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Whether it is better for racial and ethnic groups to maintain their distinct cultures or blend into the larger society; the 1994 and 2000 GSS used a seven-point scale with a middle option and 1996-2014 a forced two-way choice, so levels differ by format and are not directly comparable.
AI-matched An AI model grouped these questions and mapped their answers onto shared categories, and a second AI review checked and corrected the grouping and mapping. No person has checked it: compare the question wordings and the answer mapping below before reading the lines against each other.
Latest: 38% answered “Maintain distinct cultures” in GSS: Better to maintain distinct customs or blend in, 2014.
Shares of everyone asked, including non-answers. Each column is one survey wave, evenly spaced rather than to scale in time; hover for exact shares.
Shares of everyone asked, including non-answers. Each point is one survey wave at the middle of its field period. Lines from different surveys are never spliced together.
Groups differ from everyone by 7 points on average across all answers, in GSS: Better to maintain distinct customs or blend in.
| Line | Question | Match | How answers map |
|---|---|---|---|
| GSS: Maintain distinct cultures or blend in, 7-point scale | Maintain distinct cultures or blend in, 7-point scale Some people say that it is better for America if different racial and ethnic groups maintain their distinct cultures. Others say that it is better if groups change so that they blend into the larger society as in the idea of a melting pot. Here is a card with a scale from 1 to 7. Think of a score of 1 as meaning that racial and ethnic groups should maintain their distinct cultures, and a score of 7 as meaning that groups should change so that they blend into the larger society. What score between 1 and 7 comes closest to the way you feel? (CIRCLE ONE): Caveat: 7-point scale collapsed to 3; midpoint kept separate, so not directly comparable with the two-option version | similar | Maintain distinct cultures → Maintain distinct cultures; 2 → Maintain distinct cultures; 3 → Maintain distinct cultures; 4 → Middle / depends; 5 → Blend into larger society; 6 → Blend into larger society; Blend in to larger society → Blend into larger society |
| GSS: Better to maintain distinct customs or blend in | Better to maintain distinct customs or blend in Some people say that it is better for a country if different racial and ethnic groups maintain their distinct customs and traditions. Others say that it is better if these groups adapt and blend into the larger society. Which of these views comes closer to your own? Caveat: Forced two-option choice with no middle; wording says 'customs and traditions' and 'adapt and blend' | similar | Better for society maintain distinct → Maintain distinct cultures; Better if groups adapt and blend into → Blend into larger society |
Groups differ from everyone by 4 points on average across all answers, in GSS: Better to maintain distinct customs or blend in.
Subgroup charts are picked automatically. Of every breakdown in the data (party, ideology, age, sex, race, education, income, region, religion, and community type), these two put their groups furthest from everyone’s answers: the gap is averaged across all answer categories and waves, with each group weighted by its share of respondents. Party and ideology count as one choice, so the second chart shows a different kind of split. Groups with an effective sample under 50 in a wave are left out of that wave.