culture Wars" author James Davison Hunter, has
combined forces with Carl Bowman, a sociology professor at
Bridgewater College, and the Gallup Organization to conduct one of
the most comprehensive surveys on American political culture
undertaken. 

	In 2,000 face-to-face interviews nationwide, each lasting
over an hour, Americans of diverse social, cultural and economic
backgrounds were asked questions about their ideals, beliefs and
values. "The Survey of American Political Culture," provides a rich
portrait of American public opinion. 

	Leading the analysis of the survey data is Hunter, the W. R.
Kenan Professor of Sociology at U.Va. Calling the survey "The State
of Disunion," Hunter believes it reflects Americans' perceptions of,
and expectations for, American democracy. 

	"The survey penetrates America's most recent dilemmas -- the
apparent disaffection with our present political system, the
prominence of special-interest groups, such as the Christian Right,
and the proliferation of anti-government militias. Observers write
about the fragmentation of our culture, the erosion of morales, the
consequences of new class divisions, and the loss of legitimacy for
key public institutions. Although their warnings are ominous and
repeated by anecdote, they have rarely been tested against empirical
data. This survey ascertains how much of talk about America's
problems can be substantiated," Hunter said. 

	Following is a synopsis of the 13-page summary of the Post
Modernity Project's survey of American political culture. For a copy
of the survey's executive summary or a full report, contact the
Post-Modernity Project at (804) 924-7705 or the U.Va. News Office at
(804) 924-3890. 

	Hunter, who will be available periodically for interviews,
can be reached at (804) 924-7705. If Hunter is unavailable, other
researchers in the Post Modernity Project, a coordinated,
multi-perspective examination of the nature and consequences of
contemporary social change, can answer survey questions. In
addition, Bowman is at (540) 828-5349.

	Major findings of the survey of American political culture
include: 

General Agreement on Ideals

	The survey shows remarkably high levels of support for the
"American creed." For example:

	¥	More than 9 out of 10 Americans (94%) agreed that it
is important to teach children that "America's contribution is one
of expanding freedom for more and more people."
	¥	95% said it is important to teach children that
"America is the world's great melting pot, in which people from
different countries are united into one nation."
	¥	96% said it is important to teach children that
"with hard work and perseverance, anyone can succeed in America." 

	The strong endorsement of American ideals is seen in
people's opinions about the political system.  For example:

	¥	A majority (56%) indicated that it has "respect for
the political institutions in America," and 76% expressed pride in
"living under our system of government."
	¥	69% felt that "our system of government is the best
possible system."

Pessimism About America

	However, despite the endorsements of ideals, Americans
expressed pervasive pessimism about how the political system is
working and America as a whole.

	¥	Only 10% felt that the U.S. is improving overall,
and only 1 out of 100 said that the improvement is strong.
	¥	50% said that the U.S. is in decline. One out of
five contended that it is a strong decline.

	Among answers that showed disaffection toward the government
were:

	¥	21% expressed no confidence when asked to react to
"when the government decides to solve a problem, the problem will
actually be solved."
	¥	63% believed that the "federal government controls
too much of our daily lives." Half of those surveyed felt that
ordinary people "don't have any say about what the government does."
	¥	The majority (61%) agreed with the concept that the
best government is one that governs least. The majority favored
reducing the size of the federal government and shifting many
functions from the federal to state level.

	Many expressed pervasive dissatisfaction in how government
functions, particularly at the national level.

	¥	The majority are "worried" or "upset." However,
those at the socio-economic bottom are the least upset with
government. The white, well-educated, middle classes, mostly from
small towns in the eastern-central states are the most worried, and
those who expressed the most negative sentiments generally. 

	Americans expressed cynicism toward political leadership;

	¥	Two-thirds of the American public believe that while
the American system of government is good, "the people running it
are incompetent; 90% believe that "people in government waste a lot
of the money we pay in taxes."
	¥	7 out of 10 people believe that "most elected
officials don't care what people like me think."
	¥	8 out of 10 agreed that "most politicians are more
interested in winning elections than in doing what is right." 

Trends in Thoughts about Political Leadership 

	In 1966, 41% had a "great deal of confidence" in the
presidency. One decade later, the figure was 23%, a number that held
fairly steady for two decades, according to Harris and National
Opinion Research Center polls. In this survey only 13% has a "great
deal of confidence" in the executive branch.

	In 1966, 42% of the population had a great deal of
confidence in Congress. By the mid '70s, the number had dropped to
the teens, and in this survey, it is 5%.

	"The public's increasingly negative opinion of politicians
is coupled with distrust for the larger body of cultural and
political elites -- those people who run major institutions such as
the government, universities and the mass media," Hunter points out.

