Value Change or Culture War? Evidence from State of the Union Addresses, 1960-2000.

We examine State of the Union addresses to gauge the impact of social change in the United States. Our study uses two theories of social change as a framework for this examination: Inglehart’s theory of value change (1971, 1977, 1997), and Hunter’s notion of a culture war (1991, 1994). Utilizing a prioritization index of policy issues in State of the Union addresses, we found that there is remarkable consistency in the policy areas that are given high priority (foreign policy/defense policy, economic policy, governmental affairs, and social welfare policy) and low priority (labor issues, agriculture, resources, and civil rights/civil liberties) over time. We find little support for Inglehart’s theory that hypothesizes economic issues in postindustrial society will become comparatively less important as postmaterial, or quality of life issues, increase in importance. We do, however, find evidence that the culture war has impacted the rhetoric of presidents in the last two decades of the twentieth century. Reagan, Bush, and Clinton incorporate more religious references in their addresses than previous presidents. Reagan’s messages also contained policy provisions that specifically had religious content or appeal. In addition, Reagan and Clinton both are unique in their proclivity to integrate various formulations of ?American values? in their rhetoric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]