Is Age Key To Same-Sex Wedding Attitudes?

Study Finds Generational Differences Account For Opinions On Same-Sex Marriage

(AP)  The growing acceptance of same-sex marriage in California reflects generational differences more than changes in individual attitudes, according to a study released Thursday.

Two political scientists who analyzed two decades worth of Field Polls on the subject found that age was the strongest factor influencing whether someone opposed gay unions, with people born in the 1970s and '80s more than twice as likely to support them as those born before 1940.

"Californians born in each decade tend to be more accepting of gay relationships and more willing to grant them legal recognition than those born the decade before," said the study's authors, Gregory Lewis of Georgia State University and Charles Gossett of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.

The findings suggest that same-sex couples will one day be allowed to wed in California, if not the rest of the country, as older generations die off, said Mark DiCamillo, director of the Field Poll.

"It's just a matter of time before a majority of California will be supportive of same-sex marriage," DiCamillo said. "It may take 10 years to replace another decade within the age cohorts, but it's clear every younger generation seems to be more accepting of that."

Gossett and Lewis said that while differing opinions among generations accounted for two-thirds of the state's increased support for gay marriage since 1985, the strong link between age and attitudes did not mean that Californians became more homophobic as they aged.

Even the oldest group surveyed demonstrated a small shift in opinion over the last 20 years. One-fourth of those born before 1940 supported same-sex marriage in 2006 compared to one-fifth in 1985, they found.

The researchers said their "generational replacement" theory also may explain why California tends to be more tolerant of same-sex couples than other states: It has a comparatively young population. The state ranks sixth in the nation in the percentage of residents under 18.

The California analysis mirrors a national Pew Research Center study released in January that found the younger people were, the more likely they were to support marriage rights for gay men and lesbians.

In that poll, 47 percent of those age 18 to 25 favored allowing gays and lesbians to marry, compared to 30 percent of those 26 and older.

Besides age, politics and religion became increasingly strong predictors of whether survey respondents were likely to support gay marriage during the last 20 years, Lewis and Gossett said.

Because the study relied on long-term data instead of a one-time survey, it did not have a sampling margin of error, according to DiCamillo.

[anopinion1]

Antony34

the problem with allowing gaypeople like you to marry is that many of you will want to adopt kids...
and then gayys would have to be given the same chance to adopt because you would cry and cry some more that you were being discriminated at if you didn't get the kid....

[anopinion1]

Thank God, finally some good news about the younger generation!
Posted by Jimbo554 at 07:40 PM : Mar 08, 2007

this is the worst thing about my generation

what i wanna know is did they do this survey on peeps in only california(aka.gayy.central)
I say if we have to, set off one state for gayys to live in like california, since most all of them live their anyway. in this and only this state *** can get married.
(isnt their supposed to be a big earthquake their sometime)

[hermit22]

Agnim,thanks for keeping on waving the red flag on this subject, but it is not "Christian" to promote homosexuality. it is deviant from Christian to promote homosexuality.

"pseudo-christian" (however you spell that) is more the word for it. if a priest or any other religious person promotes homosexuality, they are NOT real Christian.

"wolves in sheeps clothing" "wheat and the tares". "deception" etc. "liars".

[agnim]

So-called 'acceptance' can come from BRAINWASHING, as is done with religions.

Conditioning of the mind is not rocket science!

Keep repeating to young minds in the media that homosexual deviance and perversion is ok, and the young/weak minds will come to accept the perversion as 'normal'.

The vast majority of f@ggots in christian/western society WERE NOT born with the mental defect, which would cause the mating attention to be mis-directed towards the same gender.

Christians/PRIESTS CONDITION CHILDREN IN CHRISTIAN/WESTERN SOCIETIES TO GROW UP ACCEPTING HOMOSEXUAL DEVIANCE AS NORMAL by 'working them over' in their youth!

That is why wiser minds are opposed to the promoting of the **** deviance in the society: The children ARE IN DANGER OF PICKING UP A BAD HABIT, grow up, and then pass on the beastly behavior to more children.

No adult is likely to just wake up one day and find himself homosexual.

A person is either born with the mental defect or he's BRAINWASHED WHILE YOUNG!

[hermit22]

"normal as two left feet"

genesis1816.blogspot.com

[antony34-2009]

Ok, let me rephrase so the censors are ok.

I have never understood how allowing same-*** couples to marry would increase taxes. If all g.a.y people were straight we would marry opposite genders. Heteros do this already, and taxes don't increase as a result. How does changing the gender of who I choose to marry suddenly increase taxes? I wish people would think about what they post before spewing illogical talking points.

[antony34-2009]

I have never understood how allowing *** to marry would increase taxes. If all *** were straight we would marry opposite genders. Heteros do this already, and taxes don't increase as a result. How does changing the gender of who I choose to marry suddenly increase taxes? I wish people would think about what they post before spewing illogical talking points.

[jimbo554]

Thank God, finally some good news about the younger generation!

[cozmoriggs]

Or you create fresh meat.

[farmerbb]

I wonder if we had surveys available in the past, if this same sort of generation gap would have been observed about slavery, womens suffrage, religious intolerance, racism, etc. Probably. Ah well. Slowly but surely, the human race does make progress, as the intolerant among us either die off, or see the light. We just have to watch out for those who preach this sort of intolerance, creating fresh bigots.

[cozmoriggs]

Rule of thumb on homosexuals. They can't reproduce so they have to recruit!

[cozmoriggs]

Don't be surprised that this has happend. Allowing it to slowly creep up to exceptance in society is what we have here. A frog will jump out of hot water, but if you slowly heat up the water it will kill him. So is the character in America from the "jackass" generation.

[pakaal]

Yep, if ya can't beat the haters, outlive 'em! We'll get to a truly just society eventually, God willing.

[olebd]

Even beyond being immoral, this "acceptance" will also hit us in the pocketbook via higher taxes when they're all treated to the same rights and benefits as a married couple.

[mnelsonix]

Duh! Kids don't care.

[dimples52]

This should not surprise anyone. Nowadays everything is "okay", we have no right or wrong anymore. Our country is on a downward spiral. What happened to homosexuality being wrong or abnormal? It is unnatural behavior.

[jt92202]

And this suprizes anyone?? Before 1970 or so the whole country was in the DONT ASK DONT TELL state of mind. Since then we have started raising our children to be more accepting and tolerant of others that are different then them. Also gay rights are always in our face via TV, News and in our communities. Schools also teach tolerance so why does anyone not know this is happening!!

The same is true regarding the past tolerance for African Americans and todays Tolerance. As the old racists die off the more our country will heal from the 70's and before.

You could call this a type of evolution of the human speicies brain. As we get more civilized we become more accepting to others and the differences between us.

I have been saying this for decades and I didn't even have to spend tax payors money to do a survey or study it!!!!