Brazilian University Students' Images of the United States, 1963

This study was based on a survey administered to students at nine universities in Brazil in 1963. The questions probed the respondents' knowledge of the world outside Brazil, especially the United States. The major portion of the study focused on the respondents' perceptions of similarities and dissimilarities between the United States and Brazil in varied areas such as attitudes toward the family as a primary group, social class structure, importance of the labor movement, the quality of education, the meaning of nationalism, opportunities for Blacks, moral standards of the people, political participation, and private versus public initiatives within the economy. Respondents were also asked to predict the answers that a United States citizen would give to these same questions about Brazil. Other questions probed the respondents' sources of information about the United States, including newspapers, magazines, movies, radio, television, and personal relations with people from the United States. The demographic data refer to the respondent's university, major field of study, residence, father's occupation, family income, self-perceived social class, and race.