Younger Americans see U.S. dominance slipping to China
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A quarter of young Americans think China has more global power and influence than the U.S., compared to 12% of Americans ages 65 and older, according to a new Carnegie Endowment for International Peace survey.
Why it matters: Political dysfunction, economic pressures and cultural exchanges are helping to reshape how young Americans measure global power — and America's place in it.
What they're saying: "Younger Americans are much less likely to see the U.S. as uniquely exceptional," Craig Kafura of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs tells Axios.
- He says intercultural communication has exposed younger people to welfare programs abroad.
- "European health care is much cheaper and they get better outcomes. Why can't we do that? Anybody who travels internationally and takes public transport has the same thought."
The big picture: China is increasingly not the big, bad wolf in the eyes of young people, who are encountering the country through cultural touch points like the ugly-but-cute Labubu dolls and innovations like TikTok rather than national security threats.
- They're more focused on kitchen table issues such as a discouraging job market for entry-level workers, inflationary pressures pinching their wallets and the growing sense that America's fractured political system doesn't work for them.
- Against that backdrop, it's no surprise that U.S. college students prefer socialism to capitalism, according to a November Axios-Generation Lab poll.
Context: Older Americans who came of age during the Cold War are more likely to harbor deep grievances toward Chinese aggression, and are generally more financially secure.
- "We have that binary that the U.S. represents capitalism and China represents socialism," Jake Werner, director of the East Asia Program at the Quincy Institute tells Axios.
- "The promise of capitalism that was really compelling to people in the 80s and 90s, it's kind of gone into reverse. Some of it might come from the sense that grass is always greener on the other side, which is not actually realistic."
By the numbers: About 68% of 18 to 29 year olds say China has either equal or more power and influence than America.
- Roughly 65% of those ages 30–44 and 64% of those ages 45–64 agree, compared with 61% of those 65 and older.
- Other recent polls show China's influence rising, with clear generational divides over China's threat level.
Zoom in: Overall, 47% of Americans say China is already more powerful than the U.S. or will be within five years.
- That's because 63% believe China has a technological advantage, and 42% think China has an economic edge.
- Americans under 65 are more likely to see the U.S. as one of several global powers, while baby boomers are far more likely to view it as the domineering force.
What we're watching: As younger generations gain influence, their skepticism toward U.S. dominance could reshape debates over capitalism, interventionism and competition with China.
Go deeper: Anxiety fuels Gen Z's retirement planning
