Age and white racial attitudes: National surveys, 1972–1989

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Abstract
The responses of white adults to three questions concerning race relations from national surveys (1972–1989) were examined. The questions, which served as the major dependent variables, refer to interracial marriage, open housing, and the election of a black for president of the United States. The responses to these questions were analyzed in terms of four age groups. The issues addressed by this research include: Are there statistically significant differences in the responses among the four age groups regarding the racial questions? Do these differences remain significant or do they change over time? How are the differences among age groups explained? The results indicated significant differences in the percentage responses among the four age groups in the cross‐sectional analysis for each year from 1972–1989. These differences remained rather stable over a 15‐ and 16‐year span, although there was a slight shift in attitudes overall. It is proposed that racial attitudes were developed in the formative years, especially in late adolescence and young adulthood and remained rather constant through time. This explanation corresponds to Mannheim's (1952) idea that we are creatures of the culture and become affected by the “spirit of the time.”

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