VIRGINIA F. CUTLER LECTURE
"Shared Commitments Within a Divided Coalition: The Paradox of American Family Politics”
Now in its tenth year, the American Family Survey identifies public opinion trends of Americans' attitudes toward families and experience with family life. Chris Karpowitz and Jeremy Pope conceived of the study when they were both co-directors of the Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy.
With early results from the most current survey, which will be published in January 2025, Karpowitz & Pope will highlight how both red and blue (liberal and conservative) families have much more in common than not.
For example, people who are married by and large love the institution of marriage and derive great value from it. However, views about how to help families succeed are ideologically split. They posit that real help for families will probably require a political coalition that our current parties find uncomfortable.
Christopher F. Karpowitz
Chris Karpowitz is the Mary Lou Fulton Professor of Political Science at Brigham Young University and Co-Editor in Chief of Political Behavior. He is the author of several books, including the award-winning The Silent Sex: Gender, Deliberation, and Institutions (with Tali Mendelberg). Karpowitz’s research interests include political psychology, political behavior, and gender and politics. He has received the International Society of Political Psychology’s Erik Erikson Award for Early Career Achievement and the Emerging Scholar Award from the Elections, Public Opinion, and Voting Behavior Section of the American Political Science Association. He is a co-creator of the American Family Survey.
Jeremy C. Pope
Jeremy Pope is a Professor of Political Science and a Wheatley Institution Fellow for Constitutional Government at Brigham Young University. He is the author of multiple books and articles, such as Founding Factions: How Majorities Shifted and Aligned to Shape the U.S. Constitution (with Shawn Treier), and "The Crucial Role of Race in 21st Century U.S. Political Realignment" (with Michael Barber). Pope’s interests lie in the area of the American political founding, political parties and ideology, as well as the politics around family policy. He is a co-creator of the American Family Survey.
Students in the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences gain Experience Points for attending this lecture. Learn more about Experience Points.