The notion of young people becoming more conservative gained attention when a chart circulated in the spring, indicating a significant increase in conservatism among 12th-grade boys. However, a closer examination reveals a more nuanced reality. According to a reputable federal survey on American youth, 12th-grade boys are indeed showing a higher inclination towards conservatism compared to liberalism.
The data from the Monitoring the Future survey, an esteemed scholarly project with a long history dating back to the 1970s, reveals that approximately one-quarter of high school seniors identified as conservative or “very conservative” in the past three years. This proportion is almost twice as large as the 13 percent of boys who identified as liberal or “very liberal” during the same period.
While the survey results do indicate a notable trend of higher conservatism among 12th-grade boys, it is important to note that the overall landscape of young people’s political beliefs remains complex and multifaceted, with various factors influencing individual perspectives.