Public Opinion on the Voting Rights Act
The Voting Rights Act, the landmark civil rights legislation that provided federal oversight of voting in states where evidence of minority voter…
Public Attitudes about Birth Control blog
Fifty years ago, just five years after the FDA approved the first birth control pill, the Supreme Court struck down a Connecticut state law that…
Public Opinion on the Confederate Flag and the Civil War blog
The Confederate flag is gone from the South Carolina statehouse. But public opinion on the meaning of the symbols of the Confederacy remains divided along…
Huddled Masses: Public Opinion & the 1965 U.S. Immigration Act blog
The landmark U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which shifted the criteria for admission of immigrants from a system of country quotas to the…
Yankee Doodle Polling: Public Opinion on Patriotism
This holiday weekend the American passion for patriotic display will reach its annual apex with fireworks, flags and "God Bless America." Public opinion…
Seventy Years of U.S. Public Opinion on the United Nations
On June 26, 1945, delegates from fifty nations gathered in the auditorium of Veterans Memorial Hall in San Francisco to sign the new United Nations…
Paradise Polled: Americans and the Afterlife blog
Since the genesis of modern polling, the American public has been asked about not only their opinions on the political and social issues of the day, but…
Automation for the People: The Public, Technology and Jobs
A 2012 research brief by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee at MIT renewed an old debate over the effect of new technologies on employment levels. They…
Digital Literacy and Utilization: A Polling Data Overview
What can polling tell us about Americans' relationship with digital technology? An overview from the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research Archives:…
In the Good Old Summertime - or Overtime? blog
As the summer begins, Americans plan to enjoy their summer vacations, a time for swimming, sunning, relaxing and – checking work emails? What…
The Meaning of Middle Class
On the campaign trail, Hillary Clinton has said, ‚ÄúWe need to make the middle class mean something again." What does being middle class mean to Americans…
Energy Solution or Accident Waiting to Happen? The Public and Nuclear Power blog
The meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi revitalized the public debate over the value and safety of nuclear energy. Do Americans see a nuclear plant as a…
Then and Now: First Ladies blog
There are few roles in American politics that are as visible and yet as nebulous as that of First Lady. Attempts to define and measure that role go back…
Public Attitudes about Mental Health blog
Mental health care in the U.S. underwent significant changes over the past decade. New regulations mandated increases in mental health coverage, while…
Attitudes of American Women 1962 blog
The 1960’s are a decade characterized by social change, counterculture, and civil disobedience. From the Stonewall demonstrations to the moon…
When I'm 64, or Maybe 63? Public Views about Retirement Age blog
Many Baby Boomers are facing a difficult decision: when to retire? Their personal choices are being made in the context of a longstanding debate about the…
Public Funds, Private Education: What the Polls Say blog
Government aid to private schools, vouchers, private educational contractors - the lines between public and private in the world of education are ever-…
Andrew Kohut on the Anniversary of the Selma March blog
On March 7, 1965, black Americans marched on Selma, Alabama in an effort to secure the civil rights that had been withheld from them and were met with…
The American Public and Israel
When Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to Congress at their invitation, many U.S. leaders marked the occasion by affirming their commitment to the special…
Fly Me to the Moon - The Public and NASA blog
On March 3, 1915, the U.S. government established the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, or NACA. In 1958, NACA became NASA. In polls in the…