Description of Survey and Data

In March and April 2003, 1000 U.S. members of the American
Political Science Association were surveyed using a randomly
generated list of members. The overall aim of the survey project
is to study how the individual’s political views change over time;
the survey asks the respondent to report the policy views he had
when he was 25 years old, and then asks his present views. A
byproduct of the investigation, then, is information about respondents’
present views. This paper simply summarizes the present
public policy views of APSA members; we do not consider the
“when 25” views here.2 The survey controller received 309
nonblank anthropology surveys returned, a response rate of 31
percent (adjusting for PO Returns, etc.).

According to our investigations, little is known about the
political views of political scientists. By contrast, the discipline of
economics has a substantial tradition of surveying economists
about their policy judgments, voting behavior, and political
values.3 This presentation of the policy and voting questions,
showing the political scientists’ response frequencies and percentages,
can be a starting point to stimulating a similar discussion
and awareness.

Description of the Polictical Science Sample

  1. Check the highest degree you hold (N=309)4
    Ph.D 308 99.68%
    Non-response 1 0.32%
  2. The sample of political scientists mostly contains individuals with
    a Ph.D. And 98.05 percent (302 respondents) reported political
    science as the field in which they got the degree.

  3. Check your primary employment (N=309)
    Academic 267 86.4%
    Public Sector 16 5.2%
    Private sector 13 4.2%
    Independent research 12 3.9%
    Non-response 1 0.3%
  4. Of those reporting Academic, we asked to follow-up questions:

  5. What is the highest degree your department issues? (N=266)
    Bachelors 74 27.7%
    Masters 44 16.5%
    Ph.D 147 55.1%
    Non-response 2 0.8%
  6. Is your college/university public or private? (N=266)
    Public 144 53.9%
    Private 115 43.1%
    Both 7 2.6%
    No response 1 0.4%

Political scientists’ views on the 18 public policy questions The respondents were asked 18 questions about public policy issues. The following query about tariffs shows the format:

Tariffs on imported goods to protect American industries and jobs:

% % % % % %
support
strongly
support
mildly
have mixed
feelings
oppose
mildly
oppose
strongly
have no
opinion
1 2 3 4 5  

The numbers 1-5 did not appear in the survey. They show how
we weighted each response when creating an index (or mean
response).

Here we present the results on the 18 policy questions in three
groups: economic regulations, regulation of personal choices,
and role of government.

TABLE 1

Political scientists’ views on domestic economic regulations,
N=309, frequency (percent).

  1 2 3 4 5      
  Support
strongly
Support
mildly
Have
mixed
feelings
Oppose
mildly
Oppose
strongly
Have no
opinion
No
response
Mean
value
(St.D)
Issue addressed                
Tariffs to protect
American
industries
16
(5.2)
28
(9.1)
701
(22.7)
81
(26.2)
108
(35.0)
1
(0.3)
5
(1.6)
3.78
(1.18)
Minimum wage
laws
208
(67.3)
51
(16.5)
23
(7.4)
13
(4.2)
8
(2.6)
1
(0.3)
5
(1.6)
1.55
(0.99)
Occupational saftey
regs (OSHA)
232
(75.1)
44
(14.2)
17
(5.5)
9
(2.9)
2
(0.7)
1
(0.3)
4
(1.3)
1.37
(0.78)
Pharmaceutical
market reg (FDA)
242
(78.3)
39
(12.6)
13
(4.2)
5
(1.6)
4
(1.3)
0
(0.0)
6
(1.9)
1.32
(0.75)
Air and water
regulation (EPA)
242
(78.3)
422
(13.6)
11
(3.6)
5
(1.6)
2
(0.7)
1
(0.3
6
(1.9)
1.29
(0.68)

Domestic Economic Regulation index, Mean (and St.D):

1.87
(0.61)

Of all 18 issues, tariffs drew the greatest opposition from
political scientists. But on all the other economic regulations,
political scientists are generally supporters, mostly strong supporters.

TABLE 2

Political scientists’ views on public policies concerning regulations
of personal choices, N=309, frequency (percent).

  1 2 3 4 5      
  Support
strongly
Support
mildly
Have
mixed
feelings
Oppose
mildly
Oppose
strongly
Have no
opinion
No
response
Mean
value
(St.D)
Issue addressed                
Discrimination
controls
238
(77.0)
36
(11.7)
21
(6.8)
4
(1.3)
6
(1.9)
0
(0.0)
4
(1.3)
1.37
(0.83)
Controls on “hard”
drugs
142
(46.0)
59
(19.1)
51
(16.5)
28
(9.1)
21
(6.8)
2
(0.7)
6
(1.9)
2.09
(1.28)
Prostitution controls 46
(14.9)
67
(21.7)
84
(27.2)
64
(20.7)
38
(12.3)
6
(1.9)
4
(1.3)
2.94
(1.25)
Gambling restrictions 66
(21.4)
75
(24.3)
69
(22.3)
53
(17.2)
36
(11.7)
5
(1.6)
5
(1.6)
2.73
(1.31)
Gun control 226
(73.1)
31
(10.0)
16
(5.2)
16
(5.2)
15
(4.9)
0
(0.0)
5
(1.6)
1.56
(1.12)

Regulation of Personal Choice Index, Mean (and St.D):

2.13
(0.72)

We see that political scientists are mostly strong supporters
of government restrictions on discrimination and of gun control,
less so on “hard” drugs, but are quite mixed on prostitution and
gambling restrictions.

