--- Jeffrey Fisher <jfisher at igc.org> wrote:
>
> i'd actually like to see some studies along with
> methodology about this.
>
> incidentally, let's also not confuse political
> liberalism/leftism with
> sexual liberalism.
>
> j
>
Ask and ye shall recieve! -krd
---- COLLEGE FRESHMEN MORE POLITICALLY LIBERAL THAN IN THE PAST, UCLA SURVEY REVEALS
--Survey reports more students have liberal views towards death penalty, drug testing, and gay rights—
Editor’s note: To reach the Higher Education Research Institute directly, call (310) 825-1925.
More college freshmen identify themselves as politically liberal, according to the results of UCLA’s annual survey of the nation’s students entering undergraduate classes.
The fall 2001 survey conducted by the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA’s Graduate School of Education and Information Studies finds that 29.9 percent of students entering four-year colleges and universities characterize their political views as "liberal" or "far left," the highest percentage in two decades, and substantially higher than the 20.7 percent who consider themselves "conservative" or "far right." The overall percentage of today’s "liberal" freshmen increased from 27.7 percent last year and 21.0 percent in 1981, but is still lower than the all-time high of 40.9 percent recorded in 1971. Most students labeled themselves "middle of the road" (49.5 percent, down from 51.9 percent last year).
"Although students are less likely to identify themselves as ‘liberal’ than they were in the early 1970s, the popularity of the liberal label has increased for five consecutive years and is at its highest point since 1975," says Linda Sax, UCLA education professor and director of the survey.
The tendency toward liberalism among the 2001 freshmen is evident in their changing attitudes about a wide range of social and political issues, including the death penalty, drug testing, and gay rights.
A record high 57.9 percent of this year’s freshmen believe that same sex couples should have the right to legal marital status (compared to 56 percent last year and 50.9 percent in 1997.) Only one-fourth (24.9 percent) of entering students advocate laws prohibiting homosexual relationships compared to 27.2 percent last year. This is a significant decline from the record high of half (50.4 percent) of students who agreed with the statement in 1987, and a record low since the question was first asked in 1976.
Additionally, today’s freshmen express more liberal views about drug legalization and testing. Over one-third (36.5 percent) agree that marijuana should be legalized, an increase from last year’s 34.2 percent and the highest rating since 1980. While 75 percent of today’s freshmen agree that employers should be allowed to require drug testing of employees or job applicants, support for testing is down slightly from last year (76.5 percent) and is lower than any year since the question entered the survey in 1988.
Over the last two decades, there also has been a steady increase in the percentage of freshmen who believe that the death penalty should be abolished. This year, 32.2 percent of incoming college students advocate ending capital punishment, an increase from 31.2 percent last year and the highest score since 1980.
"In short," says Alexander W. Astin, education professor and founding director of the survey, "What we have been seeing in the past few years is a broad-based trend toward greater liberalism on practically every attitudinal question in the survey."
Now in its 36th year, the UCLA Survey is the nation’s longest-standing and most comprehensive assessment of student attitudes and plans. Conducted in association with the American Council on Education, the survey serves as a resource for higher education researchers throughout the world.
The fall 2001 survey included 411,970 entering freshmen at 704 of the nation’s higher education institutions. Data culled from 281,064 of those students at 421 baccalaureate institutions have been statistically adjusted to be representative of the 1.2 million freshmen entering four-year colleges and universities as first-time, full-time students last fall.
The vast majority of these respondents (97.5 percent) completed the survey before September 11. Therefore, changes between 2000 and 2001 do not reflect students’ reactions to those events.
Full Text.... http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/heri/01_press_release.htm
===== Kevin Dean Buffalo, NY ICQ: 8616001 AIM: KDean75206 Buffalo Activist Network http://www.buffaloactivist.net http://www.yaysoft.com
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