Education and Income, Not Ideology, Drive Concern For Global Refugee Crisis

In partnership with Fast Company, The Harris Poll conducted a survey gauging the awareness and concern Americans have surrounding refugee crises. The study found that income and education level are factors in crisis awareness and investment. The study also found that media attention and the political nature of the dispute are drivers in the level of concern the public has about different refugee crises.

In the last 2 years, the pandemic has taken priority over global refugee crises.

A 2020 study conducted by The Harris Poll in partnership with the Milken Institute found that 66% of all U.S. adults considered civil conflicts resulting in the increasing amount of displacement and refugees to be very or extremely important. Since then, this number has decreased. Currently, only half (51%) of all U.S. adults consider this displacement to be very or extremely important – a decrease of 15 percent points. The COVID-19 pandemic has likely played a significant role; the initial Milken Institute – Harris Poll research was conducted pre-pandemic, between February 21, 2020, and March 11, 2020.

When it comes to refugee crises, income and education drives awareness and personal investment.

In general, college-educated and high-income Americans view the conflicts resulting in the displacement of refugees as important more often than their less educated or lower-income counterparts.

Two in five (43%) of U.S. adults with a household income under $50K consider these conflicts to be very or extremely important (compared to 60% of those with an income of $100K+).

Similar trends can be seen across education levels. Four in ten (38%) of those without a college degree view these conflicts to be very or extremely important (compared to 53% of those with a college degree). 

It’s worth noting that awareness of major global refugee crises also increases among college-educated and high-income Americans. That said, the abstractness of refugee crises in foreign nations could play a factor in the difference in concern based on education and income. A potential reason for this: Lower-income and less educated individuals often face more immediate problems than their wealthier and higher educated counterparts, such as food and housing insecurity. In such cases, distant refugee situations are less of a personal concern. Additionally, little to no college education often aligns with less exposure to international subjects, which would affect awareness of ongoing international conflicts, especially those that don’t make the evening news. This situation too could yield disinterest in the refugee crisis.

Similar reasons may also explain why Americans generally display less concern for the global refugee crisis compared to 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic and racial treatment concerns may have redirected national attention to more pressing, domestic issues.

Counterintuitively, Gen Z considers these conflicts to be important less often compared to older generations. Only 30% of Gen Z believe conflicts that result in an increase in the displacement of refugees are very or extremely important (compared to 57% of Millennials, 49% of Gen X, and 57% of Boomers).

Political ideology has little impact on the frequency with which civil conflicts resulting in the displacement of refugees are important, indicating that personal significance is derived from a variety of factors. More than half of both conservative (55%) and liberal (58%) Americans consider the conflicts resulting in refugees to be important.

Parental status may be linked to empathy for refugees; six in 10 parents (vs 45% of adults without children) consider civil conflicts resulting in the displacement of refugees to be very or extremely important. Media focus on children and parents involved in refugee crises could be a factor in this difference.

News coverage and global involvement are likely key determinants in the level of concern felt about refugee situations around the world.

Americans express concern about the displacement of refugees from conflicts that have drawn international attention and involvement more often than about displacements that are caused by internal disputes (i.e., civil wars).

Unsurprisingly, the war in Ukraine is top-of-mind for most Americans; among those who consider the displacement of Ukrainian refugees to be at least somewhat important, nearly all are aware of the situation in Ukraine (95%) and at least somewhat concerned (89%).

Americans are also tuned into refugee crises caused by conflicts in the Middle East. Nearly all (92%) American adults who consider refugee crises to be at least somewhat important  are aware of the refugee crisis in Afghanistan and three quarters (77%) are at least somewhat concerned about the crisis causing Afghan displacement. Also, nine in ten (89%) U.S. adults who consider refugee crises to be at least somewhat important are aware of the Syrian refugee crisis, and three quarters (73%) are at least somewhat concerned about the displacement of Syrian refugees.

In general, displacements caused by civil wars around the world are less concerning to Americans. Of those who considered refugee crises to be at least somewhat important, eight in ten (83%) are aware of the refugee crisis occurring in Myanmar/Burma, and two in three (67%) are at least somewhat concerned about Myanmarese refugee displacement. A similar number (87%) were aware of the conflict causing displacement in Ethiopia, and seven in ten (71%) are at least somewhat concerned about the Ethiopian refugee crisis.

Methodology: This year’s survey was conducted online in the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf Fast Company during March 4-7, 2022 among 1,048 U.S. adults (ages 18 and older). Last year’s survey was conducted online in the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of the Milken Institute from February 21, 2020, to March 11, 2020, among 375 U.S. adults (ages 18 and older). This study was part of the Milken Institute-Harris Poll’s The Listening Project, which surveyed adults living in the U.S., China, Australia, Canada, the U.A.E., Italy, the U.K., Brazil, India, Mexico, Egypt, France, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, South Africa, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, Ukraine, and Venezuela on several global issues. These surveys are not based on a probability sample, and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region, and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the U.S. population. Propensity score weighting was used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online. For more information, please contact Dami Rosanwo, Madelyn Franz, or Andrew Laningham.