Republicans are different from Democrats. How so? Let us count the ways. • They have more money.2
• They have more friends.3
• They are more religious.4
• They are healthier.5
• They are more likely to be married.6
• They like their communities better.7
• They like their jobs more.8
• They are more satisfied with their family life.9
• They like the weather better.10
• They have fewer financial worries.11
• They're more likely to see themselves doing better in life than their parents did.12
• They're more likely to feel that individuals - rather than outside forces - control their own success or failure.13
• They have more of what they most value in life. (No, it's not money).14
1. A National Science Foundation-funded project that has conducted 26 nationwide surveys since 1972 that explore a range of demographic and attitudinal questions. ↩
2. Republicans have a median annual family income of $64,000; Democrats have a median annual family income of $46,000, according to a February, 2008 Pew survey. ↩
3. Some 31% of Republicans and 26% of Democrats say they have a lot of friends in the community where they live. Also, 15% of Republicans and 26% of Democrats say they don’t have many friends, according to an October, 2008 Pew survey. ↩
4. Some 51% of Republicans attend religious services once a week or more; only 30% of Democrats do so, according to a February, 2008 Pew survey. ↩
5. Some 37% of Republicans report their health condition is excellent, only 25% of Democrats say so, according to a February 2008 Pew survey. ↩
6. Some 62% of Republicans and 44% of Democrats are currently married, while 7% of Republicans and 13% of Democrats are currently divorced, according to a February 2008 Pew survey. ↩
7. Some 71% of Republicans rate their communities as “excellent†or “very goodâ€; only 54% of Democrats say the same, according to an October, 2008 Pew survey. ↩
8. Some 90% of Republicans and 86% of Democrats are completely or mostly satisfied with their job, according to a February 2008 Pew survey. This 4 percentage point difference falls short of statistical significance at the 95% confidence level. ↩
9. Some 77% of Republicans and 62% of Democrats are “very satisfied†with their family life, according to a June 2008 Pew survey. ↩
10. Some 27% of Republicans rate the climate where they live as “excellent†; only 18% of Democrats think so, according to an October, 2008 Pew survey. ↩
11. For more details, see “Financial Worries†below. ↩
12. Some 75% of Republicans and 61% of Democrats think that their own standard of living is better than the one their parents had when their parents were the age they are now, according to a February, 2008 Pew survey. ↩
13. Some 69 % of Republicans and 58% of Democrats disagree with the statement that “Success in life is pretty much determined by forces outside our control,†according to a February, 2008 Pew survey. ↩
14. For more details, see “Life Priorities; Life Circumstances†below. ↩
15. Stevenson, Betsey and Wolfers, Justin, Economic Growth and Subjective Well-Being: Reassessing the Easterlin Paradox, April 16, 2008.
www.nber.org ↩
