Is the 2020 election bringing Americans closer to socialism? America’s thirst for socialism has plummeted, according to a new survey.
A press release issued last Wednesday (Feb. 3) by the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University writes that after the 2020 presidential election, only 32 percent of American adults support socialism, a decrease of 9 percentage points from the 2018 survey’s 41 percent support for socialism by nine percentage points, meaning that across the United States, 20 million fewer people support socialism.
The press release adds, “A majority of 68 percent say they prefer capitalism, a percentage that equates to more than 170 million adults across the U.S., who support capitalism. Only 1/3 of the population (about 80 million Americans) tend to support socialism.
The decline in support for socialism in this survey is across age groups. Even among the under-30 age group, which is the most supportive of socialism, the share favoring socialism is declining, from 48% in 2018 to 43% in 2020. Agreement with the concept of socialism declines most significantly among the 30- to 49-year-old age group, by 15 percentage points (from 49% to 34%), and among the 50-plus age group, support for socialism declines from 30% to 23%.
The two surveys were conducted by the Center for Cultural Studies at Arizona Christian University, November 4-16, 2020, and January 26-February 4, 2018, respectively. the 2018 survey was a national online survey of 2,000 adults aged 18 and older, with the population configured in demographically balanced proportions by age. the 2020 The 2020 survey is also online and includes 1,000 adults, with some of the population proportions configured according to national equalization ratios. However, the press release does not mention the specific questions of the survey, nor does it indicate the voting status of the respondents, or the margin of error. In a literal comparison alone, though, it is fair to say that Americans’ interest in socialism has greatly diminished in just over two years.
According to the survey, those least likely to support socialism include, political conservatives (21 percent), people 50 or older (23 percent) and people with a biblical worldview (12 percent).
Len Munsil, president of Arizona Christian University, said in a press release that many of the survey’s results are encouraging. The survey shows that having a biblical worldview is the best defense against socialism. At Arizona Christian University, we train students to apply a biblical worldview to every area of their lives, including how they view economics and the opportunities that economic freedom provides for human flourishing.”
In a press release, Munsil wrote, “Support for socialism is declining among younger Americans, which means that in the cultural debate over socialism versus capitalism, the views of these young people can change. Our students are challenged to take seriously the moral and biblical arguments for the free market and to take seriously the ideas and consequences of socialism.”
George Barna, director of research at the Center for Cultural Studies, who has followed the matter for nearly a decade, concluded in his study that “many Americans have little understanding of the way our national economy and system of governance works, and even less understanding of the ideological underpinnings that support the functioning of the state.”
“The quality of the decisions made on such important issues depends on the quality and breadth of the population’s knowledge and understanding. Clearly, the American public today lacks understanding of the details of governance and the economics of the state.”
He continued, “The transition from socialism to capitalism will be a major, Life-changing choice that will have enormous implications and far-reaching effects on the health and well-being of our nation and its people. However, because of the population’s lack of Education on these issues, many people are easily swayed by superficial, tangible, or emotional reasons. It is in the best interest of the United States and America’s future to help people of all ages better understand the meaning and long-term impact of socialism before making substantial systemic changes.”
According to the study, those most likely to support socialism include political liberals (54 percent), Democrats (45 percent), those who did not vote in the 2020 election (43 percent) and those under the age of 30 (43 percent).
Americans without a biblical worldview are more likely to embrace socialism. Spiritual skeptics who don’t know, don’t believe or don’t care if God exists show the most turmoil when it comes to socialism. At the beginning of 2018, more than half (51%) of spiritual skeptics embraced socialism over capitalism, but after the 2020 election, that number dropped 16 percentage points to 35%.
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