WorldWideScience

Sample records for survey public opinion

  1. Survey Methods, Traditional, Public Opinion Polling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Elmelund-Præstekær, Christian; Hopmann, David Nicolas; Pedersen, Rasmus Tue

    2017-01-01

    Traditional public opinion polls are surveys in which a random sample of a given population is asked questions about their attitudes, knowledge, or behavior. If conducted properly, the answers from such surveys are approximately representative of the entire population. Traditional public opinion...... polling is typically based on four different methods of data gathering, or combinations hereof: face-to-face, postal surveys, phone surveys, and web surveys. Given that opinion polls are based on a sample, we cannot be sure that the sample reflects public opinion perfectly, however—even if randomness...... is perfect. Moreover, responses may be highly dependent on the contextual information provided with the question. Also, it may be difficult to capture past or complex causes of attitudes or behavior. In short, surveys are a precise way of measuring public opinion, but they do not come without challenges....

  2. 2003/04 public opinion survey Nuclear energy - the present and the future

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trontl, K.

    2004-01-01

    During the academic years 2000/01, 2001/02 and 2002/03 the Croatian Nuclear Society Young Generation Network (CYGN) carried out public opinion surveys among student population of around 600 individuals age 18-20. The results of the surveys have shown that the participants are rather ignorant on nuclear issues but still very negative, especially towards nuclear power plants and radioactive waste disposal sites with emphasized Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY) syndrome. As a part of the active involvement of CYGN members in upgrading of the positive public opinion, especially, young generations towards nuclear issues, a brochure on radioactivity has been prepared and distributed at the beginning of the 2002/03 school year to third and fourth graders in high schools. Hopefully a part of the 2003/04 academic year, freshman student population received a brochure during their high school education. Therefore, CYGN decided to carry out 2003/04 public opinion survey Nuclear Energy - the Present and the Future in order to investigate the effects of the brochure on student opinions on nuclear subjects. The results of the survey should also provide information on the quality of the distributed materials, as well as the quality of the distribution strategy. The results and the analyses of the 2003/04 public opinion survey, as well as the comparison of the results with the previous surveys are presented in this paper.(author)

  3. Public opinion polls on nuclear energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heller, E.D.

    1980-07-01

    Future developments in the attitude towards nuclear energy can not be predicted on account of this public opinion survey. The survey shows just how many different factors influence the attitude towards issues of public and political interst. For this reason in particular, it would be desirable to include such aspects into future surveys. The survey shows that public opinion polls quite often investigate on the ordering party's opinion rather than the pollees opinion. The attempt at making public opinion polls a means of forming political opinions, implying a certain desired opinion to be the majority opinion has brought those polls into disrepute. If real results are not required and manipulation prevails, results are prevented, which must not be blamed on the principle of public opinion polls as such. (orig.) [de

  4. What do Americans think about public transit? A review of U.S. public opinion polling survey questions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-07-01

    This seed grant research project compiled a set of 56 US public opinion polls that asked respondents their opinions about public : transit. The first and primary goal of the project was to assemble a large set of transit-related survey question...

  5. 2002/03 public opinion survey 'Nuclear Energy - the Present and the Future'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trontl, K.; Gergeta, K.

    2003-01-01

    During the years 2000 and 2002 the Croatian Nuclear Society Young Generation Network carried out public opinion surveys among student population of around 650 individuals age 18-20. The results of the surveys suggested the necessity of a more active involvement of nuclear experts in high school education. Croatian Young Generation Network decided to prepare brochures on different subjects concerning nuclear energy and distribute them to high school students, primarily third and fourth graders. To be able to evaluate the influence of distributed materials, fresh reference data are needed. Therefore, a traditional public opinion survey 'Nuclear Energy - the Present and the Future' has been carried out among faculty student population. (author)

  6. Nuclear installations inspectorate a public opinion survey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lennie, S.E.; Davies, A.G.

