Table 1. Evolution questionnaire (percent responses) from each cohort.
| Question | ‘87 –‘96 | Fall ‘88 | 2014–16 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Which of the following best represents your overall personal view about the concept of biological evolution? | |||
| a. It is a repulsive notion. I find it demeaning and degrading and resent the suggestion by misguided individuals that I am related to apes or single-celled organisms | 2.0 | 4.0 | 0.5 |
| b. I reject it as being illogical. It is too far-fetched to be believed. It is only a theory based on conjecture. When all the real facts are in, evolution will be disproved. | 2.0 | 3.0 | 0.7 |
| c. I reject evolution because it is in direct conflict with my religious faith. One cannot reconcile such a view of the origin and development of life with a belief in a divine creator. | 8.6 | 16.0 | 2.0 |
| d. Evolution might apply to some limited circumstances, but cannot be a general principle. (Evolution does not occur across the boundaries which separate the major categories of plants and animals. It may apply to lower forms, but not to man. | 36.5 | 50.0 | 18.8 |
| e. I accept the bulk of evolutionary ideas as true, but I don’t know how to reconcile them with religious concepts I also believe to be true. This is unsettling and I find myself confused. | 27.5 | 16.0 | 17.5 |
| f. I accept evolution as a true principle. There is strong evidence to support the concept, and I do not find it in conflict with my religious faith. | 23.4 | 10.0 | 60.6 |
| 2. Which of the following represents your personal view about the scientific status held by evolution? What place does it hold in the hierarchy between absolute truth and falsehood? | |||
| a. Evolution is a law, an absolute principle whose mechanisms and consequences are completely defined. | 2.0 | 2.0 | 5.5 |
| b. Evolution is a theory, meaning a concept consistent with a large body of evidence which best explains the diversity of life on earth and continues to stand the test of time and new data. | 66.9 | 51.0 | 84.5 |
| c. Evolution is a theory, meaning an unproven assumption or mental speculation. There is not yet enough evidence to consider evolution a valid principle. | 28.0 | 43.0 | 9.0 |
| d. Evolution is a postulate, a loose proposal about which there is little agreement among experts. | 2.2 | 3.0 | 0.7 |
| e. Evolution is a fraud. It is a deliberate misrepresentation of the truth without any basis in fact. | 0.9 | 2.0 | 0.2 |
| 3. What or who has been the strongest influence on your in the formulation of your opinion about evolution? | |||
| a. My parents | 8.2 | 8.0 | 10.3 |
| b. Sunday School/Seminary teachers, church leaders | 13.7 | 27.0 | 4.8 |
| c. Peers/friends | 2.9 | 2.0 | 1.4 |
| d. Courses/teachers in school | 28.6 | 20.0 | 38.7 |
| e. My own personal study and thought | 46.6 | 43.0 | 44.8 |
| 4. How well informed are you on evolution? (To what degree have you studied the biological propositions and their philosophical consequences?) Place yourself on a scale from 1 (very well informed) to 5 (almost totally ignorant). | 2.83 | 2.80 | 2.86 |
| 5. Which of the following best represents your personal view about the age of the earth? | |||
| a. Relatively short (based on a literal interpretation of Genesis: each day of creation = 24 hours. | 1.4 | 2.0 | 0.8 |
| b. A few thousand years (based on an interpretation of scripture such that “1 day with God = 1,000 years with man”). | 25.1 | 27.0 | 9.9 |
| c. A few thousand years (based on the view that scientific dating techniques are inaccurate). | 4.2 | 5.0 | 2.9 |
| d. Very long, 4.6 billions years (based on the most widely accepted scientific estimate). | 46.2 | 39.0 | 74.1 |
| e. None of the above. | 23.7 | 27.0 | 12.2 |
| 6. Which of the following best represents your view about fossils and other geological evidence which are cited in support of evolution? | |||
| a. Such evidence is weak and not compelling. It is too fragmentary and incomplete to justify the speculative conclusions usually drawn from it. | 16.2 | 25.0 | 4.8 |
| b. Such objects were placed on the earth by God as a test of the faith of human beings. | 4.3 | 6.0 | 4.0 |
| c. Such objects were arranged on the earth by Satan in order to destroy the faith of human beings. | 1.6 | 2.0 | 0.8 |
| d. Such evidence is widespread and accurate and validates the concepts of evolution. | 47.5 | 37.0 | 68.6 |
| e. I have no opinion on the matter. | 30.4 | 36.0 | 21.8 |
| 7. In June 1987 the United States Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a Louisiana state law (The Balanced Treatment Act) which required that if evolutionary theory was taught in the public classroom, equal time must also be given to the presentation of creationism. Which of the following best describes your personal reaction to this decision? | |||
| a. I approve. The teaching of fundamentalist religious ideas in the school would violate the principle of separation of church and state. | 23.8 | 24.0 | 28.5 |
| b. I disapprove. Evolution is an atheistic concept. To teach it in the public schools contributes to the breakdown of values I hold dear. | 2.7 | 5.0 | 1.9 |
| c. I disapprove. Equal time ought to be granted to opposing points of view on controversial issues. | 49.1 | 48.0 | 23.7 |
| d. I’m neutral. I’ve listened to both sides of the argument and don’t have strong feelings either way about the issue. | 17.1 | 16.0 | 32.9 |
| e. I haven’t paid any attention to this issue: it doesn’t hold much interest for me. | 7.2 | 7.0 | 13.0 |
| 8. In your view, which statement below best represents the official position of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints toward the principle of biological evolution? | |||
| a. The official position of the church is that evolution is incorrect. The idea is not in harmony with statements of the scriptures and church leaders, and is harmful to the spiritual growth of church members. | 13.2 | 41.0 | 2.4 |
| b. The official position of the Church is that evolution is correct. It is scientifically sound and compatible with the principles of the gospel. | 5.2 | 3.0 | 12.1 |
| c. There is no official position of the Church concerning evolution. A wide difference of opinion exists among both church leaders and members on the subject. | 62.2 | 35.0 | 76.5 |
| d. None of the above. | 19.4 | 21.0 | 8.9 |
An additional column is included to show the effects of an influential talk by a Church authority given in Fall of 1988 (35). Following each question are the results of the Chi-square test of homogeneity comparing the distribution from Cohort 1 (1987–1996, N = 10,203) to the distribution from Cohort 2 (2014–2016, N = 646).