College freshmen nation-wide have become more conservative and more interested in politics, according to recent survey conducted by The American Freshman.
Linda Sax of the University of California-Los Angeles directed survey, which links these facts to the recent controversial political climate including the last presidential election and the events of Sept. 11.
\Students believed politics didn't appeal to their daily lives [prior to Sept. 11], now these issues are more relevant,"" she said.
Byron Schafer, a UW-Madison political science professor, said he agrees Sept. 11 and the events following have made this time in American politics intense. He said he believes issues of national security have spearheaded the trends of higher political interest and a higher rate of conservatism among freshmen.
""Every new generation has a different set of issues and challenges on their agenda, and if you put national security on the top of that list, conservative answers are going to go a long way,"" he said.
""9-11 really shook a lot of people. It made people think. It was in the news everyday for two years,"" said Frank Harris, a UW-Madison senior and chair of college Republicans. ""I believe more middle of the road people are now turning republican.""
Linda Sax said the change can also be attributed to the war in Iraq, which brought out conservative loyalty, support for military spending and interest in international affairs.
""If you are in a broad middle category in which you see some things in a democratic way and some things in a republican way, you don't give up the conservative views [like you would have 15 years ago],"" Shafer said.
These changes in the national political climate, Schafer said, have eliminated the democratic bias people first coming into politics used to have 15 years ago. He said adopting a conservative viewpoint makes you more involved in current politics.
""There are also more media outlets now. Students can turn to talk radio and the internet which speak about politics 24 hours a day. People used to only get news late at night on their televisions,"" Harris said. He said the changing world conditions are making younger people more interested in politics, making politics more accessible and relevant in their lives. He said he has seen an increase in freshman turnout in his meetings this year, corresponding to the survey's results.
Linda Sax said the survey's results should not be read into too much because they only reflect a short-term trend.
""It's only a slight increase, not an all-time high,"" she said. ""This trend needs to continue for a few more years to become ground-breaking.""