    2001-01-01

    HM Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (HMNII) is the regulator responsible for the safety of licensed nuclear sites in the UK. Recognizing the need for public approval on future policy with respect to nuclear waste management, the NII commissioned a public opinion research programme amongst the UK general public. Opinion was sought on a number of issues including attitudes towards the industry in general, perception of nuclear waste and its management, tolerability of risk and attitudes towards current decommissioning plans. In response to the primary objectives of the survey the main findings are: current spontaneous level of concern over the industry in general is low (7%), and lower still for nuclear waste (3%). However, on prompting, 47% of respondents were very concerned about nuclear waste. Top of mind issues of concern about the industry are: nuclear waste; risk of accidents; health risks. Personal risk from nuclear waste is not of overt concern and is significantly less worrisome to respondents than risk from diseases like meningitis or cancer, smoking or road accidents. On being presented with a statement describing current UK decommissioning plans, the sample was generally in favour. However, this issue will require further research. (authors)

  7. Public opinion survey on energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1981-01-01

    The results of a public opinion survey on energy, conducted by Prime Minister's Office from November 26 to December 2, 1980, are described. Of the sampling of 5,000 adults throughout the nation, 4,113 replied the questions. The contents are as follows: awaraness of energy conservation, projection of the future of nuclear power, uneasiness about nuclear power, and energy policies. Concerning the major power generation system of the future, 47% of the people mentioned nuclear energy, followed by 18% mentioned solar energy. As to the future share of nuclear power, 38% favored its increase, 28% its maintaining at the current level, and only 5% wanted its decrease. About the feeling of uneasiness, 56% felt uneasiness and 44% were secure, making it clear that the uneasiness has not yet been eliminated. (J.P.N.)

  8. A Survey of Key Technology of Network Public Opinion Analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Li Su Ying

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The internet has become an important base for internet users to make comments because of its interactivity and fast dissemination. The outbreak of internet public opinion has become a major risk for network information security. Domestic and foreign researchers had carried out extensive and in-depth study on public opinion. Fruitful results have achieved in the basic theory research and emergency handling and other aspects of public opinion. But research on the public opinion in China is still in the initial stage, the key technology of the public opinion analysis is still as a starting point for in-depth study and discussion.

  9. Nuclear power engineering: Public understanding and public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kryshev, A.I.; Sazykina, T.G.

    1998-01-01

    Subjective and objective reasons for the formation of public opinion about nuclear power engineering of Russia were analyzed. Some methodological errors in work with the Russian public on the problems of nuclear energy and possible methods of their correction were discussed. The social groups of the general public, which are of greatest importance in forming the attitude towards nuclear power engineering were indicated. The conclusion was reached that opinion of the ordinary population is often indicative of real drawbacks in the work of specialists in the nuclear fuel cycle. Consequently, careful surveys of public opinion about the problems of the nuclear industry should be very useful in organizing research work properly and improving the radiation safety. (author)

  10. 'Quicksand' of public opinion - trust in nuclear after Fukushima

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gieci, Adam; Maly, Stanislav; Palecek, Milos

    2012-01-01

    The following public opinion surveys are described: public opinion on nuclear power plants by the end of 2010; first public opinion polls after Fukushima in the US, UK and France; and public opinion and the future of nuclear in Japan. The following issues are discussed: Has nuclear any perspective after Fukushima? Will public opinion change after the Fukushima accident like it did after the TMI event? Will public opinion change after the Fukushima accident like it did after the oil spill accident in the Gulf of Mexico? In conclusion the new approaches to the fight for public confidence after Fukushima are described. (orig.)

  11. Public opinion about condoms for HIV and STD prevention: a Midwestern state telephone survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yarber, William L; Milhausen, Robin R; Crosby, Richard A; Torabi, Mohammad R

    2005-09-01

    Public opinion is important in determining condom and condom education policies in public high schools. A random telephone survey of 517 Indiana residents was conducted from July through October 2003 to assess public opinion about education on correct condom use for HIV and STD prevention; condom availability in Indiana public high schools; and issues related to condom use, effectiveness and promotion. Data were analyzed using bivariate and linear regression techniques. A majority of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed that instruction on correct condom use for HIV and STD prevention should be provided in public high schools (77%), classroom instruction should include condoms (71%), only medically accurate information about condoms should being given (94%) and the federal government should promote condoms (70%). Fewer than half (48%) strongly or somewhat agreed that condoms should be made available to teenagers in public high schools without parental permission. Nearly all (92%) considered condoms at least somewhat effective in preventing HIV and other STDs. Non-Republican party affiliation, younger age and condom use within the previous five years were each significantly associated with having positive opinions on many of the condom-related statements. Public opinion appears to support the provision of correct condom use information in Indiana public schools. Schools should consider providing only medically accurate information about condoms and including condoms in instruction so students can see and touch them.

