Ideological Trends in American Public Opinion

Data from four national survey organizations indicate a growing trend toward more conservative ideological identification in the public over the last decade. At the same time, however, the public is becoming increasingly liberal on many issues, particularly racial tolerance and women's rights. Since the election of Ronald Reagan the public seems divided also on welfare issues: while support is found for increased government spending on current social programs, the public increasingly opposes expanded government programs of additional services. Correlational analyses suggest that ideological identification is no more strongly related to specific issues than previously. Nonetheless, ideological identification continues to be a significant predictor of party identification and of voting in presidential elections.