|
Poll Results
1999
A
training in philosophy will make you more likely to believe in Darwinian
evolution, but less likely to believe that morality is culturally
relative. These are two of the findings of a striking new survey
conducted by The Philosphers' Magazine over the last few months.
TPM
has asked nearly 1000 visitors to its internet site about their
background in philosophy and their beliefs on matters ranging from
God to moon-landings. The aim has been to determine what impact,
if any, a training in philosophy has on the way that people view
the world and their place in it. The survey has thrown up all manner
of interesting patterns of belief, but the most significant in terms
of the impact of a philosophical background are those to do with
Darwinism and cultural relativity.
Asked
whether they believe that Darwinian evolution accounts for the emergence
of complex organisms (including humans), more than four-fifths of
professional philosophers replied that they do. In contrast, only
about 60% of philosophy students and three-quarters of interested
lay-people people replied the same way. This kind of result was
repeated for the question on morality, only in reverse. Nearly 50%
of philosophy students claimed to believe that moral judgements
can only be made in terms of the standards of specific cultures,
compared with one third of philosophy graduates and less than 20%
of professional lecturers who professed the same belief.
Of
the other interesting patterns to emerge, perhaps the most significant
is that there is a systematic difference in the beliefs reported
by men and women. For example, about 15% of men profess a belief
in "Karma", compared to about a third of all women. And similarly,
women polled in this survey are significantly more likely to believe
in a personal God and "creationism" than men. Interestingly, they
are less impressed with the claims of Darwinism than are men.
Finally,
students of philosophy might be interested to hear that there are
patterns of belief that they broadly share with their teachers.
About a third of both groups believe that there is a personal God
and hardly any of either group believe that humans have not landed
on the moon!
Results
| |
Male
|
Female
|
Student %
|
Graduate %
|
Lecturer %
|
Other %
|
Total %
|
|
A personal God exists
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Believe
|
29%
|
36%
|
31%
|
25%
|
29%
|
35%
|
31%
|
|
Don't Believe
|
71%
|
64%
|
69%
|
75%
|
71%
|
65%
|
69%
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gods exist (i.e., polytheism)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Believe
|
8%
|
10%
|
14%
|
5%
|
5%
|
11%
|
9%
|
|
Don't believe
|
92%
|
90%
|
86%
|
95%
|
95%
|
89%
|
91%
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Aliens have visited earth
from other planets
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Believe
|
7%
|
15%
|
10%
|
5%
|
4%
|
13%
|
9%
|
|
Don't believe
|
93%
|
85%
|
90%
|
95%
|
96%
|
87%
|
91%
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Darwinian evolution accounts
for the emergence of complex organisms (including humans)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Believe
|
79%
|
67%
|
65%
|
80%
|
85%
|
74%
|
76%
|
|
Don't believe
|
21%
|
33%
|
35%
|
20%
|
15%
|
26%
|
24%
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The first human beings
were created and put on Earth by God
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Believe
|
13%
|
19%
|
16%
|
10%
|
13%
|
17%
|
14%
|
|
Don’t believe
|
87%
|
81%
|
84%
|
90%
|
87%
|
83%
|
86%
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
What does around comes
around (Karma)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Believe
|
15%
|
33%
|
22%
|
15%
|
10%
|
27%
|
20%
|
|
Don’t believe
|
85%
|
67%
|
78%
|
85%
|
90%
|
73%
|
80%
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Morality is culturally
relative (i.e., moral judgements can only be made in terms
of the standards of specific cultures)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Believe
|
39%
|
46%
|
48%
|
36%
|
16%
|
56%
|
41%
|
|
Don't believe
|
61%
|
54%
|
52%
|
64%
|
84%
|
44%
|
59%
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Human beings have NOT yet
landed a spacecraft on the moon
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Believe
|
2%
|
5%
|
3%
|
3%
|
2%
|
2%
|
2%
|
|
Don’t believe
|
98%
|
95%
|
97%
|
97%
|
98%
|
98%
|
98%
|
More
detailed results, including statistical analysis, are available
to subscribers, in the form of an excel workbook, .
Any
questions about the poll should be directed to Jeremy Stangroom .
|
