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6 Out of 10 Heterosexual Adults Seem to Support Bush Agenda Only 31 Percent of GLBT Americans Have Confidence in Bush Witeck-Combs Communications, Inc. & Harris Interactive
Rochester, New York-- When asked in a recent survey how much
confidence they have in President Bush and his administration to 'make the
right decisions' regarding the use or non-use of the U.S. military to attack
Iraq, six out of ten (60%) of heterosexual adults nationwide stated they are
somewhat or very confident. In sharp contrast only 31% of self-identified
gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) adults said they felt the
same.
These are highlights of a nationwide Harris PollŪ of 2,271 adults, of whom about six percent (6%) self-identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender (GLBT). The survey was conducted online between February 19 and 25, 2003 by Harris Interactive, with analysis of GLBT data provided by Witeck-Combs Communications, Inc., a strategic public relations and marketing communications firm with special expertise in the GLBT market. "American leadership at home and abroad requires public trust, especially at tough times like these," said Bob Witeck, CEO of Witeck-Combs Communications, Inc. "These findings make clear, however, that this often-marginalized group of citizens, GLBT Americans, expresses deeper feelings of alienation with the administration's decision-making and the prospects of a war in Iraq. Also, given that gays and lesbians would serve the nation bravely, yet are not allowed to serve openly in the armed forces, their skepticism may run even deeper." Strikingly, almost seven out of ten (68%) GLBT adults feel that President Bush prefers a military attack on Iraq rather than trying to achieve his main goals without an attack, compared to 51% of heterosexual adults surveyed. In addition, when asked, "Would you favor or oppose military action in Iraq if President Bush believes Saddam Hussein is hiding weapons of mass destruction but U.N. weapons inspectors cannot find any and the United Nations does not vote in favor of an attack," over half (56%) of GLBT adults say they would oppose attacking Iraq, while just over one-third (35%) of heterosexuals said they would oppose such an attack. The finding for all adults who were asked this question - gay and non-gay - was 45% in favor of attacking Iraq, 36% opposing, and 19% stating they don't know. Regarding Saddam Hussein and Iraq's alleged ties to Al Qaeda terrorists, however, there appears to be a closer resemblance between the opinions of gay and non-gay adult Americans. Forty-five percent (45%) of GLBT respondents believe there is some link, and forty-nine percent (49%) of heterosexual adults agree. Methodology This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive between February 19 and February 25, 2003, among a nationwide cross section of 2,271 adults. Of those adults surveyed, approximately six percent (6%) self-identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender (GLBT). Figures for age, sex, race, education and number of adults in the household were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. "Propensity score" weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online. In theory, with a probability sample of this size, one can say with 95 percent certainty that the results have a statistical precision of plus or minus two percentage points of what they would be if the entire adult population had been polled with complete accuracy. Unfortunately, there are several other possible sources of error in all polls or surveys that are probably more serious than theoretical calculations of sampling error. They include refusals to be interviewed (non-response), question wording and question order, interviewer bias, weighting by demographic control data and screening (e.g., for likely voters). It is impossible to quantify the errors that may result from these factors. This online survey is not a probability sample. These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls. Request Data Tables and a PowerPoint Presentation: bwiteck@witeckcombs.com |
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