Also: College Tuition and Young MAGA Voters

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Edited by Carter Hutchinson and Lexi Baker

Happy Thursday! In today’s newsletter, we examine why young adults avoid talking to strangers, the price of higher education, and where young MAGA voters stand on foreign policy.

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1. Why Is Gen Z Not Talking to Strangers? ([link removed] )

07.16_Cox ([link removed] )

Topline: According to data from AEI’s Survey Center on American Life, 53 percent of young adults report that talking to people they are unfamiliar with is an exhausting and uncomfortable experience, while only 24 percent of those 65 and older say the same. AEI’s Daniel A. Cox posits ([link removed] ) that technological advances and institutional decline have made these interactions less routine and more taxing.

Modern Society: Americans have more opportunities than ever to avoid talking to strangers, including self-checkout options at retail stores and food delivery apps that allow customers to choose the “leave at my door” option. Research suggests that even brief conversations with strangers can increase well-being.

Risk Aversion: Institutions—such as schools, places of worship, and workplaces—once made social interactions more predictable by establishing shared norms and routines. As freedom and autonomy have been prioritized over solidarity and cohesion, social interactions seem riskier and more unpredictable.

“When we believe that having a conversation with someone will feel wearying or uncomfortable we do it less often. We opt for alternatives, and new technologies are providing an ever-growing number of ways to avoid human contact. It’s not costless. The most effective way to build a rewarding and meaningful life is not through meditative self-reflection, journaling, or self-actualization. It’s spending time with people—those we know and those we do not.”

—Daniel A. Cox ([link removed] )

More on Social Interactions
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2. Higher Education’s Sticker Price Myth ([link removed] )

07.16_Cooper ([link removed] )

Topline: Of students attending the priciest 10 percent of higher education institutions, 42 percent paid the full published price in the 2023–24 academic year, with tuition and required fees alone often exceeding $60,000 before room and board. AEI’s Preston Cooper warns ([link removed] ) that the common advice to ignore the sticker price is misleading—many students actually do pay the full price.

Paying the Full Freight: The share of students paying the published price follows a U-shaped pattern. At some of the least expensive private schools, over half of students pay the published price because tuition is already low. But the same is true at the most expensive colleges. For example, at Georgetown University—where the total cost of yearly tuition, fees, and room and board now exceeds $100,000—64 percent of students pay the full published price.

Price Transparency: Typically, students do not know how much they will have to pay until they have been accepted and receive a financial aid offer. Students with multiple offers of admission may be able to play schools off one another, but this is time-consuming and expensive. Cooper argues that many students are left choosing between paying a hefty bill or not going to college at all—a problem that greater price transparency would improve.

“The Education Department should continue efforts to collect and release more detailed data on the net prices that colleges actually charge. The government could also prod colleges to disclose net prices upfront ([link removed] ) . In any case, ‘nobody pays the sticker price’ is a fiction we can no longer afford to tell aspiring college students.”

—Preston Cooper ([link removed] )

More on College Tuition
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3. The Gen Z MAGA Hawks ([link removed] )

07.16_Thiessen ([link removed] )

Topline: Seventy-two percent of young MAGA voters believe the United States should be “more engaged and take the lead” on foreign policy, while only 19 percent say the US should be “less engaged and react to events.” Citing new data from the Ronald Reagan Institute, AEI’s Marc A. Thiessen argues ([link removed] ) that younger MAGA Republicans are more hawkish and less isolationist than any other segment of the American electorate—and far less isolationist than critics assume.

American Values: Survey results suggest that MAGA voters want the US to lead on the global stage and promote American values abroad. Almost 80 percent of MAGA voters under 30 agree that “promoting freedom and democracy in authoritarian countries” and “defending people facing religious persecution in other countries” should be US foreign policy priorities.

Supporting Iran: Young MAGA voters also expressed broad support for US efforts in Iran. Fifty-nine percent of Gen Z MAGA voters said “supporting the Iranian people in their efforts to secure freedom and democracy” is important. Even more strikingly, 73 percent of MAGA voters under 30 approved of President Trump’s military actions in Iran this year, and 61 percent want to see the Iranian regime removed or weakened, compared with just 35 percent who prefer pursuing a negotiated settlement.

“Bottom line: The isolationists are out of step with Trump and the ‘America First’ movement writ large—and there is no help on the way from the Gen Z right.”

—Marc. A Thiessen ([link removed] )

More on MAGA Voters
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Dive into More Data

07.16_Pielke ([link removed] )

Where the Energy Transition Actually Stands ([link removed] )

More on Energy
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07.16_CDOT ([link removed] )

An Update on China and Taiwan ([link removed] )

More on China and Taiwan
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Special thanks to Hannah Bowen, Rosalie Blacklock, and Drew Kirkpatrick.

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