INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM

TO:

DR. LANE WILLIAMS

FROM:

BRITTNEY MANWARING

SUBJECT:

THE APATHETIC GENERATION

DATE:

NOVEMBER 14, 2015

Were the apathetic generation, said Brooke Porter, a senior at BYU-Idaho. She continued, I know tons of kids who
arent informed about the upcoming elections. We know its important, were just not motivated enough to do anything about it.
In general, BYU-Idaho students consider themselves to be very uninformed concerning the 2016 Presidential Elections. 74% of
BYU-Idaho students are uninformed to some degree, and of the students who participated in this survey, only a shocking 3%
considered themselves to be slightly informed.

The Extent to which BYUI Students Consider Themselves to be

Informed About the 2016 Presidential Elections

Number of Students

25
20
15
10
5
0

Very
Uninformed

Uninformed

Somewhat
Uninformed

Neither
Informed nor
Uninformed

Somewhat
Informed

Informed

Very Informed

A study done by Pew Research Center illustrates these findings on a national level as well. Based on their research,
roughly a third (34%) of nonvoters are younger than 30 and most (70%) are under 501. These data show that the majority of the
younger generation tends to be more apathetic; they are less likely to be informed as well as vote in presidential elections.
Interestingly enough, most BYU-Idaho students dont consider it to be a challenge to be informed about the upcoming
presidential elections. 53% of students surveyed believe it isnt challenging to be an informed citizen. Many students have access
to social media and traditional media to receive political information. So why is an overwhelming amount of BYU-Idaho students
uninformed about the upcoming presidential elections? There could be a number of reasons, but here are three possible answers:

"The Party of Nonvoters." Pew Research Center for the People and the Press RSS. N.p., 31 Oct. 2014. Web. 14 Nov. 2015.

1. Students believe that their vote doesnt matter. Ive never voted in a presidential election, student Kiersten Reid
mentioned, its just hard to believe that one vote makes a difference. This could be due to the fact that typically people
are motivated because they believe that their decision will lead to their desired outcome.2 If students at BYU-Idaho feel
that theyre vote wont make an impact in the overall outcome of the presidential elections, they probably wont be
motivated to research the elections and become informed.
2. Students believe that being informed takes too much time and effort. According to the Theory of Rational Ignorance,
The acquisition of information is always a costly undertaking. Therefore, it is possible that it may cost more to acquire
certain information than the benefits such information will confer. When the cost of acquiring information is greater
than the benefits to be derived from the information, it is rational to be ignorant. Thus, the economic theory of rational
ignorance.3
Many students at BYU-Idaho understand the importance of being informed about presidential elections. However, many
of them are not willing to make the sacrifices in order to receive the information. This could possibly lead to the
conclusion that the benefits of being well-informed does not outweigh the time and effort spent acquiring the
information.
3. BYU-Idaho students are likely to think the news media are too politically liberal. Approximately 56% of the BYU-Idaho
students surveyed feel that the news is too liberal. Of these students, 55% consider themselves to be conservative.

Politial Party Breakdown of BYU-Idaho Students

Liberal

Conservative

Neither

Because BYU-Idaho is mostly conservative, it makes sense that the majority of students feel that the news is too liberal.
This could be just another reason BYU-Idaho students are uninformed. In Rexburg, we live in an area where religion is heavily
emphasized. Many students dont place a lot of importance on things that conflict with their religious beliefs, said Brooke Porter.
Perhaps this is another reason why students arent informed about the upcoming presidential elections.

Redmond, Brian F., and Stacey M. Serrano. "Expectancy Theory Overview." Expectancy Theory. N.p., 08 Feb. 2015. Web. 14 Nov. 2015.

"The Theory of Rational Ignorance." Clemson. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2015.