Americas Moral Renaissance ContinuesAnyone who watches television or goes to the movies is aware that traditional moral standards are out of place in Hollywood’s version of America.
Television shows like Desperate Housewives and The Sopranos, and films like Brokeback Mountain would make you think traditional standards of fidelity, honesty, and sexuality are as out-of-step with 21st century America as horse collars and mechanical adding machines.
But do Hollywood’s products reflect cultural values in the real world?
According to the latest research, the answer is a resounding “no.”
For example, in February 2006, the Pew Research Center asked a representative sample of 1,502 Americans to listen to a list of 10 behaviors, and then answer whether they found each behavior “morally acceptable, morally wrong, or not a moral issue.”1
According to the responses, the percentage of people who believe that it is morally wrong to engage in the following behaviors are as follows:
? Cheating on one’s spouse, 88 percent
? Cheating on one’s income taxes, 79 percent
? Drinking alcohol excessively, 61 percent
? Having an abortion, 52 percent
? Engaging in homosexual behavior, 50 percent
? Smoking marijuana, 50 percent
? Telling a lie to spare someone’s feelings, 43 percent
? Having sex between unmarried adults, 35 percent
? Gambling, 5 percent
? Over-eating, 32 percent
Surprisingly, the researchers did not find any connection between a person’s gender or marital status and their attitudes about the behaviors.
However, as you would expect, the researchers found that there were differences in the responses when they broke them down according to age, income, religion, and political party.
People who believed that at least eight of the behaviors were morally wrong tended to be from the following groups: political conservatives, people who attend church regularly, white evangelical Christians, and people aged 65 and up.
Not surprisingly, attitudes toward morality are split along political lines.
Most Republicans believed that seven of the 10 behaviors are morally wrong.
This makes sense since they tend to be politically more conservative and they attend church more regularly.
But, over half of the Democrats and independents agreed that adultery, cheating on taxes, and drinking to excess are morally wrong.
Contrary to the picture painted by the mass media, this research indicates that Americans still broadly acknowledge moral absolutes. Meanwhile, more evidence of the emerging moral renaissance comes from The Barna Group.2
Barna has been tracking American values and attitudes since 1983.
Its latest research found that 45 percent of all adults meet the criteria that The Barna Group uses to classify people as “born again.”
[NOTE: Barna defined “born again Christians” as people who said yes to the question, “Have you ever made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that is still important in your life today?” and who also agreed to the statement, “When you die you will go to Heaven because you have confessed your sins and accepted Jesus Christ as your savior.”Respondents were not asked to describe themselves as “born again.” The survey also found that 9 percent of respondents, or one in five of people categorized as “born again,” are evangelicals, up from 7 percent in 2001.]
That number is up from 31 percent in 1983.
The percentage hovered in the 36 to 43 percent range from 1992 through 2005. The current figure of 45 percent represents the largest single-year increase since 1991-1992.
Barna began its annual survey of seven important religious behaviors in 1993.
The most recent survey, released in April 2006, was based on a representative sample of 1,003 adults from across the U.S.3 According to the study, five of the seven behaviors increased significantly in 2006 versus 1996.
These five behaviors are:
Reading the Bible outside of church during a typical week, which increased to 47 percent of adults, from 31 percent.
Attending church services during a typical week, which jumped to 47 percent of adults, from 37 percent.
Meeting in small groups for Bible study or prayer, which grew to 23 percent, from 17 percent.
Attending adult Sunday School, which increased to 24 percent, from 17 percent.
Volunteering in church, which went up to 27 percent, from 20 percent.
The other two activities that did not change substantially were prayer at 84 percent, and evangelism at 60 percent.
The bottom line?
The Pew Research Center found that the biggest factor in moral judgments is the importance of religion in one’s life.
Barna’s research indicates that the importance of religion in the life of Americans is increasing over time.
Other studies confirm that traditional moral and religious values are taking hold among the nation’s youth.
For example, a Harvard University Institute of Politics survey released in April 2006 showed that 70 percent of college students say that religion is important in their lives.
4 Moreover, 25 percent reported that they had become even more spiritual since they enrolled in college.
The study of 1,200 U.S. college students also revealed that 54 percent of them are worried about America’s moral direction.
Another sign of the new moral renaissance is the changing attitude among teenagers toward sex.
About 2.5 million teenagers worldwide have taken “virginity pledges,” in which they publicly promise to abstain from sex until marriage, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The pledges were started by the Christian Sex Education Project as a way to increase moral values and lower the number of teenage pregnancies.
Looking ahead, the Trends editors foresee the following developments emerging from this trend:
First, the moral renaissance is just beginning.
The fact that teenagers and college students are already embracing traditional moral values in their youth leads to the inescapable conclusion that the next generation of adults will place an even higher priority on behaving according to traditional moral values than do today’s adults.
Second, even in the short term, the conservative mood on college campuses will be a positive development for conservative candidates and a sign of trouble for liberals.
Jeanne Shaheen, the director of Harvard’s Institute of Politics, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that, “Religion and morality are critical to how students think about politics and form opinions on political issues.”
5 The Institute reports that college students are a growing force in political elections, with nearly 12 million 18- to 24-year-olds voting in the 2004 presidential election, an increase of 3 million from the 2000 campaign.
Third, the emphasis on traditional moral values will create a positive climate for businesses.
Honesty, individual responsibility, and a concern for others are all hallmarks of great employees, suppliers, customers, and shareholders.
In fact, it’s our ability to rely on those qualities in individuals that has made our free market system the envy of the world.
When you can’t count on those values, as in modern Russia, capitalist prosperity is virtually impossible.
References List :
1. To view the Pew Research Center report “A Barometer of Modern Morals,” visit their website at: www.pewresearch.org
2. To access the Barna Group’s survey on American attitudes and values, visit their website at: www.barna.org
3. To access the Barna Group’s survey on religious behaviors, visit their website at: www.barna.org
4. To access the Harvard University Institute of Politics’ report “Redefining Political Attitudes and Activism,” visit their website at: www.iop.harvard.edu
5. The Philadelphia Inquirer, April 12, 2006, “Religion Matters, 70% of Students Say,” by Jennifer Martinez. ⓒ Copyright 2006 by Knight Ridder. All rights reserved.