	¥	The majority regard the governing elite as
insensitive to people's concerns, unconcerned with values and
morality, unconcerned with the common good and only concerned about
the elites' own agenda. 
	¥	The majority also views the governing elite as
irreligious, out of touch with reality, not in the mainstream. 

	"Whether confused, angry, resentful or indifferent, the vast
majority of Americans (81%) resonates with the stinging indictment
that "political events these days seem more like theater or
entertainment than like something to be taken seriously,'" Hunter
observes. 

The Pressure Points in American Democracy 

Racial Matters

	The survey indicates a surprising similarity about how much
blacks and whites agree with each other on matters of political
culture.

	¥	Blacks and whites embrace middle-class morality at
roughly the same levels and blacks manifest as much, if not more,
religious commitment than whites.
	¥	Blacks are as committed to the American dream as are
whites; they are as civic minded and as supportive of the political
system.


	The survey, however, indicates that the most important
differences between blacks and whites are their opposing views
toward race relations and policy.

	¥	When asked, for example, to consider if the quality
of life for African-Americans has improved, deteriorated or stayed
the same over the past 10 years, nearly two thirds (62%) of all
whites thought it had gotten better -- a figure twice as high as
that expressed by African-Americans.
	¥	Only 12% of whites thought that the quality of life
for African-Americans had gotten worse; nearly three times the
number of African-Americans felt it had.

Social Elites

	The "social elites," who the survey authors described as
individuals who have at least some graduate-level education and
whose occupation is either small business owner, manager or public
official, professional or retiree with income of at least $50,000 a
year, were characterized in the following ways by respondents:

	¥	Social elites are the least likely to believe
literally in the Bible or to pray frequently. They tend to describe
their beliefs as theologically liberal. They are the least likely to
say they believe in God and the most likely to say they believe in a
"universal spirit or life force."
	¥	The social elites are least likely to reject as
immoral such behaviors as pornography, marijuana use, cigarettes,
alcohol, sex before marriage and homosexual relations and homosexual
marriages.

The Christian Right

	The survey's answers present a portrayal of the Christian
Right.

	¥	The Christian Right is composed disproportionately
of women (58% as compared to 42% men). Members are also
disproportionately from the South; nearly half is from that region.
	¥	Over 96% is white.
	¥	The Christian Right members are among the most
unwavering in their commitment to the political system. Yet, they
display a remarkable pessimism about American society. 81% said they
thought America was in either strong or moderate decline, compared
to 51% of the total population. 

	The survey showed that:

	¥	Contrary to the general media impression of the
Christian Right, the majority of Americans view those in the
movement as patriotic and well-meaning -- people of character and
conviction who are concerned about the family and morality.

The Gay Community

	The survey confirms the public's increasing acceptance of
homosexuality, as shown in other recent polls. 

	¥	Only one-third of those surveyed thought that
homosexuality is "morally wrong and should not be legally
tolerated." However, about two-thirds disagreed with an assertion
that homosexuals should have the right to marry and adopt children.

The Politics of Paranoia

	The survey also explored characteristics of those who
distrust and dislike the American system of government and who
believe the government conspires against the interests of citizens.

	¥	The survey found that strong suspicions of
conspiracy flourish in the West, fade toward the East and perish
across the Alleghanies. The more physically distant a region is from
the seat of national power, the more distrustful are its inhabitants.
	¥	Those who lament a decline in quality of national
leaders are likely to call for congressional term limits.
	¥	Those who harbor fears of governmental conspiracy
are likely to oppose restrictions on the sale and use of handguns.
They also favor reducing the federal government.

Middle Class Fears

	The survey shows that the middle classes are not especially
worried about the economy, their jobs or personal finances. Instead
they fear they are losing what makes their everyday living important
-- their Judeo Christian God, family life, moral commitments, work
ethic and public school system.

	"It is not a 'fear of falling' that haunts the middle
classes, but a fear of the curtain falling upon their way of life,"
Hunter notes. 

	The disaffection with political institutions and those who
run them seems to be structural -- largely a function of the size of
the institutions, the frailties of their leaders, the abstraction of
how the political system operates, and the distance Americans feel
toward them, Hunter concludes in the survey's summary. 

	The disaffection of the middle classes is particularly
troubling, he observes. "When the middle classes retreat into
disaffection, the vitality of civic institutions can only be
weakened. The middle classes' fear of insignificance -- that their
way of life is being eroded and becoming less viable -- raises
questions about their long-term commitment to the American political
process. The critical question is: 'Is this situation sustainable
over time?'" Hunter asks. 

###

October 22, 1996