TABLE 3

Political scientists views on public
issues concerning the role of government,
N=350, frequency (percent).

  1 2 3 4 5      
  Support
strongly
Support
mildly
Have
mixed
feelings
Oppose
mildly
Oppose
strongly
Have no
opinion
No
response
Mean
value
(St.D)
Issue addressed                
Government ownership of
enterprise
20
(6.5)
50
(16.2)
66
(21.4)
64
(20.7)
101
(32.7)
2
(0.7)
6
(1.9)
3.58
(1.28)
Redistribution 203
(65.7)
57
(18.5)
21
(6.8)
11
(3.6)
13
(4.2)
2
(0.7)
2
(0.7)
1.60
(1.05)
Government production of
schooling (k thru 12)
189
(61.2)
32
(10.4)
30
(9.7)
10
(3.2)
11
(3.6)
5
(1.6)
32
(10.4)
1.61
(1.08)
Tuning the economy by
monetary policy
116
(37.5)
127
(41.1)
41
(13.3)
8
(2.6)
7
(2.3)
8
(2.6)
2
(0.7)
1.87
(0.91)
Tuning the economy by
fiscal policy
147
(47.6)
94
(30.4)
46
(14.6)
7
(2.3)
7
(2.3)
6
(1.9)
2
(0.7)
1.78
(0.95)
Tighter controls on
immigration
58
(18.8)
53
(17.2)
62
(20.1)
70
(22.7)
63
(20.4)
0
(0.0)
3
(1.0)
3.09
(1.41)
Military aid/presence abroad 54
(17.5)
74
(24.0)
88
(28.5)
32
(10.4)
51
(16.5)
0
(0.0)
10
(3.2)
2.84
(1.32)
Foreign aid (World Bk,
IMF, USAID)
157
(50.8)
74
(24.0)
51
(16.5)
13
(4.2)
11
(3.6)
0
(0.0)
3
(1.0)
1.85
(1.07)

Role of Government Index (includes the 8 issues above), Mean (and St.D.):

2.29
(0.54)

Public Policy Index (includes all 18 issues), Mean (and St.D):

2.12
(0.47)

Political scientists lean against government ownership of
enterprises. They are rather centered on immigration and military
action abroad. Lean in support of foreign aid, monetary policy,
and fiscal policy. They generally support redistribution and the
government production of schooling.

Political Scientists’ Voting Behavior
TABLE 4
To which political party have the candidates you’ve voted for in the past ten years mostly belonged?

  Frequency Percent
Democratic
Republican
238
43
77.0
13.9
Green
Libertarian
2
4
0.7
1.3
Respondents checking more than one option
Democratic/Republican 5 1.6
Deffuse (checked 3 or more) 6 1.9
Non-response 9 2.9
Cannot vote 2 0.7
Total 309 100

Political scientists preponderantly vote Democratic. The
Democrat:Republican ratio is 5.5:1. A 2001 Brookings Institution
survey of A.P.S.A. members with 160 respondents found a
ratio of 4.8:1. Hence, they found a lower ratio. The Brookings
study also surveyed economists, sociologists, and historians. For
economists and sociologists, their ratios were higher than ours,
and for historians it was lower.7 The differences might be partly
accounted for by the fact that the Brookings survey selected
academics with certain specialties.8

Voting Behavior from the Six Fields
TABLE 5

Voting behavior of the associations studied (N=1678)

  Dem
(%)
Green
(%)
Liber
(%)
Repub
(%)
Misc.
(%)
No Resp.
(%)
Total
(100%)
Anthropology 295
(84.3)
6
(1.7)
1
(0.3)
19
(5.4)
20
(5.7)
9
(2.6)
350
 
Economics 152
(57.8)
2
(0.8)
7
(2.7)
61
(23.1)
18
(6.4)
24
(9.1)
264
 
History 231
(77.8)
2
(0.8)
0
(0.00)
38
(12.8)
17
(5.7)
9
(3.0)
297
 
Philosophy
(Political and
Legal)
82
(76.6)
2
(1.9)
4
(3.7)
11
(10.3)
4
(3.7)
4
(3.7)
107
 
Political
Science
238
(77.0)
2
(0.6)
4
(1.3)
43
(13.9)
13
(4.2)
9
(2.9)
309
 
Sociology 288
(82.1)
8
(2.3)
0
(0.00)
18
(5.1)
19
(5.4)
18
(5.1)
351
 
Total 1286
(76.6)
22
(1.3)
16
(1.0)
190
(11.3)
91
(5.4)
73
(4.4)
1670
 

Of the six fields surveyed, voting Democratic is most preponderant
among the anthropologists and sociologists, where the
Democrat:Republican ratio is in each case more than 15:1. Again,
for political scientists it is 5.5:1. The least preponderant is
Economics, but even there the ratio is about 2.5:1.

