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74 Percent of U.S. Adults Worry 2024 Election Results Could Lead to Violence, Survey Finds

Feeling a bit stressed about the current U.S. political climate? You’re far from alone.

Three-quarters of U.S. adults surveyed by the American Psychological Association (APA) said the future of the nation was a significant source of stress in their lives—and it seems to be getting worse each election season.

In 2016, the presidential election caused significant stress for 52 percent of adults. But in 2020, the number jumped to 68 percent, and this year’s stress is just as high at 69 percent, according to Stress in America 2024: A Nation in Political Turmoil. In addition, 74 percent of surveyed adults said they were worried that the 2024 election results could lead to violence. Adults ages 65 and older were more likely to be worried about political violence than their younger counterparts, the APA noted.

Women were more likely than men (49 percent vs. 38 percent) to be stressed about how their lives and the U.S. democracy will be affected based on the results of the 2024 presidential election.

Around two-thirds of adults (67 percent) surveyed by the APA said this is the lowest point in the nation’s history that they can remember (although in 2020, 71 percent of adults reported the same).

“In general, we know that chronic stress harms psychological well-being and physical well-being. It takes a toll on our bodies,” said Brett Ford, PhD, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Toronto who studies the link between emotions and political engagement, in an APA article. “There’s a strong case to be made that for many people, politics is a form of chronic stress.”

National surveys found that nearly half of U.S. adults say politics is a major stressor that results in lost sleep, short tempers, and obsessive thoughts. Chronic stress also has notable physical consequences for people’s bodies, including musculoskeletal stress, asthma attacks, panic attacks, long-term cardiovascular problems, and more.

Chronic stress can also erode social ties that otherwise help keep people grounded.

“Politics appeared integral to people in the U.S., as more than half of adults (54 percent) reported their political views are an important part of their identity,” according to the APA. “Such strong personal feelings toward political views may explain the impact political divisions appeared to have had on personal connection.”

The APA’s report found that 50 percent of U.S. adults said tension around social and political topics makes them less likely to want to connect with other people. Just shy of 30 percent said they have nothing in common with people who have different political opinions than they do. Around one-third of adults (32 percent) said the political climate has caused strain between them and their family members, and 30 percent said they limit time with their family because they don’t share the same values.

Despite their actions, 80 percent of respondents said Americans have lost the ability to have civil disagreements, and more than 85 percent of people (including equal slices of Democrats and Republicans) agreed that differing values and opinions are beneficial to society. Most respondents also agreed that being able to have conversations with people who don’t share the same values is important. But right now, 41 percent reported they have a hard time having a civil conversation about politics with people who have different values.

This can result in notable conflict and disagreements in the workplace. A Q3 2024 analysis from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) found that U.S. workers experience 190 million acts of incivility every day this year—58 percent of those daily acts occur in the workplace, and 65 percent of workers say that incivility causes unnecessary stress. Fueling incivility in the workplace right now: political viewpoint differences top the list of causes, followed by social issue disagreements, generational gaps, racial or ethnic differences, and the direction of U.S. society.

Individuals are also highly concerned about misinformation. The APA's report found that 82 percent said it worried them that people may be basing their values and opinions on false or inaccurate information. More than one in five adults reported believing something they read online when it wasn’t real or accurate. However, 73 percent said they were confident they could spot misinformation, and 76 percent said they always verify information sources. But 56 percent (especially younger adults, ages 18-44) were concerned that they were unknowingly spreading misinformation, especially on social media.

The ability to identify misinformation is a notable stressor—73 percent of adults agreed it is stressful to know how believable fake information can seem.

“Despite the pervasive stress about our nation’s future, this year’s survey revealed determination and resilience among adults,” the APA report said. “Findings suggested that the current political climate has motivated positive change through individual actions. More than three-quarters of adults (77 percent) said they intend to vote in the presidential election, and half of adults (51 percent) said they feel more compelled to volunteer or support causes they value as a result of the state of our nation—significantly higher than the 45 percent who said so in 2019 prior to the 2020 presidential election.

“What’s more, three in five adults reported feeling hopeful about the change this election is going to bring (61 percent) and that this election will lead to a more inclusive society (59 percent),” the APA continued. “More than two in five adults (42 percent) said they haven’t felt this excited about an election in years.”

Beyond politics, what else is stressing American adults? Overall stress levels have remained close to the average rating in past APA surveys (5.0 out of 10), but some societal stressors are changing.

Personal issues. Health-related issues (66 percent), work (65 percent), and money (64 percent) were the most commonly reported personal significant sources of stress in adults’ lives.

Crime. The percentage of U.S. adults stressed about mass shootings increased notably between 2023 (56 percent) and 2024 (63 percent). But the percentage of people concerned about violence and crime went down, from 61 percent to 54 percent. Meanwhile, 50 percent of individuals who identify as LBGTQIA+ consider personal safety a significant source of distress compared to 34 percent among non-LBGTQIA+ individuals.

Societal issues. Younger Americans—especially those between the ages of 18 and 34—are notably more concerned about societal issues like abortion laws (49 percent consider them a source of significant stress), environmental challenges (61 percent), social issues (56 percent), and gun laws and regulations (54 percent).

News and recent events. Housing costs, the spread of false news, and social divisiveness in the United States were top stressors for 60 percent of surveyed individuals when asked to rate their stress about specific news events and topics. Another half cited stress related to police violence toward minorities (52 percent), the Israel-Hamas war (50 percent), the state of race relations (49 percent), and the rise of artificial intelligence (49 percent).

 

Read more from Security Management about election security and civil unrest here. Consider downloading a free Civility Starter Kit, including a Political Conversations Playbook, from SHRM for resources on how to build a more respectful workplace.

 

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