Location
Northwestern College, Rowenhorst Student Center
Abstract
We provide a summary report of a survey on student attitudes toward kneeling during the national anthems prior to NFL games and other athletic events. The study consists of a representative sample of 268 NWC students. The data were collected through a randomized email distribution and computer-assisted interviews during the fall of 2017. Our findings suggest that although NWC students generally recognize systematic disadvantages against people of color in the United States, they have reservations about whether kneeling is an appropriate or effective form of protest; nearly two thirds indicated that kneeling was disrespectful to the country. We also examine whether and how these attitudes are influenced by three other factors: political attitudes, gender, and religiosity. Conservative political attitudes and approval of Donald Trump’s presidential were both significantly associated with students’ negative attitudes toward kneeling. Women were more likely to approve of kneeling than men, and the effect of gender was partially mediated by political attitudes. The importance of religion was generally associated with stronger disapproval of kneeling during national anthems, but there is some evidence that religious salience has mixed effects on whether students believed kneeling was appropriate, effective, or disrespectful to country. We discuss how these findings reflect and may contribute to a national conversation about the meaning of kneeling in the context of American race relations, patriotism, and religious commitment.
Included in
NWC Attitudes toward Kneeling and the National Anthem
Northwestern College, Rowenhorst Student Center
We provide a summary report of a survey on student attitudes toward kneeling during the national anthems prior to NFL games and other athletic events. The study consists of a representative sample of 268 NWC students. The data were collected through a randomized email distribution and computer-assisted interviews during the fall of 2017. Our findings suggest that although NWC students generally recognize systematic disadvantages against people of color in the United States, they have reservations about whether kneeling is an appropriate or effective form of protest; nearly two thirds indicated that kneeling was disrespectful to the country. We also examine whether and how these attitudes are influenced by three other factors: political attitudes, gender, and religiosity. Conservative political attitudes and approval of Donald Trump’s presidential were both significantly associated with students’ negative attitudes toward kneeling. Women were more likely to approve of kneeling than men, and the effect of gender was partially mediated by political attitudes. The importance of religion was generally associated with stronger disapproval of kneeling during national anthems, but there is some evidence that religious salience has mixed effects on whether students believed kneeling was appropriate, effective, or disrespectful to country. We discuss how these findings reflect and may contribute to a national conversation about the meaning of kneeling in the context of American race relations, patriotism, and religious commitment.