• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, October 6, 2009

It may surprise anyone following the charges of racism that have flared up during the debate over President Obama's health care proposals, but a survey taken this summer found that fewer people perceived that there are strong conflicts between blacks and whites than saw strong conflicts between immigrants and the native born, or between rich people and poor people.

According to a nationally representative survey by the Pew Research Center Social & Demographic Trends project, a majority of adults said there are "very strong" or "strong" conflicts between immigrants and people born in the United States. Nearly as many said the same about conflicts between rich people and poor people. The survey found that about four-in-ten believe there are serious conflicts between blacks and whites, and only a quarter see major generational divisions between the young and old.

Conflicts Between Social Groups
Very Strong Conflicts Between:	% of Respondents
Immigrants and people born in the US	55%
Rich people and poor people	47
Blacks and whites	39
Young people and older people	26
Source: PewResearchCenter, September 2009

The Pew Research survey was conducted from July 20 to Aug. 2 coincident with discussions about the role of racism in American society featured heavily in media coverage of Obama's presidency.

The survey found some notable demographic patterns in the public's perceptions of social conflicts. For example, blacks, Hispanics and women are significantly more likely than whites and men to say major conflicts exist between groups in at least three of the four areas tested in the survey. But not even blacks believe that racial conflict is the most prevalent kind of conflict in the country today.

Older adults are significantly less likely than younger people to see strong conflicts between immigrants and native born and between the rich and the poor, but just as likely to see serious generational differences and racial disputes.

Similarly, half of all Democrats but a only third of Republicans say there are serious conflicts between blacks and whites. The partisan perceptions gap is even bigger on perceptions of conflicts between the rich and poor: a majority of Democrats see very serious or serious conflicts between haves- and have-nots, compared with 38% of Republicans. At the same time, there is no significant difference by party affiliation in perceptions about conflicts between immigrants and native born or between the generations.

Perceptions of Social Conflicts (% who characterize conflicts in each social group as "very strong" or "strong")
	Social Group
By Segment	Blacks/Whites	Rich/Poor	Immigrants/Native-born	Young/Old
Total	39%	47%	55%	26%
Gender
Men	38	43	52	23
Women	40	51	59	29
Race/Ethnicity
White	35	43	53	21
Black	53	65	61	42
Hispanic	47	55	68	39
Age
16-29	36	50	56	28
30-49	42	52	61	25
50-64	39	45	55	24
65+	36	36	44	26
Income
$100,000+	47	45	60	20
50-99K	38	50	55	22
30-49K	38	45	58	25
< 30K	39	47	54	30
Party
Democrat	46	55	56	28
Republican	33	38	57	24
Independent	35	45	54	23
Nativity
Native-born	39	47	56	25
Foreign born	42	49	53	35
Source: PewResearchCenter, September 2009

Disagreements between immigrants and native-born Americans emerge as the most prevalent and serious type of social conflict among those tested in the survey. A clear of adults say there are "very strong" or "strong" conflicts between these groups, including 18% who say there are "very strong" conflicts and 37% who describe them as "strong."

Finally, concludes the report, the proportion of Americans who see a great deal of generational conflict has declined substantially: In the 1992 GSS survey, fully 42% saw major divisions between the old and young.

To read the full report please visit Pew social trends here.