CHANGING MENNONITE VALUES - ATTITUDES ON WOMEN, POLITICS, AND PEACE, 1972-1989

A number of scholars have documented the broad social changes that hav e occurred in the U.S. and other Western societies since World War II, changes dramatically affecting the attitudes and values of more recen t generations socialized during this period. These societal trends als o apply to Mennonites in North America. Fifty years ago the pre-World War II cohort was preoccupied with internal Mennonite community surviv al, with most members residing in segregated rural areas. By the 1990s , however half lived in communities of 2,500 or more, with four times as many in the professions as working on the farm. In this study we 1) analyze trends among Mennonites from 1972-1989 with regard to attitud es about the role of women, political participation, and peacemaking, and 2) evaluate the importance of intercohort (across birth cohort) an d intracohort (within birth cohort) change. For all three dependent va riables intercohort change is significant. Intracohort change is signi ficant only for attitudes about the role of women and peace.