  12. Food irradiation: Public opinion surveys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kerr, S.D.

    1987-01-01

    The Canadian government are discussing the legislation, regulations and practical protocol necessary for the commercialization of food irradiation. Food industry marketing, public relations and media expertise will be needed to successfully introduce this new processing choice to retailers and consumers. Consumer research to date including consumer opinion studies and market trials conducted in the Netherlands, United States, South Africa and Canada will be explored for signposts to successful approaches to the introduction of irradiated foods to retailers and consumers. Research has indicated that the terms used to describe irradiation and information designed to reduce consumer fears will be important marketing tools. Marketers will be challenged to promote old foods, which look the same to consumers, in a new light. Simple like or dislike or intention to buy surveys will not be effective tools. Consumer fears must be identified and effectively handled to support a receptive climate for irradiated food products. A cooperative government, industry, health professional, consumer association and retailer effort will be necessary for the successful introduction of irradiated foods into the marketplace. Grocery Products Manufacturers of Canada is a national trade association of more than 150 major companies engaged in the manufacture of food, non-alcoholic beverages and array of other national-brand consumer items sold through retail outlets

  13. Public opinion survey 'Nuclear energy - the present and the future'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Matani, R.; Lebegner, J.; Jurkovi, I.-A.; Prah, M.

    2000-01-01

    As a part of Croatian Nuclear Society Young Generation Network efforts in improving relations with the general public, a survey on nuclear energy issues among a student population (18-22 years old) has been planned. The survey, although somewhat modified, is based on a similar one that has been conducted at high schools as a part of organized educational program by the Museum of Technical Sciences and Hrvatska Elektroprivreda. Preliminary results show a positive altitude among the student population when it comes to nuclear power plants. As it can be seen from the obtained data (preliminary analysis), this opinion is mostly built on student awareness of nuclear power plants as a clean energy source. (authors)

  14. Public Opinion Survey Data to Measure Sympathy and Support for Islamist Terrorism: A Look at Muslim Opinions on Al Qaeda and IS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alex P. Schmid

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available This Research Paper seeks to explore what ‘sympathy’ and ‘support’ actually mean when it comes to terrorism. The text addresses some of the problems of public opinion surveys, includes a conceptual discussion and then continues with the presentation of data from public opinion surveys. It notes that opinion polls can be helpful in gauging (verbal support for terrorism but also finds that the questions asked in opinion polls are generally lacking precision while the answers are often influenced by political pressures. When translating (generally low percentages of sympathy and support for al Qaeda and so-called Islamic State in various countries into actual population figures, it emerges that there is a sizeable radical milieu in both Muslim-majority countries and in Western Muslim diasporas, held together by the world wide web of the internet. While large majorities of Muslims in most countries have no love for jihadist extremists, there are more than enough breeding grounds for terrorism. The Research Paper concludes that better instruments for measuring sympathy and support for jihadist terrorism are needed to inform counter-terrorist strategies.

  15. The "Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes-Stuttering" (POSHA-S): Summary Framework and Empirical Comparisons

    Science.gov (United States)

    St. Louis, Kenneth O.

    2011-01-01

    Purpose: The "Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes-Stuttering" ("POSHA-S") was developed to make available worldwide a standard measure of public attitudes toward stuttering that is practical, reliable, valid, and translatable. Mean data from past field studies as comparisons for interpretation of "POSHA-S" results are reported. Method: Means…

  16. Public opinion factors regarding nuclear power

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Benson, B.

