Is There a “Culture War” in the United States? (From “You Are the Researcher,” pgs. 60-62)

One of the early steps in a research project is to produce frequency distributions for all variables. If nothing else, these tables provide excellent background information and, sometimes, you can use them to begin to answer research questions. For this SPSS Assignment, you will use SPSS to produce summary tables for several variables that measure attitudes about controversial issues in U.S. society and that may map the battlefronts in what many call the American culture wars.

The United States seems to be divided on a number of religious, political, and cultural issues and values. We might characterize the opposing sides using terms like “liberal vs. conservative,” “modern vs. traditional,” or “progressive vs. old-school”; some of the most bitter debates across these lines include abortion, homosexual marriage, and gun control. As you know, debates over issues like these can be intense, bitter, and even violent: Adherents of one position may view their opponents with utter contempt, demonize them, and dismiss their arguments. How deep is this fault line in U.S. society?

We can begin to investigate these questions by choosing three variables from the 2012 General Social Survey (GSS) that seem to differentiate the sides in the American culture war. Before doing this, let’s take a moment to consider the process of “picking variables.” Technically, selecting a variable to represent a concept such as “culture war” is called operationalization, and this can be one of the most difficult steps in a research project.

We discussed operationalization in Chapter 1 when we reviewed the research process. When we move from the “theory” stage to the “hypothesis” stage, we identify specific variables (such as responses to survey items) that match our concepts (like prejudice). This can be challenging because our concepts are usually quite abstract and subject to a variety of perspectives. What exactly is a culture war, and why are some positions liberal or traditional, conservative or progressive? In order to do research, we must use concrete variables to represent our abstract concepts, but which variables relate to which concepts?

Any pairing we make between variables and concepts is bound to be at least a little arbitrary. In many cases, the best strategy is to use several variables to represent the concept: if our operationalization’s are reasonable, our selected variables will behave similarly and each will behave as the abstract concept would if we could measure it directly. For this SPSS Assignment, select three different variables to represent the culture wars. Each researcher may select different variables but, if everyone makes reasonable decisions, the chosen variables should be valid representations of the concept.

Begin by starting SPSS and opening the 2012 GSS. You can download this file from Canvas if you haven’t already (SPSS Assignment 1).

Next, select three variables that seem relevant to the culture war by browsing through the list of variables in Appendix G. You can also see a list of variables in the database by clicking Utilities à Variables on the menu bar of the “Data Editor” window. After you have made your selections, complete the following steps.

Step 1: Identify Your Three Variables

Write the names of your variables as they appear in the database (for example: abany, marital, or sex). To “explain what the variable measures,” look at the wording of the survey items in Appendix G or use the abbreviated statements in the Utilities à Variables window.

SPSS Variable Name	Explain Exactly What This Variable Measures

Step 2: Operationalization

Explain how each of your variables relates to the culture wars. Which position is liberal and which is conservative? For example, you might argue that liberals would be pro-choice on abortion and conservatives would be more supportive of gun control.

SPSS Variable Name	Explain the relationship between each variable and the culture wars. Which position is liberal and which is conservative?

Step 3: Producing Frequency Distributions

Now we are ready to generate output and get some background on the nature of disagreements over values and issues among Americans.

Generating Frequency Distributions

Use the same procedures discussed in class and in the video to produce frequency distributions for the three variables you used to represent the American culture wars. From the menu bar, click Analyze, Descriptive Statistics, and then Frequencies.

Find your three variables in the Frequencies window. Click each variable name and then, one variable at a time, click the arrow button in the middle of the screen to move the variable name to the right-hand window. SPSS will process all variables listed in the right-hand box at the same time. When you have all three of your variables listed in the right-hand box, click OK in the Frequencies window, and SPSS will create the frequency distributions you requested. The tables will be in the SPSS “output” window.

Step 4: Interpreting Results

Summarize your results by reporting the percentage (not the frequencies) of respondents who endorsed each response.

How large are the divisions in American values?

Is there consensus on the issue measured by your variable (do the great majority endorse the same response) or is there considerable disagreement? The lower the consensus, the greater the opportunity for the issue to be included in the culture war.

SPSS Name of Variable 1:

Summarize the frequency distribution in terms of the percentage of respondents who endorsed each position:

Are these results consistent with the idea that there is a “war” over American values? How?

SPSS Name of Variable 2:

Summarize the frequency distribution in terms of the percentage of respondents who endorsed each position:

Are these results consistent with the idea that there is a “war” over American values? How?

SPSS Name of Variable 3:

Summarize the frequency distribution in terms of the percentage of respondents who endorsed each position:

Are these results consistent with the idea that there is a “war” over American values? How?

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

1 SPSS Variable Name abany This variable measures attitudes toward abortion 2 SPSS Variable Name wappr This variable measures attitudes toward homosexual marriage 3 SPSS Variable Name gunlaw This vari... View the full answer