AFA Journal is a publication of the American Family Association. Published monthly except November/December. AFA is Christian organization promoting the Biblical ethic of decency in American society with primary emphasis on TV and other media. P.O. Drawer 2440 Tupelo, MS 38803 Phone: 662-844-5036 Fax: 662-842-7798 Center For Law & Policy:   662-680-3386 WAFR Radio:   662-844-8888 American Family Online:   662-840-6464 Founding Editor:   Don Wildmon Editor:   Randall Murphree Associate Editor:   Rusty Benson Copy Editor:   Jessica Huckaby News Editor:   Ed Vitagliano Webmaster:   Buddy Smith Please, no unsolicited manuscripts.

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Survey reveals what Americans want from life

   A random nationwide telephone survey of 1,002 adults conducted by Barna Research Group in February concluded that good health, high integrity, a good marriage, good friends, and a clear purpose for living were the top five goals among all respondents.

Good health was named by nine out of ten adults as their highest goal, while four out of five respondents said they wanted to live with high integrity, and nearly the same number wanted to have one marriage partner for life.

The study had three distinguishing factors: a comparison between survey answers in 1991 and 2000; a distinction between adults and teens; and a comparison between answers received from the entire group and those received from "born again Christians."

Regarding changes in the past decade, the decline in three areas was notable: the desire to live close to family decreased from 67% to 60%; the interest in being part of a local church decreased from 50% to 42%; and the desire for a high-paying job decreased from 36% to 29%.

Teenagers ranked the desire to obtain a college degree as tops on their list. Young people were also more than 50% more likely than adults to list influencing other people's lives as a major goal.

One of the major differences among all adults and born again believers was that "having a close relationship with God" ranked sixth among all adults, while placing first among Christians. However, between 1991 and 2000, there was a 6% decline in the number of Christians who said they desired to influence other people's lives.

George Barna, president of Barna Research, commented on the study findings. "The prevailing wisdom is that interest in religion has increased, that teenagers are focused primarily on quality of life issues and that born again Christians are outer- directed." But based on survey results, those things are not happening, he said. For example, "if Christians were truly focused on serving others, you'd expect to see much larger percentages of them committed to influencing other people and to making a difference in the world."

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