    1991-12-31

    This paper is an effort to identify, as comprehensively as possible, public concerns about nuclear power, and to assess, where possible, the relative importance of these concerns as they relate to government regulation of and policy towards nuclear power. It is based on some two dozen in-depth interviews with key communicators representing the nuclear power industry, the environmental community, and government, as well as on the parallel efforts in our research project: (1) review of federal court case law, (2) a selective examination of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) administrative process, and (3) the preceding George Mason University research project in this series. The paper synthesizes our findings about public attitudes towards nuclear power as expressed through federal court case law, NRC administrative law, public opinion surveys, and direct personal interviews. In so doing, we describe the public opinion environment in which the nuclear regulatory process must operate. Our premise is that public opinion ultimately underlies the approaches government agencies take towards regulating nuclear power, and that, to the degree that the nuclear power industry`s practices are aligned with public opinion, a more favorable regulatory climate is possible.

  17. Public opinion factors regarding nuclear power

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Benson, B.

    1991-01-01

    This paper is an effort to identify, as comprehensively as possible, public concerns about nuclear power, and to assess, where possible, the relative importance of these concerns as they relate to government regulation of and policy towards nuclear power. It is based on some two dozen in-depth interviews with key communicators representing the nuclear power industry, the environmental community, and government, as well as on the parallel efforts in our research project: (1) review of federal court case law, (2) a selective examination of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) administrative process, and (3) the preceding George Mason University research project in this series. The paper synthesizes our findings about public attitudes towards nuclear power as expressed through federal court case law, NRC administrative law, public opinion surveys, and direct personal interviews. In so doing, we describe the public opinion environment in which the nuclear regulatory process must operate. Our premise is that public opinion ultimately underlies the approaches government agencies take towards regulating nuclear power, and that, to the degree that the nuclear power industry's practices are aligned with public opinion, a more favorable regulatory climate is possible.

  18. Public opinion factors regarding nuclear power

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Benson, B.

    1991-01-01

    This paper is an effort to identify, as comprehensively as possible, public concerns about nuclear power, and to assess, where possible, the relative importance of these concerns as they relate to government regulation of and policy towards nuclear power. It is based on some two dozen in-depth interviews with key communicators representing the nuclear power industry, the environmental community, and government, as well as on the parallel efforts in our research project: (1) review of federal court case law, (2) a selective examination of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) administrative process, and (3) the preceding George Mason University research project in this series. The paper synthesizes our findings about public attitudes towards nuclear power as expressed through federal court case law, NRC administrative law, public opinion surveys, and direct personal interviews. In so doing, we describe the public opinion environment in which the nuclear regulatory process must operate. Our premise is that public opinion ultimately underlies the approaches government agencies take towards regulating nuclear power, and that, to the degree that the nuclear power industry's practices are aligned with public opinion, a more favorable regulatory climate is possible

  19. (Miscommunication across the Borders: Politics, Media and Public Opinion in Turkey

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Banu Baybars-Hawks

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available The American sociologist Charles Horton Cooley defined public opinion "as a process of interaction and mutual influence rather than a state of broad agreement" in 1918. On the other hand, according to the American political scientist V.O. Key, public opinion was "opinions held by private persons which governments find it prudent to heed," in 1961. During the 1990s, advances in statistical and demographic analysis helped the development of an understanding of public opinion as the collective view of a defined population, such as a particular demographic or ethnic group. In this view, the influence of public opinion is not restricted to politics and elections. Public opinion is considered a powerful force in many other spheres, such as culture, fashion, literature and the arts, consumer spending, and marketing and public relations.1 Attitudes and values play a crucial role in the development of public opinion. Different variables embedded in the political, social and media structure of the country also have potential to make an impact on public opinion. These dynamics vary from the economics to the judicial system and democratic principles functioning in that country. On the other hand, public opinion has a power to shape politics and media's priorities in reporting. The interaction among politics, public opinion and media of one country can be better analyzed with the findings of public opinion research administered regularly. In Turkey, the research on and analysis of public opinion are most frequent during the election times. Therefore, it seems necessary to measure the public opinion more regularly to test the relationships among political, public and media agendas. Accordingly, the current study seeks to fill this gap. It is argued that in the absence of timely feedback from public surveys, decisions and policies for improving different services and institutions functioning in the country might not achieve their expected goal. The findings of

  20. Longitudinal survey of public opinion toward nuclear power generation. The result of a survey conducted one year after the Mihama Unit 3 accident

