survey161

[survey161]

Survey Results

I've finally gotten around to compiling the results from a survey I put out a while ago, if you were looking forward to seeing these I apologize for the long wait but without further ado this is the data I have gathered and a few of my thoughts.

Ages- 58% 18 or under 42% Over the age of 18

Decent split between minors/adults but members of this community are still relatively young, the age group with the highest percentage was 16-18 with 31% and the lowest represented group was those over 25 with 5%.

Orientation- 93.3% Gay, Trans, Etc. 6.1% Cis/Het

Very clear majority for those who are not cishet.

Location- 66% North America 24% Europe 5% Australia 3% South America 1% Africa 1% Asia

What made you interested in punk- Most responses highlighted music and/or politics as the thing that got them into punk, a lot of people cited financial instability, feeling different than society, and a want for a different lifestyle as a driving factor.

How long have you been involved in punk- 43% 1-2 years 29% 3-4 years 10% 5-6 years 4% 7-8 years 4% 9-10 9% 10+ years

Majority (72%) of responses indicated they had started participating in the subculture during or after the year 2020. Not surprising considering the age demographics of this space, and the punk resurgence that started around that time.

Politics- 37% Anarchist 31% Leftist 10% Communist 7% Other/IDK 6% Liberal 5% Socialist 3% AnCom

All responses indicated they aligned with some variant of a left-leaning ideology, though this does not represent absolutely everyone in this community I would take it as a strong sign that there are no nazis here despite what some may believe. It was interesting to see Leftist get the amount of responses it did, as it is a very broad label that includes various conflicting ideologies.

What is punk- 42% Politics 24% Music 20% All of the above 3% DIY

Most people could not choose just one of these aspects to define punk, but politics was still the most popular answer. Looking at the result for both this question and the previous one has me wondering what ideologies in particular are considered to be the "correct" ones in order to be considered punk. Historically punk has been associated with anarchy and anti-fascism but responses to the politics question gave a variety of leftist inspired views. When given an opportunity to elaborate on what punk is to them, a surprising amount of people gave vague answers along the lines of "being a good person", some explained that they viewed politics as the driving factor behind everything punk, and many expressed that without music punk would not be different from any other political movement.

Where do you primarily engage with punk- 53% Social media 21% Local scene 15% All of the above 7% Small circle of friends 4% Independent online forums

As expected, most people in this community primarily use social media as their way to engage with punk culture. There is a lot that can be said about this and I could do a whole other research project dedicated to the impact social media has had on punk, but to save you from reading an essay I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions from this one.

Favorite punk subgenre- 24% Punk rock 22% Hardcore 16% Folk punk 15% Riot grrl 6% Crust punk 6% Pop Punk

I only included the top 6 since there were a lot of single responses for the other genres, for the question "what is your favorite genre other than punk" metal, rock, indie, and folk were the most popular.

Why did you join this community- Responses varied but were mostly along the lines of wanting to interact with punks, wanting advice and a space to share projects, wanting music recommendations, wanting to be more punk, or wanting to educate themselves on punk

Do you feel comfortable posting here- 75% Yes 25% No

Have you had more of a positive or negative experience here- 54% Positive 42% Neutral 3% Negative

Favorite part about the community- Most expressed that they enjoyed having a space to interact and share ideas with other people into punk along with sharing DIY posts, giving/receiving advice, and getting exposed to new music. Others said they enjoyed seeing/starting heated arguments, making fun of posts they deem to be made by posers, and posting rage bait.

Least favorite part about the community- Most expressed that they did not enjoy seeing arguments and debates, some got specific and listed trolls, elitists, and the "is it punk" debate as their least favorite parts. Others stated "posers" as a negative aspect expressing that they are frustrated that people don't seem to understand what punk is.

There seems to be a split between the users of this space, it was interesting to see how the responses flip flopped with the questions.

In conclusion, this space is a predominantly young, queer, western, leftist community with varying experiences and opinions regarding the punk subculture. There is a clash between those who choose to define punk loosely and those who feel a need to protect the integrity of the punk label, leading to constant arguments and discourse over what is and isn't punk. Despite the debate, many have found community here and have been able to further their self expression and journey into a subculture they identify with.