Are Californians more caring people (on average) than others? (San Diego: home, neighborhood)

[jksouthbay88]

It's weird to me
As for the drivers here:PUNKS!
Hands down.Plus we are one of the worst road rage cities in the Nation to prove it

But on the flip at times we seem to have Philadelphia-like rudeness but I do not see it constantly.There is some little "underground" mentality though when it comes to tourists and locals here.Then at times I think we are a little too nice.It scares me sometimes when some one or some people are just way too nice.That's just me though.

[sdlife619]

Yep I agree JK, too nice is a little creepy for me too. We just got a mix of everything don't we?

[PharmboyinNC]

Originally Posted by flourpower

I grew up in L.A. (Cerritos)...other than our immediate next door neighbors, NOBODY on on our street ever said "hi". There was a large population of Chinese/Koreans/Indians....I don't know if that had anything to do with them being less "friendly" toward people unlike themselves...just a thought. I have been living in Texas for 15 years now, and I can tell you that it was (and continues to be ) a VERY noticable difference in the level of friendliness. I know all my neighbors very well (go out together and the kids play together all the time). People at the grocery store, etc. are very friendly and go out of their way to be "nice".

Try moving to another country and see how outward going you'll be. With different customs, language, attitudes, foreigners will be more quiet and conservative. California has alot more diversity than most of Texas, so those neighbors will most likely not be foreign transplant, other than Mexicans.

[PharmboyinNC]

Living in the bible belt, I do believe that Southern Hospitality makes people friendlier and nicer than other parts of the nation that I've visited/encountered. BUT, there is stronger racism that runs throught the area.

For instance, I believe that most Californians display less friendly one-to-one interactions, such as in public. People here tend to be more vain and often expect preferrential treatment.

But, they are more likely to accept differing groups of people & lifestyles, such as gay couples together, grunge/punkish looking people, and foreigners.

In the south, more people are publically friendly and gracious. You make eye contact during interactions, shake hands, and take time to be courtious. Often, you are rewarded with better treatment and given more options. In other words, people are more humble and down to earth.

But, there is little tolerance those non-conforming individuals to what society states is "acceptable." People will often snicker or stare at men who wear a turban or kippot / or a woman wearing a hijab, saree style / talking in a different language (just not openly in public).

[jc76]

I can tell ya with 100% certainty Californian's in general are much nicer than these Hoosiers that smile to you then plant the knife in your back with all their friends, only before heading off to Sunday church service.

[jc76]

Originally Posted by PharmboyinNC

Living in the bible belt, I do believe that Southern Hospitality makes people friendlier and nicer than other parts of the nation that I've visited/encountered. BUT, there is stronger racism that runs throught the area.

For instance, I believe that most Californians display less friendly one-to-one interactions, such as in public. People here tend to be more vain and often expect preferrential treatment.

But, they are more likely to accept differing groups of people & lifestyles, such as gay couples together, grunge/punkish looking people, and foreigners.

In the south, more people are publically friendly and gracious. You make eye contact during interactions, shake hands, and take time to be courtious. Often, you are rewarded with better treatment and given more options. In other words, people are more humble and down to earth.

But, there is little tolerance those non-conforming individuals to what society states is "acceptable." People will often snicker or stare at men who wear a turban or kippot / or a woman wearing a hijab, saree style / talking in a different language (just not openly in public).

I know what you mean. I noticed that in the south as well. Sure, the south is friendly...if you look, act, dress like them and worship the same God. If not? They secretly would probably rather see you dead. They can be pretty brutal down there if your "different."

[UB50]

Maybe because I spend a lot of time in areas with a lot of immigrants (mostly in LA), I find people to be kind and helpful. I don't know if they are as friendly as they are in other parts of the country but I do find that, if you ask for help, they'll sometimes help you above and beyond anything you would have expected.

A recent example: My father lost his wallet (or maybe someone stole it). He figured it was gone for good so he started trying to replace all the stuff inside like driver's license, ID, credit cards, etc. Well, it shocked us but someone found his wallet and turned it into the police station. The cash was gone but everything else was totally intact. And this happened in LA. I don't know if this would happen in every American city.

[Radical347]

That depends on what you mean by "caring," but I'm going to say no. I honestly haven't noticed any state stick out.

[zonababe]

Originally Posted by Charles

According to officials, the following are the caring factors on a scale from 0 (not caring) to 100 (very caring) for all 50 states:

Alabama 15
Alaska 11
Arizona 38
Arkansas 56
California 13
Colorado 73
Connecticut 78
Delaware 78
District of Columbia 7
Florida 82
Georgia 12
Hawaii 1
Idaho 13
Illinois 99
Indiana 58
Iowa 72
Kansas 78
Kentucky 20
Louisiana 83
Maine 17
Maryland 90
Massachusetts 10
Michigan 72
Minnesota 62
Mississippi 7
Missouri 77
Montana 4
Nebraska 2
Nevada 57
New Hampshire 31
New Jersey 66
New Mexico 17
New York 47
North Carolina 60
North Dakota 1
Ohio 84
Oklahoma 47
Oregon 89
Pennsylvania 60
Rhode Island 67
South Carolina 36
South Dakota 83
Tennessee 97
Texas 71
Utah 53
Vermont 79
Virginia 18
Washington 1
West Virginia 71
Wisconsin 88
Wyoming 19

Oh yeah Illinois cares 99% of the time. It's just that pesky 1% that run around shooting at everyone.

[sskkc]

Yeah, I've lived in CA, CO, TX, IL, NM, FL, MI and MO.

I've found people in CA to be the most plastic, fake and insincerely kind of any other state we've lived in so far. FL was the rudest. MI and NM tie for stand-offish. IL and MO are extremely racist. CO was the friendliest with TX in second.

I agree with the other poster... generally speaking, when Californians do something genuinely kind or they "do the right thing" it makes news - because of it's rarity.