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kitada, Atsuko

    2006-01-01

    As part of an ongoing public opinion survey, regarding nuclear power generation, which started in 1993, a survey was carried out in the Kansai area in 2005, one year and two months after the accident at Unit 3 of the Mihama Nuclear Power Plant. It was found that people's memory about the accident decreased drastically. All questionnaire items that indicated a negative change two months after the accident returned to pre-accident levels. It was confirmed that the accident had only a temporary influence on public opinions. Moreover, the study also revealed a decrease in the public distrust of unclear power. It seems that people's evaluation of and attitude toward nuclear power generation have become slightly more positive since 2002. (author)

  1. US Public Opinion on Carrying Firearms in Public Places.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wolfson, Julia A; Teret, Stephen P; Azrael, Deborah; Miller, Matthew

    2017-06-01

    To estimate US public opinion, overall and by gun ownership status, about the public places where legal gun owners should be allowed to carry firearms. We fielded an online survey among 3949 adults, including an oversample of gun owners and veterans, in April 2015. We used cross-tabulations with survey weights to generate nationally representative estimates. Fewer than 1 in 3 US adults supported gun carrying in any of the specified venues. Support for carrying in public was consistently higher among gun owners than among non-gun owners. Overall, support for carrying in public was lowest for schools (19%; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 16.7, 21.1), bars (18%; 95% CI = 15.9, 20.6), and sports stadiums (17%; 95% CI = 15.0, 19.5). Most Americans, including most gun owners, support restricting public places legal gun owners can carry firearms. These views contrast sharply with the current trend in state legislatures of expanding where, how, and by whom guns can be carried in public. Recent state laws and proposed federal legislation that would force states to honor out-of-state concealed carry permits are out of step with American public opinion.

  2. Taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages: results from a 2011 national public opinion survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barry, Colleen L; Niederdeppe, Jeff; Gollust, Sarah E

    2013-02-01

    Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages including nondiet sodas, sport drinks, and energy drinks has been linked with obesity. Recent state and local efforts to tax these beverages have been unsuccessful. Enactment will be unlikely without public support, yet little research is available to assess how to effectively make the case for such taxes. The objectives were to assess public opinion about arguments used commonly in tax debates regarding sugar-sweetened beverages and to assess differences in public opinion by respondents' political party affiliation. A public opinion survey was fielded in January-March 2011 using a probability-based sample of respondents from a large, nationally representative online panel to examine public attitudes about nine pro- and eight anti-tax arguments. These data were analyzed in August 2011. Findings indicated greater public agreement with anti- than pro-tax arguments. The most popular anti-tax argument was that a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages is arbitrary because it does not affect consumption of other unhealthy foods (60%). A majority also agreed that such taxes were a quick way for politicians to fill budget holes (58%); an unacceptable intrusion of government into people's lives (53.8%); opposed by most Americans (53%); and harmful to the poor (51%). No pro-tax arguments were endorsed by a majority of the public. Respondents reported highest agreement with the argument that sugar-sweetened beverages were the single largest contributor to obesity (49%) and would raise revenue for obesity prevention (41%). Without bolstering public support for existing pro-tax messages or developing alternative pro-tax messages, enacting such policies will be difficult. Message-framing studies could be useful in identifying promising strategies for persuading Americans that taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages are warranted. Copyright © 2013 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Public opinion on atomic energy after JCO accident

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Okamoto, Koichi; Miyamoto, Sosuke; Ishikawa, Masayori; Shimomura, Hideo; Hori, Hiromoto; Suzuki, Yasuko; Kamise, Yumiko

    2004-04-01

    JCO accident happened on September 30, 1999. This book deals with the public opinion of atomic energy after JCO accident in Japan and comparison with that of USA and France. The analysis of public opinion structure is also shown. The important chapter is the eighth chapter a n opinion survey after the accident , of which sampling areas consisted of three areas such as JCO accident area, the nuclear power plants and the general cities. The analytical results of data showed that the public opinion in Tokai-mura and Naka-machi, the JCO accident area, indicated moderate opinions. It is the interesting results were obtained that the moderate tendency of opinion was in order JCO accident area, the nuclear power plants and the general cities. People's attitude toward nuclear energy related to their social values. Abstract of JCO accident, JCO structure, the effects of accident on the environment and news stories about the accident are reported. (S.Y.)

