SACRED HEART UNIVERSITY NEWS
Contact: Funda Alp, 203-396-8241, alpf@sacredheart.edu
For Immediate Release
May 16, 2006
MAJORITY OF AMERICANS CITE SENSE OF ENTITLEMENT AMONG YOUTH, SAYS NATIONAL POLL
Confidence, Education, Careers, Politics, Religion, Steroid Testing among issues polled on perceptions about America's youth
FAIRFIELD, Conn.—Apparently, Senator Hillary Clinton isn't the only American who thinks that young people have a sense of entitlement today. Nearly 83% of Americans surveyed strongly or somewhat agreed that America's youth feel more entitled compared to 10 years ago, according to a national survey conducted by the Sacred Heart University Polling Institute.
The poll focused on perceptions of America's youth and explored areas including career choices, decisions about things such as going to college, and which political party to join.
Perceptions about issues such as steroid testing for student athletes, banning soda in public schools, support for more religious courses in public schools and for allowing public school students to reference God in their coursework were also addressed by the poll.
“People seem to favor the helping professions (teacher, doctor, religious leader, missionary) more than military service, government careers, or political office. The patriotism that was so strong following 9/11 seems to have continued to wane, and people seem to want a ‘kinder, gentler' society,” commented Dr. Kathryn M. LaFontana, associate professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at Sacred Heart University.
“People's perceptions of youth are somewhat mixed. On the one hand, survey respondents seem to be somewhat protective. On the other hand, respondents also say that youth feel more entitled and are more assertive, while being less responsible and less religious than earlier generations. Therefore, it seems that people want to protect young people, but not indulge them,” she continued.
On Perceptions of America's Youth…
- A large majority of respondents, 82.9%, strongly or somewhat agreed that America's youth feel more entitled compared to 10 years ago. And, 81.5% agreed they are more assertive.
- Three-quarters of respondents, 76.9%, agreed that America's youth are more pressured to succeed today than 10 years ago.
About half of all respondents said America's youth are more confident, more educated, and have more self-esteem – 53.7%, 57.3% and 55.6% respectively.
- Majorities of Americans disagree with the characterization of today's youth as more responsible (54.3%) and more religious (57.6%).
- When viewing just “strongly agree” results, 51.9% and 51.6% strongly agreed that youth feel more entitled and are more assertive, respectively. Another 10.6% and 14.0% strongly agreed that youth are more religious and responsible than ten years ago, respectively.
On Careers for America's Youth…
Americans surveyed were asked what career advice they would give their own children or other young people graduating from high schools and colleges over the next couple of months. All respondents were asked if they strongly supported, somewhat supported, somewhat opposed or strongly opposed eleven different career decisions.
The highest levels of support (strongly and somewhat combined) were recorded for becoming doctors (95.3%), teachers (94.8%) and starting a business (92.8%).
High, but lower levels of support (strongly and somewhat) were recorded for becoming a religious leader (such as Minister, Priest, Rabbi or Imam) (81.1%), farmer (80.7%), lawyer (80.7%), stay-at-home mom or dad (77.1%), or taking time off to serve as an overseas missionary (75.7%).
More moderate support (strongly and somewhat) was recorded for “joining the military” (66.1%), a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) career (65.4%) and “running for political office” (63.1%).
When viewing the results by only those offering “strongly support” for each of the 11 career paths, the highest percent (78.1%) was recorded for “becoming a teacher,” while the lowest was for “running for political office” (33.2%).
Crosstabulation of Results:
- On a composite basis, 66.1% strongly or somewhat supported a military career. Among Republican voters the percent was 88.1 while among Democrats the percent was 42.0. Among Independent voters, the percent was 68.8. Those with children were less likely (64.4%) to support a military career than those without (71.0%). Hispanics (62.5%) and whites (66.8%) were more likely than African-Americans (56.5%) to support a military career.
- Support for a career in the Central Intelligence Agency was strongest among Republicans (73.2%). Among Democrats and independents the percents were 66.7 and 60.5 respectively. Those less than 35 years of age were significantly more likely (87.5%) to support a CIA career than those 36-65 years of age (65.5%) and those 66 years of age or older (58.5%).
On Supporting Decisions Made by America's Youth…
Researchers asked respondents if they would strongly support, somewhat support, somewhat oppose or strongly opposed various decisions facing many young Americans today.
- Impressively, 94.3% of all American surveyed supported a decision to get a college degree.
- Nearly two thirds of respondents supported a decision to take time off to travel after graduation from high school or college (68.5%), to join a union at work (68.0%) or to study overseas (66.9%).
- Just under half supported a decision to register Democrat (47.2%), while 41.0% supported a decision to register Republican.
Other Issues Facing Our Youth…
- A large majority of respondents, 88.3% (up slightly from 87.3% in April 2005), strongly or somewhat supported testing high school athletes for steroids. A larger percent, 91.0, supported testing of college athletes.
- Three-quarters of all respondents, 74.0%, strongly or somewhat supported allowing public school students to reference God in coursework and speeches. Another 64.0% supported more religious courses in high school and college. Those with children were significantly more likely to support allowing references to God (77.8%) than those with no children (63.1%).
- Half of all Americans surveyed, 54.2%, strongly or somewhat supported banning all sodas in high school. Of this group, just 29.7% strongly supported such a move.
- And, one-third (31.3%) strongly or somewhat supported having high school students wear identification badges with microchips installed to monitor their movements while in school. Of this group, just 15.2% strongly supported such a move.
EXPERTS AVAILABLE FOR COMMENT
- Kathryn M. LaFontana, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the Department of Psychology, Sacred Heart University
- Jerry Lindsley, director, Sacred Heart University Polling Institute
To speak with these experts, please contact Funda Alp at 203-396-8241 or alpf@sacredheart.edu.
How the Poll Was Conducted
The Sacred Heart University Polling Institute completed 1,000 interviews with residents nationwide between May 1-8, 2006. The sample was generated proportional to population contribution in all 50 states. Statistically, a sample of 1,000 completed telephone interviews represents a margin for error of +/-3.0% at a 95% confidence level.
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About Sacred Heart University
Sacred Heart University, the second-largest Catholic university in New England, offers more than 50 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs. Its main campus in Fairfield, Connecticut, is complemented by satellites in Connecticut, Luxembourg and Ireland. Over 5,600 students are enrolled in its four colleges: Arts & Sciences; Education & Health Professions; University College; and the newly established John F. Welch College of Business, committed to educating students in the leadership tradition and legacy of Jack Welch. U.S. News & World Report and the Princeton Review place SHU among America's best colleges in the Northeast, and Intel rates it #11 among the nation's most “unwired” campuses. SHU fields 32 Division I athletic teams, and has an award-winning program of community service. www.sacredheart.edu
For additional Sacred Heart University news, please visit http://www.sacredheart.edu/pressroom.cfm.
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