Majority of Americans Admit to ‘Self-Silencing’ on Hot-Button Issues, Survey Finds

DAILY CALLER NEWS FOUNDATION—Nearly two-thirds of Americans conceal their political opinions on contentious issues in public, according to a new Populace Research/YouGov survey.

Most Americans, 58%, said they cannot express their private opinions publicly, and 61% admit to “self-silencing” their political views, according to the survey. At the same time, Americans publicly claim to have higher trust in our institutions than they do in private.

Only 36% of Democrats publicly said that they trust the government to tell the truth, but only 5% agreed with the statement in private, according to the survey. Similarly, 42% of Democrats publicly report that they trust the media to tell the truth, while just 9% reiterated this belief in private.

Skepticism is even more apparent among Republicans, with 14% publicly saying they trust the government to tell the truth while just 2% hold this belief privately, according to the study. At the same time, just 16% of Republicans publicly trust the media to tell the truth, while just 3% agreed with the statement in private.

Just 37% of Americans publicly believe that we live in a mostly fair society, while just 7% privately agree with the sentiment, according to the survey.

While polarization is at the forefront of many political conversations, the study reveals Americans privately agree on many issues.

The vast majority of Americans, 90%, are privately on the “same side” of roughly two-thirds of political issues ranging from abortion to school choice and legal immigration, according to the survey.

When it comes to defunding the police, 28% of Gen Z and 27% of Democrats publicly supported the movement, according to the survey. However, only 2% of Gen Z and 3% of Democrats privately support the same movement, which parallels the 1% support among Baby Boomers and Republicans.

The Populace Research/YouGov study surveyed 19,879 respondents from May 16 to June 24.

Originally published by the Daily Caller News Foundation

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