  4. Public opinion and nuclear power decision-making

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Benson, B.

    1991-01-01

    This document discusses public opinion regarding nuclear power which is particularly difficult to tie down because of five important paradoxes that characterize it: it can be based on sound reason, but also on intense emotion; it is both national and local in perspective; at varying times it has seen nuclear power as both ''clean'' and ''dirty''; it believes nuclear power is both economic, and uneconomic; and nuclear power is perceived as having a fairly safe record, but being potentially unsafe. Equally as complex as the process by which public opinion is formed is the process by which it is converted into public policy. The American political system has numerous checks and balances designed to moderate the power of public opinion. A complex series of legislative, judicial, and executive branch hurdles must be cleared before any idea, however popular, can become day-to-day operating reality in government. As a result, major changes in policy or programs are difficult, and we may expect that nuclear power will be no different; radical change in one direction or the other is unlikely. Nevertheless, carefully focused programs could achieve modest progress, and carefully designed public opinion surveys could support such programs

  5. PVMapper: Report on the Second Public Opinion Survey

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Carlisle, Juliet [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Joe, Jeffrey [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Kane, Stephanie [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Koehler, Dave [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Solan, David [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)

    2013-06-24

    This report has been developed as an integral part of the PVMapper project, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s SunShot program. The objective of the SunShot program is to reduce the total costs of solar energy systems. The scope of PVMapper is to develop a geographic information system (GIS) based project planning tool to identify optimal utility-scale solar facility sites. The specific objectives of the project are to 1) develop the software on an open-source platform; 2) integrate the appropriate data sets and GIS layers; 3) include a measure of social risk and public acceptance; 4) enable customization of variable weights; 5) provide a free and accessible platform for software download; and 6) provide a sustainability plan to ensure future relevance of the software. When completed, PVMapper is intended to be used by solar developers, Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs), and other interested parties. This project supports SunShot’s objective by reducing the non-hardware balance of system costs (“soft costs”) for utility-scale solar project development. In order to accomplish the third project objective – including a measure of social risk and public acceptance within PVMapper – the project team has developed a time-series public opinion survey, administered yearly over the course of the three-year project. This report highlights the results and preliminary analyses from the second survey in this series. While the results of this survey are valuable to both PVMapper and future utility-scale solar development, the time-series design is extremely important. The completion of the series enables the extension of the dataset to much richer information. For example, the research team altered this iteration to sharpen the focus on specific topics (those posing potentially higher risks) and target specific locations in the oversample (such as communities near existing facilities). Using similar

  6. Public opinion on nuclear power. Results of 15-year continuous survey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kitada, Atsuko

    2008-01-01

    Since 1993 the Institute of Nuclear Safety System (INSS) has conducted 11 public opinion surveys as part of a longitudinal research to find out the characteristics and trend of public attitudes toward nuclear power generation. During this period, a spate of nuclear-related incidents occurred: the Monju accident; the JCO criticality accident; a cover-up of problems by Tokyo Electric Power Company; power shortage in the Tokyo metropolitan area caused by the suspension of nuclear power plant operation; and the Mihama Unit 3 steam explosion. In addition to regular surveys, the INSS conducted surveys two months after each incident to assess the impact of the event on public attitudes. Our findings are as follows: As uneasiness easily changes responding to an event in society, there were changes in uneasiness about nuclear power after accidents. Although the majority of the public accept the use of nuclear power generation, they do so out of necessity. This attitude of passive support remained unchanged even after accidents. As the prime reason for supporting nuclear power generation, respondents consistently cited diversification of energy sources. In recent years, there were slight increases in the number of respondents who cite issues related to energy situation and global warming. Three major reasons for non-support are radio-active contamination, risk of a catastrophic accident and radioactive waste. No impact of accidents was observed in this regard. In the previous post-accident surveys, negative effects were observed mainly in terms of uneasiness about the accident and risk of an accident, corporate image associated with the accident and confidence in safety. However, these changes were insignificant, the rates of changes below ten-odd percent. As time passed, recognition of the accident or incident lowered and attitudes recovered. It was confirmed that the negative effects were temporary. (author)

