How Immigration and Concerns about Cultural Change are Shaping the 2016 Election

How Immigration and Concerns about Cultural Change are Shaping the 2016 Election reports on a survey of a large sample of Americans in all 50 states, conducted in the spring of 2016.

The survey included questions on the direction of the country, the economy and personal financial well-being; levels of anxiety about terrorism, crime, and unemployment; and opinions on trade and taxation. The survey also asked Americans how they feel about immigration and cultural change, and about the upcoming presidential election. The survey also attempts to measure orientation towards authoritarianism. Regarding immigration and cultural change, the survey asked respondents about their level of comfort with immigrants who don't speak English, perceptions about discrimination against whites and Christians, and attitudes about Islam. The study also asked respondents to describe some traits of immigrants, and whether they think immigrants strengthen the U.S. or take jobs from Americans and drive down wages. There were also a number of questions focused on immigration policy-the perception of the number of deportations in recent years, whether undocumented immigrants should be allowed to stay (most say yes), whether the U.S. should build a wall on the Mexican border (most say no), and whether the U.S. should ban Syrian refugees (most say no again). Responses to this survey are broken out by race and ethnicity, party affiliation, educational attainment, and religious affiliation, providing a rich description of the differences in attitudes that Americans hold on these important issues. (Maurice Belanger, Maurice Belanger Consulting)

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