Sights on Mars: Continuity and Change in Support for Space Policy

Abstract

Using a longitudinal study (the Longitudinal Study of American Life), we test the degree of stability present in the public's attitudes toward space exploration and examine how those attitudes developed over the course of the longitudinal study. Emphasis is placed on how socialization factors such as parental interest in space exploration as well as parent–child space discussions influence attitudes in adulthood, although other potential determinants of attitudes are also considered. Focusing on measures of interest in space exploration and support for a crewed mission to Mars, our analysis of the survey data suggests only weak stability in support for a Mars expedition but moderate stability in general interest towards space exploration attitudes over a 15- to 20-year period. Furthermore, while there is evidence that early childhood predispositions about the merits of space exploration can help to predict policy support 20 years later, factors other than socialization are found to be the more dominant predictors of space policy attitudes. We find that an individual's interest in space exploration is the most significant determinant of their support for a human mission to Mars; interest, in turn, correlates with such factors as one's gender, scientific knowledge, and religious beliefs, among other factors.