  7. Measuring and Understanding Public Opinion on Human Evolution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gwon, Misook

    The theory of evolution has long generated controversy in American society, but Americans' attitudes about human evolution are often neglected in studies of "culture wars" and the nature of mass belief systems more generally (Berkman and Plutzer 2010; Freeland and Houston 2009). Gallup and other survey organizations have polled about evolution, but offered limited response categories that mask complexity in public opinion (Bishop 2006; Moore 2008). The main problems concerning the leading survey questions about evolution are: first, questions measure only a single dimension, thus they ignore the potential for multidimensionality in people's attitudes. Second, depending on question wording and response options, the results of public opinion surveys vary by polling groups. This is an example of measurement error which misleads the interpretation and impression of American public opinion on the origin of humankind. A number of studies have analyzed Americans' beliefs about evolution and hypothesized about the influential effects of several factors (Deckman 2002; Mazur 2005; Mooney 2005; Miller et al. 2006; Newport 2006; Forrest 2007;Nisbet and Goidel 2007;Scott 2009). However, there remains a lack of complete understanding of what Americans know and believe about human evolution. Given the salience of this issue and the significant influence of public opinion on policy-making in America (Page and Shapiro 1992; Stimson 2004; Newport 2004), the measurement error and explanation of polling results on controversial issues related to this topic are in need of clarification. In this study, I address these deficiencies with analyses of data from a 2008 national survey by Harris Interactive (n= 4,626) that included numerous measures of factual knowledge and beliefs about evolution. The items offer more nuanced response options than the standard three-category question asked for decades by the Gallup poll. The Harris survey also had multiple measures of religiosity and the

  8. Public opinion about energy: a literature review

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Farhar, B.C.; Weis, P.; Unseld, C.T.; Burns, B.A.

    1979-06-01

    A review and analysis of 115 surveys of the general population between 1973 and 1978 (before the Three Mile Island accident, sudden gasoline price increases, and spot gasoline shortages) are presented. The survey data are organized and analyzed according to a set of categories described in Chapter 2. The public's definition of the energy situation is the focus of Chapter 3. Chapter 4 describes public opinion concerning energy conservation pertaining to transportation and domestic energy use -- whether it is efficacious, how knowledgeable people are about conservation, whether they favor it, and whether they engage in it. Findings on the solar energy alternative are described in Chapter 5. Public opinion concerning more conventional sources of energy -- oil and natural gas, coal, and nuclear energy -- are discussed in Chapter 6. In Chapter 7, a summary of analytical findings by 10 major sociodemographic characteristics is presented. Chapter 8 describes analytical findings using various social-psychological variables. A summary is presented in Chapter 9.

  9. Changes in alcohol policies and public opinions in Finland 2003-2013.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Österberg, Esa; Lindeman, Mikaela; Karlsson, Thomas

    2014-05-01

    There is a constant and ongoing interplay between public opinions and public policies, alcohol policies being no exception. This article describes the development of public opinions regarding alcohol policy in Finland during a 10-year period between 2003 and 2013. Fluctuations in the alcohol policy opinion climate are put in context by looking at concurrent changes in alcohol policies and in total alcohol consumption. The study is based on data from opinion surveys on alcohol policies commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Welfare and the Finnish Social and Health Association. The opinion polls include questions about the general acceptance of prevailing alcohol policies, appropriate sales channels of different alcoholic beverage categories and opinions about the legal age limits and prices of alcoholic beverages. In the study, changes in alcohol policy during 2003-2013 are surveyed, and their relationship with changes in alcohol policy opinion is examined. There seem to be a strong positive correlation during the study period between the level of alcohol consumption and the share of those wanting a more restrictive alcohol policy in Finland. It seems that an increased level of awareness of alcohol-related issues among the general public created a more restrictive opinion climate on alcohol policy issues after the big alcohol excise duty decrease in 2004. The reverse seems to happen but in a lesser degree when alcohol excise duties has been increased after the year 2007. © 2014 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.

