Minority Millennials are more pro-government, pro-family than peers
They're also politically active, embrace diversity and are not as financially dependent on mom and dad...
They’re self assured, sleep with their cell phones and want to be good parents. They’re also politically active, embrace diversity and are not as financially dependent on mom and dad as they’re often portrayed.
They’re the “Millennials”, the group of 18-to-29-year olds who have become adults in the new millennium. Their total count hovers around 50 million, according to a new study, “Millennials: A Portrait of Generation Next,” by the Pew Research Center which studies issues, attitudes and trends affecting America. The study, conducted last month among 2,020 adults, contrasts the attitudes and behaviors of Millennials with those of older Americans.
“They are more ethnically and racially diverse than older adults,” Pew researchers said in a press release. “They’re less religious, less likely to have served in the military, and are on track to become the most educated generation in American history.”
Although whites reflect the majority of Millennials at 61 percent, African-Americans or blacks represent 14 percent of Millennials, Hispanics are 19 percent and Asians are 5 percent.
Here’s what the study shows for categories such as technology, education, jobs, lifestyle and ideology along racial lines:
-More than 95 percent white and 91 percent blacks are online, compared to 73 percent Hispanics.
-White Millennials are more likely to have created a social networking profile (83 percent), compared to 71 percent blacks and 52 percent whites. Blacks are more likely to use the sites several times a day (45 percent) compared to whites (25 percent.) Sixty-six percent of black Millennials connect to the Internet wirelessly or through hand-held devices, compared to whites who connect at 64 percent. For Hispanics, the rate is 47 percent.
-Whites (86 percent) are more likely than blacks (61 percent) and Hispanics (58 percent) to talk on a cell phone while driving.
-In the education arena, 19 percent of all Millennials are college graduates, with 44 percent planning to attend college. Of those statistics, whites represent 22 percent with college degrees, and blacks and Hispanics are 10 percent (each) of college graduates. However, 55 percent of blacks plan to attend college, compared to 42 percent whites and 39 percent Hispanics.
-Among Millennials, women and minorities tend to be more pro-government, with 61 percent of blacks saying government should do more to solve problems, compared to 64 percent Hispanics, and 47 percent whites.
-Millennials don’t appear to mind working, and 41 percent of them are employed full time. Approximately 63 percent of white young adults work full or part time, followed by 59 percent blacks, and 61 percent Hispanics. Fewer than 40 percent in each category depend on family for financial assistance.
-Regarding trends toward more single women having children, 66 percent of black Millennials say the trend is bad for society, compared with 57 percent of whites, and 59 percent of Hispanics.
Also, while the study does not show a break down among racial lines, it notes that 45 percent of Millennials support equal rights more than older groups, and 95 percent of Millennials agree that is ok for blacks and whites to date.
Finally, Millennials tend to be less religious and embrace various forms of self expression, according to the study. “One in five has posted a video of themselves online, four in 10 have a tattoo, and nearly one-third has a piercing in some place other than an earlobe.”
