This is not a new idea. Beyond just influencing the answer to this poll however, it can also be used to try and sway long term opinion by making someone choose a stance. Once someone has chosen a stance, they are much less likely to change than if they are still unswayed.
When you look at the order in which the questions were asked, and the inclusion of common scare tactics in the questions (ie, the adoption and school teacher questions)... it's pretty clear that this poll was designed to produce a specific result.
I don't see it. To me, this is a straightforward questionnaire designed to judge the public's opinion on homosexuality. What exactly is wrong with the adoption and school teacher questions? They seem like legitimate questions to me. I agree with you that you can play with wording and order and all that to influence results in an opinion poll, but how specifically does this poll do that? It just seems far too straightforward to be sinister in any way.
I think possibly the most deranged part is that their poll results show they apparently weren't polling what they appeared to be polling.
...or more likely, they didn't like the results they got and decided to turn things sideways to get an almost tangental "result"--how the questions were answered by Democrats, Republicans, and Independents.
...which makes it clear that Republicans are mostly bigoted assholes, but I think we already knew that one.
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It is well established that the wording of the questions, the order in which they are asked and the number and form of alternative answers offered can influence results of polls.
This is not a new idea. Beyond just influencing the answer to this poll however, it can also be used to try and sway long term opinion by making someone choose a stance. Once someone has chosen a stance, they are much less likely to change than if they are still unswayed.
When you look at the order in which the questions were asked, and the inclusion of common scare tactics in the questions (ie, the adoption and school teacher questions)... it's pretty clear that this poll was designed to produce a specific result.
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http://www.pollingpoint.com/result/18
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...or more likely, they didn't like the results they got and decided to turn things sideways to get an almost tangental "result"--how the questions were answered by Democrats, Republicans, and Independents.
...which makes it clear that Republicans are mostly bigoted assholes, but I think we already knew that one.
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