Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal created buzz with its new poll detailing changes in American values. The findings pointed out that traditional American values such as patriotism, religion, having children and community involvement have all been in decline. But a closer look at the survey, and the historical comparisons used, raise questions about that conclusion.
The poll
was conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago using today’s gold standard
of survey design, which recruits online panel participants via mail, email,
telephone and in-person interviews. This thorough process attempts to recreate
a true random sample that has been increasingly difficult to obtain since
surveys went fully into the digital space. Ultimately, 980 of the 1,019
respondents answered survey questions alone via an online form.
To reach
the conclusions that certain values are on the decline, data from the March
2023 poll is compared to data from a 1998 poll, conducted entirely among people
on landline telephones, and a 2019 poll that involved calling a mix of landline
and cell phone numbers to find respondents. At the time these polls were
conducted, the methods used were standard and widely accepted.
But on a
topic as loaded as values, it’s hard to ignore that in the two historical
versions of these polls, respondents had to answer to a live person, which triggers
social desirability bias, or the tendency to answer questions in a way that
will make them look favorable to others.
For
example, if people have been brought up to think patriotism and religion are
good and important values, they are likely to tell others they value those
things, even if they don’t. When given the chance to answer away from the
interaction of other people, survey respondents are probably more likely to
provide their honest feelings. We see this in our everyday lives as well. According
to a State Policy Network State Voices poll, 59 percent of voters say they have
stayed quiet when they had a difference of opinion to avoid a conflict.
If you
don’t make faulty comparisons to previous surveys, the data in the new WSJ/NORC
poll is encouraging. Self-fulfillment, which is significantly related to the
American ideal of individualism and personal responsibility, is important to 91
percent of Americans. Hard work, which is at the core of American values and
success, tops the list, with 94 percent saying it is important to them.
Seventy
percent value marriage and 65 percent value having children. These figures are
out of line with current marriage and fertility rates, which suggests there is
work to do not in propping up these values but rather in helping Americans
achieve these milestones. Amending tax codes that effectively punish marriage
and reducing regulations that drive up the cost of having children would be a
good start. Although half the country at any given moment thinks the party in
power is steering America down the wrong path, the ideal of patriotism still
unites three-quarters of Americans.
A final
number stands out in the 2023 NORC data: 90 percent of Americans believe
“tolerance for others” is important, and over half qualify it as “very”
important. American norms on religion, family and community have been in flux
since our nation’s founding. It is not any one vision for how these are
incorporated into our lives that defines American values. It is the fact that
we can live alongside people whose views differ from our own, respect their
individuality and still build a nation together.
Perhaps
the anonymity of online communication has shown us we aren’t exactly who we
thought we were and that there is more diversity of thought in America than
stereotypes would suggest. But the WSJ/NORC poll shows that the big-tent,
melting pot version of America is very much alive and well.
***Erin
Norman is the Lee Family Fellow and the senior messaging strategist at State
Policy Network.
https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/3923804-are-americans-really-pulling-back-from-traditional-values/