Zogby

When part of a society, individuals make unique decisions and have distinct beliefs to those around them. And while we may be able to group these individuals into classifications holding a particular view about an idea (liberal, conservative, religious, atheist, etc.), it is difficult for us to rank the popularity of a certain viewpoint above another as we can’t lift our heads above the crowd to take a head count. This is why John Zogby has become so successful. His polling business provides a tally for particular beliefs, and can group them to shed light on the American status.

But this is interesting – for a recent national poll for issues like, “When asked which political party most Americans believe to be responsible for many of the gravest problems facing the world,” the responses are believed to be more genuine than if the question is directed to the surveyed. People are more likely to state their opinions in a socially accepted stance, and may not offer their true viewpoints which they may believe to be extreme and/or embarrassing to share. To solve this problem, Zogby and his team posed questions addressing the individual, but concerning what “most Americans” believe for an issue. This takes off the pressure. In this style of polling I have found some fascinating results from Zogby. Notice how these questions are posed.

On Disability: When asked to choose whom they believe most Americans would least want to work with, 26% of respondents said someone who is morbidly obese. Twenty-two percent said someone with a facial disfigurement. Respondents thought Americans would object much less to deaf (3%) and blind (1%) co-workers.

On Sexual Orientation & Gender: 62% said they believe Americans oppose same-sex marriages. Yet 58% would elect a gay person for president - about the same as for an Arab-American (57%), and more than for a person over age 70 (51%), or for an atheist (51%). On gender, 93% think Americans believe men are most responsible for crime, extra-marital affairs (82%), and sexually transmitted diseases (72%).

On Race: While 67% of respondents claimed to have no preference themselves between a white, black or Arab clerk in a convenience store, 71% said, "most Americans" would seek out the white clerk. Just 1% said Americans' first choice would be to approach a black clerk, while less than 0.5% said the same for an Arab clerk. And yet, ironically, 55% of respondents said race relations have improved over the past 10 years. Other results on race (where respondents picked from among several races):
* 73% said in the event of a shooting, most Americans would expect African Americans to be involved
* 55% said in the event of a drug bust, most Americans would expect African Americans to be involved
* 53% said in the event of identity theft; most Americans would expect whites to be involved
* 70% said in the event of insurance fraud, most Americans would expect whites to be involved