Thanks to Education: Most Americans Support Evolution

More and more people in the United States consider the theory of evolution to be the correct explanation for human evolution, but the percentage of creationists is steadily declining. One The current study According to them, this is primarily due to the improvement in the level of education in recent years.

“Humans, as we know them today, evolved from previous life forms,” this is how the central result of the theory of evolution, relating to our species, can be summed up. The statement was met with equal approval and rejection in opinion polls in the United States for many years; Now, for the first time, it is outnumbering believers in creation. This is the result of a study conducted by sociologist John D University of Michigan and his colleagues.

For this purpose, the team examined several national surveys over the past 35 years, which are conducted every two years by various institutions. Between 1985 and 2010, approval and disapproval were roughly evenly distributed. However, since 2016, the theory of evolution has gained steady acceptance, according to Miller, with an approval rating of 54 percent in the most recent polls from 2019. In 2005 the figure was just 40 percent. This put the United States in Comparison of 34 countries In the penultimate position, only Turkey’s rate was 27% lower.

Researchers have identified progress in the level of education of the population as the most important factor for this development. Those who have successfully completed college, taken scientific courses there, or otherwise obtained a scientific education are more likely to recognize the plausibility of the theory of evolution. Co-author Mark Ackerman notes that the proportion of college graduates in the United States nearly doubled between 1988 and 2018. It is difficult to earn this degree “without earning a minimum of respect for the achievements of science.”

According to the study, the biggest stumbling block to acceptance of evolution is – not surprisingly – religious fundamentalism, which, despite declining numbers, is still adhered to by nearly 30 percent of the US population. But even in these circles, disapproval is crumbling: Even among respondents with strong fundamentalist beliefs, the rate for evolutionists has quadrupled from 8 percent in 1988 to 32 percent now.

So, can the science communications and enlightenment philanthropists in the United States sit back and watch belief in creation slip into irrelevance? Not at all, lead author John D. Miller warns. Instead, he expects the debate to become more politicized. This is already clear There is a clear gap between the political camps on this issue in the country. While only 34 percent of conservative Republicans accept evolution, they represent 83 percent of liberal Democrats.