Research Reports

Family dynamics are always evolving, but the emergence of new technologies, shifting economic realities, new cultural sensibilities, and social arrangements have reshaped family life dramatically. But there are enduring patterns in American family life as well. Women still do far more of the household chores, including cooking, cleaning, and laundry. Formative experiences, such as divorce, parental favoritism, and relationships have far-reaching influence.

Despite recent trends documenting an overall decline in religious belief, practice, and affiliation, most Americans still identify with a particular religious tradition. But surprisingly, a significant number of religious Americans say their religious beliefs or identity are not central to who they are. A majority of both White (67 percent) and Hispanic (60 percent) Catholics,

So much research and commentary have focused on the decline of public trust in various institutions—the media, government, police, the justice system. But over the last decade, we have also seen an erosion of the confidence that Americans have in each other. According to the Pew Research Center, only 38 percent of Americans report they are

Despite the fact that the GOP is quite unpopular and that much of its current agenda, the party is in an enviable position heading into the 2022 midterm elections and beyond. Why?

We have long known that churches and religious congregations are important sources of political information and influence. Now, a new report finds that many Americans perceive their congregation as sharing a mix of liberal and conservative beliefs. However, certain traditions are much more likely to have uniformly conservative congregations. Nearly half of White evangelical Protestants (47 percent) and Mormons (47 percent) say that the people they attend religious services with have mostly conservative

Americans who never attended college are experiencing a rapid social decline—they have fewer close friends and considerably less social support. Part of the reason may have to do with the fact that Americans without a college education have fewer workplace friends. Sixty-two percent of college graduates have a close friend they met through work, compared to 47

In 1996, Americans were far more supportive of legal abortion than allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry. Only 31 percent of Americans favored same-sex marriage in the mid-1990s while nearly six in 10 (57 percent) said abortion should be legal in at least some circumstances. Today, nearly seven in 10 (69 percent) Americans believe

Americans with less formal education tend to express greater certainty about their belief in God. Fifty-nine percent of Americans without a college education say they are certain God exists. Only 44 percent of those with post-graduate education say the same, although they are slightly more likely to express certainty that God does not exist. Despite

Despite concerns about rising student debt, the economic value of a college education has never been clearer. College graduates are more socially connected, civically engaged, and active in their communities. College graduates have more extensive systems of social support, a larger number of close friends, and feel lonely and isolated less often than those without a degree.

Violent crime is up. Data from the FBI found that the murder rate increased nearly 30 percent in 2020. And homicides continue to rise in 2021 as well, if not by quite as much. Americans have noticed. A Gallup poll released in November 2020 found that 78 percent of Americans thought that the national crime rate was higher than the year