Young Adults Not Confident in US Government
Survey Says Tolerance About Taxes Would Increase if Confidence were Improved
© Kaili Xu
Jun 19, 2009
A survey by a non-partisan think tank has found that the majority of younger adults in Massachusetts lack confidence in their government.
Only 4 percent of the people, ages 25 to 39, said they are very confident about government’s ability to address issues that matter to them.
“I’m disappointed in that data, because we were rely upon youth to be our leaders in the future,” said Rep. Thomas Calter, D-Kingston, Mass. in a phone interview.
The survey by MassINC asked people in the age group about issues including government, personal finances, jobs, media, and civic engagement.
Young Adults Lose Confidence in Government
According to the results, 37 percent of the young people said they are confident in government’s ability. Nearly two-thirds of the rest were either not too confident or not at all confident that state and local government can improve the policy area that they believe needs the most improvement.
Calter said it was unfortunate that when people read about the actions of corrupt individuals, they fail to realize their behaviors are “the exception and not the rule.”
“I feel particularly bad for the dedicated public servants who work tirelessly and who are cast in the shadow of those few who betray the public confidence,” said Calter.
Rep. Christine Canavan, D-Brockton, Mass. said in a phone interview the survey showed a lack of interest in political issues.
“Young adults need to become more engaged,” said Calter.
More Confidence in Government, More Tolerant About Taxes
MassINC Research Director Dana Ansel also said the survey uncovered a very strong connection between confidence in government and views on taxes.
She said those who have more confidence in government tend to be more tolerant about taxes.
According to the survey, overall 41 percent of those surveyed believe that taxes are about right or too low. Twenty-one percent of those who have either little or no confidence in government believe that taxes are about right or too low. Another 52 percent of those who were confident about government say taxes are either about right or too low.
The biggest challenges, such as the high living costs that today’s young adults face are comparable to what the generation of their parents talked about at the kitchen table 30 years ago. The inability to solve the same issues over years is one of the major reasons young adults lose confidence in government.
