Most Americans see the U.S. Supreme Court as a trusted institution, according to the latest Annenberg Civics Knowledge Survey. Two-thirds (68%) of those surveyed trust the Supreme Court to operate in the best interests of the American people, while 7 in 10 (70%) say that that court has “about the […] Read more »
Rising Secularism and the Vanishing Latinx Republicans
In 2004 the exit polls reported that about 40 percent of Latinxs voted for George W. Bush’s reelection, the highest percentage ever of Latinxs for a Republican candidate. There was talk about Latinxs potentially helping the Republican Party become a more diverse organization and competitive among people of color. As […] Read more »
Views About the Religious Composition of the Parties Affect Polarization
Is the Republican Party the party of religious Americans? Is the Democratic Party the party of secular Americans? The answer to these questions is a resounding, “NO!” Evidence of religious diversity in American society and within both major political parties abounds. And numerous social scientific studies have done much to […] Read more »
Does Religion Eliminate the Gender Gap?
One of the things that I have to impress upon my graduate students is there aren’t that many “laws” in social science. Unlike the physical sciences where the behavior of cells can be predicted with great precision, we really don’t have any findings that are always true in every circumstance. […] Read more »
Why Americans Don’t Fully Trust Many Who Hold Positions of Power and Responsibility
People invest their trust in institutions and those who have power for a variety of reasons. Researchers have found that people’s confidence in others and organizations can include their judgments about the competence, honesty and benevolence of the organizations or individuals they are assessing, as well as factors such as […] Read more »
Trump uttered what many supporters consider blasphemy. Here’s why most will probably forgive him.
… For some of the president’s evangelical supporters, Trump’s occasional use of the word “goddamn” is a bridge too far, even for a president whose behavior they’ve grown accustomed to excusing as they fervently support his policies. … That’s not surprising to Timothy Jay, a retired psychology professor who made […] Read more »