Generations, Age & Politics

Beyond the vote, the exit polls point to interesting differences -- and similarities -- between younger and older Democratic voters.

In an era when war, tragedy and scandal often dominate the headlines, America's parents are more likely to encourage children to follow the news than they are to shield them from it.

Summary of Findings This is part of a Pew Research Center series of reports exploring the behaviors, values and opinions of the teens and twenty-somethings that make up the Millennial Generation. A new generation has come of age, shaped by an unprecedented revolution in technology and dramatic events both at home and abroad. They are […]

Not only is there evidence of a reawakening of young people to public life, but today's youth are politically distinctive in many ways.

Neither hawks nor doves, America's youth are more willing than their elders to give both war and peace a chance. A new poll analysis finds that generational differences on the use of force confound the stereotypes.

Debates More Important to Young Voters

Adapting to a New World

Introduction and Summary President Clinton faces a potentially wide generation gap on his proposal to “fix Social Security first.” Older Americans embrace the idea, but younger people are far more interested in spending any budget surplus on programs that benefit their families today. Fully 82% of those age 50 and older say making Social Security […]

Report Summary On the eve of the national political conventions the American electorate is composed of three generations that are likely to play vastly different roles in the coming election. Americans over 50 may be the first generation of older people in modern history to spearhead a political revolution, and middle-aged people, clustered in the […]

Report Summary In the days when LBJ was President, the phrase “generation gap” summed up the contrasting political and social values of young Americans and their elders. Today, a new but different generation gap exists. A major comparative examination of what young people know, what they pay attention to, and what media they use reveals […]