A Latent Class Analysis of Tolerance for Nonconformity in the American Public

Latent class analysis is used to examine the proposition that political ideology plays a role in the public's tolerance for nonconformity. Results from an analysis of a representative sample of adult Americans indicate that political tolerance is neither a simple dichotomy (i.e., tolerant vs. intolerant) nor a undimensional continuum. Support is found for a four-class model of political tolerance, in which one segment of the American mass public is classified as generally tolerant, another as generally intolerant, a third as intolerant of the left, and the fourth as intolerant of the right. A log-linear analysis is used to examine the effects of education and age cohort on political tolerance.