Summary

The survey results indicate that political scientists on the whole
are mostly “left-liberal.” They favor economic regulations, gun
control, anti-discrimination laws, public schooling, and redistribution,
but are moderate or mixed on foreign aid, drugs, prostitution,
gambling laws, tightening immigration, and military action
abroad. They lean against tariffs and government ownership of
enterprise. Preponderantly, they vote Democratic.

Further reading on the ideology of academia:

Klein, Daniel B. and Andrew Western. 2005. How Many Democrats
per Republican at UC-Berkeley and Stanford? Voter
Registration Data Across 23 Academic Departments. Academic
Questions, forthcoming. Online at http://www.ratio.se/
pdf/wp/dk_aw_voter.pdf.

Klein, Daniel B. and Charlotta Stern. 2005a. “Economists’ Policy
Views and Voting.” Public Choice, forthcoming.
Klein, Daniel B. and Charlotta Stern. 2005b. “Democrats and
Republicans in Anthropology and Sociology: How Do They
Differ on Public Policy Issues?” The American Sociologist,
forthcoming.

Klein, Daniel B. and Charlotta Stern. 2005c. “How Diverse are
the Social Sciences and Humanities? Survey Evidence from
Six Fields.” Academic Questions, forthcoming.

Ladd, Everett Carll, Jr. and Seymour Martin Lipset. 1975. The
Divided Academy: Professors & Politics. New York: McGraw-
Hill.

Lipset, Seymour Martin. 1982. “The Academic Mind at the Top:
The Political Behavior and Values of Faculty Elites.” Public
Opinion Quarterly, 46 (2), Summer: 143-168.

Lipset, Seymour Martin. 1982. “The Academic Mind at the Top:
The Political Behavior and Values of Faculty Elites.” Public
Opinion Quarterly, 46 (2), Summer: 143-168.

Lipset, Seymour Martin. 1994. “The State of American Sociology.”
Sociological Forum, 9 (2), June: 199-220.

Redding, Richard E. 2001. “Sociopolitical Diversity in Psychology:
The Case for Pluralism.” American Psychologist 56(3):
205-215.

Rothman, Stanley, S., Robert Lichter, Neil Nevitte. 2005. “Politics
and Professional Advancement Among College Faculty.”
The Forum 3(1), article 2.

Spaulding, Charles B. and Henry A. Turner. 1968. “Political
Orientation and Field of Specialization Among College Professors.”
Sociology of Education 41(3): 247-262.

Daniel B. Klein
George Mason University

Charlotta Stern
Stockholm University

NOTES

  1. Acknowledgements: We are grateful to the Leavey School of
    Business and the Robert Finocchio Fund at Santa Clara University
    for assistance in meeting the costs of the survey, and especially
    to Ms. Donna Perry, Assistant Dean, Leavey School of
    Business, Santa Clara University, for acting as independent
    controller and certifying the results.
  2. At the Survey Homepage one may view a sample survey and
    documents explaining the methods, independent control, and
    certification of the survey results. The Survey Homepage URL is
    http://lsb.scu.edu/~dklein/survey/survey.htm. For references to
    our other papers, see the Further Readings listed at the end of this
    paper.
  3. There have been more than ten surveys asking economists
    their policy opinions. A few of the more prominent ones are
    reported by the following four papers: J. R. Kearl, Clayne L. Pope,
    Gordon C. Whiting, and Larry T. Wimmer, “A Confusion of
    Economists.” American Economic Review, Papers and Proceedings
    69 May, 1979: 28-37; Richard M. Alson, James R. Kearl, and
    Michael B. Vaughan, “Is there a Consensus among Economists in
    the 1990s? American Economic Review, Papers and Proceedings 82
    May 1992: 203-09; Victor. R. Fuchs, Alan B. Krueger, and James
    M. Poterba, “Economists’ Views about Parameters, Values, and
    Policies: Survey Results in Labor and Public Economics.” Journal
    of Economic Literature 36 (3), 1998: 1387-425; Dan A. Fuller and
    D. Geide-Stevenson, “Consensus among Economists: Revisited.”
    Journal of Economic Education 34 (4), 2003: 369-387.
  4. Two respondents (0.67%) had other degrees.
  5. One respondent checked both “support strongly” and
    “oppose strongly;” counted as “have mixed feelings.”
  6. One respondent checked both “support strongly” and “have
    mixed feelings;” counted as “support mildly.”
  7. See “National Survey on Government Endeavors,” Prepared
    by Princeton Survey Research Associates for the Brookings
    Institution, dated November 9, 2001, page 54; online at: http://
    www.brookings.edu/comm/reformwatch/rw04/surveydata.pdf.
  8. See Paul C. Light, “Government’s Greatest Priorities of the
    Next Half Century,” Reform Watch, No. 4, Brookings Institution,
    December 2001, p. 3: online at: http://www.brookings.edu/
    dybdocroot/comm/reformwatch/rw04/rw4.pdf