A photo of a spiral ceiling made up of mosaic glass windows.

For Gen Z, Religious Pluralism Will Require Bridging the Religious-Secular Divide

The Aspen Institute

Daniel A. Cox April 5, 2022

For Generation Z, American religious life has been defined by its diversity. And religious pluralism has been as much practice as principle.

A black and white photo of a man and woman sitting back-to-back in a train car.

We Live in a Nation of Strangers. That Needs to Change

Deseret News

Daniel A. Cox March 13, 2022

Diversity is not the source of our current problems; our troubling incuriosity about our neighbors is driving disconnection.

Thousands of protesters gathered at Mc Carren Park in Brooklyn on June 7, 2020 for a massive march around Williamsburg, making a loud call for the defunding of the police force. This comes after NYC Mayor Bill De Blasio promised 'intense change' with police reform proposals amid calls to defund law enforcement, including shifting resources from NYPD and publicizing officers' disciplinary records. (Photo by Erik McGregor/Sipa USA)No Use UK. No Use Germany.

Why Are White Liberals So Pessimistic About Politics?

FiveThirtyEight

Daniel A. Cox February 23, 2022

No one seems happy about politics these days – but White Liberals are uniquely pessimistic.

The upper torso of a white woman with her hand crossed over her heart. She is wearing a black jacket and red collared shirt. Around her neck is a large gold necklace of the Republican Party elephant.

Why The Republican Party Isn’t Concerned With Popularity

FiveThirtyEight

Daniel A. Cox January 4, 2022

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?

A close up of a blinking lit red emergency vehicle light on top of a police car.

Why Crime Likely Won’t Be An Issue In The 2022 Midterms

FiveThirtyEight

Daniel A. Cox November 29, 2021

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

Photo of a now-hiring sign

We Asked Hundreds of Unemployed Americans What’s Keeping Them Out of Work — It’s Not Unemployment Benefits

Insider

Daniel A. Cox, Brent Orrell July 25, 2021

The Survey Center for American Life’s new survey shows a difference in needs between the pandemic unemployed and the chronically unemployed. Continue reading on Insider

Just-married couple gets off a party bus while bridal party celebrates them

Can Married Men and Women be Friends? Marriage, Friendship, and Loneliness

Institute for Family Studies

Daniel A. Cox July 20, 2021

The time we invest on our relationships, whether it is with a partner, spouse, or a friend, is likely the most important thing we can do to ensure a long, healthy, and fulfilling life.

Silhouette of a young man standing outside an apartment window

American Men Suffer a Friendship Recession

National Review

Daniel A. Cox July 6, 2021

After a prolonged period of social isolation, Americans are dusting off their social calendars. But as Americans try to rebuild and reconnect, a new survey conducted by the Survey Center on American Life finds that the social landscape is far less favorable than it once was.

COVID-19 vaccination stickers sit in waiting during the Columbus Public Health drop-in clinic at Stonewall Columbus in the Short

Peer Pressure, Not Politics, May Matter Most When it Comes to Getting the COVID-19 Vaccine

FiveThirtyEight

Daniel A. Cox June 29, 2021

Americans experience widely different levels of social pressure to get the COVID-19 vaccine. And for better or worse, our friends exercise considerable influence over the information we have and the decisions we make.

A group adults sit in a backyard while one of them barbeques.

Suburbs Are Not Less Social Than Cities

AEIdeas

Samuel J. Abrams June 8, 2021

Many believe there are meaningful differences in sociability based on where Americans reside. New data from AEI’s Survey Center on American Life counters this narrative and finds little difference in the social lives of urbanites, suburbanites, and their rural counterparts.  

Survey Reports

Cartoon rendering of a series of different online dating app prospects, on phone screens

Daniel A. Cox
February 9, 2023

From Swiping to Sexting: The Enduring Gender Divide in American Dating and Relationships

The January 2023 American Perspectives Survey sheds some light on dating preferences, experiences, and perspectives. The national survey of more than 5,000 adults age 18 and older, including nearly 800 single adults, finds that Americans have strong dating preferences when it comes to living at home, being unemployed, and smoking.

Red leather-bound Qur'an on a wooden table with prayer beads and a light blue surgical mask draped over top.

Lindsey Witt-Swanson, Jennifer Benz, Daniel A. Cox
January 5, 2023

Faith After the Pandemic: How COVID-19 Changed American Religion

The Survey Center on American Life at AEI teamed up with researchers at NORC at the University of Chicago to measure religious affiliation and attendance both before the pandemic (2018 to March 2020) and again in spring 2022, revealing who remained at the pews, who returned to the pews, and who left.

A cartoon showing a vibrant office from the ceiling view.

Brent Orrell, Daniel A. Cox, Jessie Wall
October 25, 2022

The Social Workplace: Social Capital, Human Dignity, and Work in America

Over the past two decades, American social and civic life has been on an undeniable downward trajectory. New research finds that the workplace remains an increasingly important generator of social capital in the wake of this civic contraction.

Photograph of pro-choice protestors holding signs

Karlyn Bowman, Daniel A. Cox
October 4, 2022

Gender, Generation and Abortion: Shifting Politics and Perspectives After Roe

In the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, the issue of abortion continues to garner widespread public attention. Young women are following the debate over abortion rights closely and more intensely than other Americans. How will it affect their vote in the upcoming election and their approach to politics?