Cerise Valenzuela MetzgerChapman University sociologists and researchers have released the ninth annual Survey of American Fears revealing 92 terrifying trends and new insights into the nation’s top fears.
Americans fear being a victim of mass shootings, pollution and biological warfare and their fears also relate to immigration, gun control, the Jan. 6 violent attempt to overthrow of the U.S. government. More than 1,000 people across the nation were surveyed April 5-15, 2022. The fears are ranked by the percent of Americans who reported being afraid or very afraid.
Fear of corrupt government officials has remained the greatest fear for yet another year since first landing in the spot in 2015. However, the fear has declined from 79.6% in 2020/2021 to 62.1% in 2022, its lowest point since 2016.
Both the fear of “people I love becoming seriously ill” and the fear of “people I love dying” landed in the top 10 each year except for 2017, and in the top five since 2019. Americans tend to fear more for the health and safety of loved ones rather than their own. Of the 1,020 people surveyed, only 29% were afraid of dying themselves and 58% were afraid of a loved one dying.
This year, for the first time, the survey included a question regarding Russia using nuclear weapons. The results landed fear of a nuclear attack from Russia in the top three, with 59.6% of Americans afraid of Russia using nuclear weapons. The last time a similar fear landed in the top 10 was in 2017, when Americans’ shared fear of North Korea using weapons secured the No. 9 spot on the list.
Top 10 Fears for 2022 % Of Very Afraid or Afraid
- Corrupt government officials 62.1%
- People I love becoming seriously ill 60.2%
- Russia using nuclear weapons 59.6%
- People I love dying 58.1%
- The U.S. becoming involved in another world war 56.0%
- Pollution of drinking water 54.5%
- Not having enough money for the future 53.7%
- Economic/financial collapse 53.7%
- Pollution of oceans, rivers, and lakes 52.5%
- Biological warfare 51.5%
Seasonal phobias of ghosts (8.1%) and zombies (10.6%) continue to make the list.
Standards such as public speaking (34.0%), flying (12.4%), germs (14.5%), heights (30.6%), needles (12.3%), small, enclosed spaces (21.7%), sharks (29.6%), insects (23.8%) and reptiles (27.2%) returned.
Racial and political fears include racial/hate crimes (29.9%), violent overthrow of the U.S. government (35.6%), Left-wing extremists (30.8%), Right-wing extremists (35.8%) White supremacists (38.2%), The Proud Boys (34.0%), and Antifa (27.1%).
Economic fears include economic/financial collapse (53.7%), financial fraud (24.3%), not being able to pay off college debt of myself or a family member (43.0%) and not having enough money to pay my rent or mortgage (43.4%).
Environmental fears include drought (35.1%), wildfire (30.9%), devastating natural disaster where I live (37.5%), global warming and climate change (47.4%), and air pollution (47.3%).
The Chapman University Survey on American Fears website offers the full article on America’s Top Fears 2022 and articles on America’s Fear of Corrupt Government, Fear of Mass Shootings and Fear of Gun Restrictions. The methodology and a comparison of 2020/2021 and 2022 fears also are offered on the site.
The list is compiled by student researcher Christian Grevin and from the work of Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences undergraduate research fellows in The Ludie & David C. Social Sciences Research Laboratory and The Earl Babbie Research Center. Sociology Professor Christopher Bader, Associate Professor of Sociology Edward Day and Ann Gordon, an associate professor of political science oversee the collection of the annual data on the fears, worries and concerns of Americans, their personal behavior related to those fears and how the fears are associated with other attitudes and behaviors.
About Chapman University
Founded in 1861, Chapman University is a nationally ranked private university located in Southern California. Chapman is categorized by the Carnegie Classification as an R2 “high research activity” institution and offers personalized education to more than 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students. The campus has produced a Rhodes Scholar, been named a top producer of Fulbright Scholars, and hosts a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honor society. Based in the city of Orange, Chapman also includes the Harry and Diane Rinker Health Science Campus in Irvine. In 2019, the university opened its 11th college, Fowler School of Engineering, in its newest facility, Keck Center for Science and Engineering. Learn more about Chapman University: www.chapman.edu.
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