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Framing Resource

The State of American Culture: 2023-2024

Published
October 30, 2024

For the past four years, the FrameWorks Institute has been tracking how American thinking is changing in light of the social, economic, and political turmoil of 2020 and beyond. This year, the United States has seen a rising cost of living, denial or restriction of reproductive health care in 22 states, and a fraught political landscape, all of which shape our cultural consciousness.In this update, you will find an overview of seven key findings about the state of American culture in 2024, as well as a preview of the important questions we’ll be investigating over the course of our next year of research.

For a fuller description of each finding along with an explanation of our methodology, check out the full research report here.

Here’s a quick outline of the findings:

  1. Americans are deeply dissatisfied with the state of our country and think things should change—but aren’t sure what that change should look like.
  2. The idea that our “system is rigged” can be leveraged to build support for change.
  3. Individualistic thinking about racism and health has returned to pre-pandemic levels.
  4. More than ever before, we are seeing Americans think at a systemic level about our economy and financial success.
  5. Mindsets around gender are in flux—and lie at the center of a volatile site of contestation in American culture.
  6. Individualistic and reactionary thinking is gaining traction among younger people.
  7. Some mindsets cluster together. This could have major implications for social change work.