The Nature and Social Bases of Progressive Social Movement Ideology: Examining Public Opinion toward Social Movements

Abstract

Social movement scholars argue that movements within the same social movement family represent an ideologically coherent social force driven by an overarching master frame. Yet this claim has thus far been poorly documented. Analyzing public opinion data from a nationally representative April 2000 Gallup Poll, we find substantial evidence of a progressive social movement ideology centered around the extension of rights within the American public, as support for individual movements within this family is highly interrelated. Adherents to this progressive social movement ideology are drawn from self-identified political Liberals and Democrats, the more highly educated, women, younger, and less religious adults. We argue that public opinion research should be seen as a valuable complement to existing case-based social movement scholarship.