A recently recovered Iowa poll from March 1978 shows Iowans at the time holding high levels of opposition toward gay people. When asked whether they were “offended or not offended by the idea of male homosexuality? Female homosexuality?”, 50% of respondents indicated they were offended by both, with a further 4% offended by either male or female homosexuality, but not both. 45% of respondents were offended by neither and 2% did not respond. 

Additional questions asked whether respondents “favor or oppose homosexuals working in the following occupations?” Reactions were split by occupation type, with a majority indicating opposition to gay people working as college, high school, or elementary school teachers or as clergy. Closer to 50% offered support for those working as retail salespeople, construction workers, or professional baseball players. 

Modest differences were found based on respondents’ reported party ID and sex, with Democrats and women about 5 to 10 percentage points more likely to favor gay people in the provided occupations. 

Iowa Poll #229, conducted by the Des Moines Register, was administered to a random sample of 600 Iowans in March 1978. In addition to the questions about the gay people’s roles, the survey asked respondents their opinions on a wide variety of topics, including the creation of an independent Palestinian state, the effects of high inflation, women holding different positions, and entertainment consumption. Understanding Iowans’ past opinions on these topics can help us understand how perspectives have changed and what ideas have remained popular. IPOL has also been working with UI Libraries and the Des Moines Register to restore data from dozens of Iowa Polls from the 1960s to early 1980s. More information about the project can be found here. We are working to release a full report on our findings as we analyze additional questions.