  10. The public opinion and ATC

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ballera, J.

    2010-01-01

    The role of the media is essential to adopt a final decision in relation to the location of a Centralized Temporary Storage (ATC)in Spain. to the deliberative process is public, open and transparent, as included in Royal Decree that created the Inter ministerial Commission responsible for overseeing the procedure, it is necessary for that citizens has information, clear and unequivocal. indicators such as the special edition of the Eurobarometer survey published in June 2008 showed that it is moving towards a truly informed public opinion in these matters. (Author)

  11. Comparison between the public opinion and the image of public opinion on nuclear power generation. From the viewpoint of risk communication

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Matsuda, Toshihiro

    2003-01-01

    One objective for risk communication is to improve the understanding of public values and concerns. This paper examined the perceptions of nuclear power plant engineers of an electric power company, about public values and concerns regarding nuclear power generation (image of public opinion), and compared them with actual public opinion. The image of public opinion was surveyed by questionnaire method. In the questionnaire, the subjects were asked to estimate the most preferred answer given to questions posed to the Japanese public. For some questions, subjects were asked to estimate the percentage of Japanese who selected a certain answer for a question or the distribution of the answers. The results showed: (1) Nuclear power plant engineers correctly recognized the existence of high anxiety in the public's mind concerning nuclear power generation. (2) Engineers were apt to underestimate the percentage of Japanese who think nuclear power generation is useful in our society. (3) The majority of Japanese assume that when nuclear power plant accidents occur radioactive leakage is so severe that it affects the health of inhabitants. However, the engineers were apt to estimate that the majority of Japanese think radioactive leakage is not so severe. (4) Engineers correctly recognized that the majority of Japanese think it is a realistic option to use the nuclear power generation. However, they incorrectly estimated that only 40% of Japanese think it is a realistic option to use the nuclear power generation when in fact 67% think so. These gaps between public opinion and the image of public opinion by the engineers were classified into two groups, one that stems from the cognitive bias when people estimate public opinion and one that is inherent in the engineers of nuclear power plants. (author)

  12. Public Opinion Survey - Energy, The Present and The Future, 2015

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trontl, K.; Pevec, D.; Matijevic, M.; Jecmenica, R.; Duckic, P.; Lebegner, J.

    2016-01-01

    During the year 2015 the Department of Applied Physics of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, University of Zagreb conducted a public opinion survey entitled 'Energy - The Present and the Future' among student population of 1115 individuals. The tested population consisted of the University of Zagreb six faculties' students: the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, the Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology, the Faculty of Mining, Geology and Petroleum Engineering, the Faculty of Science, and the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. The questions in the survey covered several different energy issues, including the present and the future energy resources, the acceptability of different fuel type power plants, the environmental protection and global warming, the radioactivity, the radioactive waste issues, reliable information sources, and position of participants towards climate change issues, as well as European Union and Croatian goals set for the year 2020. The basic results of survey analysis for nuclear oriented questions, as well as the comparison of results of the current survey with the results of the similar surveys conducted in the academic years 2007/08, and 2012/2013, are reported in this paper. Participants generally express high level of formal environmental awareness. However, their choices and attitudes are in a contradiction to claimed eco-orientation, as well as to the scientific facts. The discrepancies are particularly noticeable in parts of the survey dealing with the nuclear energy and the nuclear power plants. The participants are also demonstrating lack of knowledge on nuclear issues especially regarding radioactive waste management, as well as economics and operational safety of nuclear power plants. (author).

  13. The public opinion and ATC; La opinion publica y el ATC

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ballera, J.

    2010-07-01

    The role of the media is essential to adopt a final decision in relation to the location of a Centralized Temporary Storage (ATC)in Spain. to the deliberative process is public, open and transparent, as included in Royal Decree that created the Inter ministerial Commission responsible for overseeing the procedure, it is necessary for that citizens has information, clear and unequivocal. indicators such as the special edition of the Eurobarometer survey published in June 2008 showed that it is moving towards a truly informed public opinion in these matters. (Author)

  14. How Public Opinion is Formed

    Science.gov (United States)

    Block, Edward M.

    1977-01-01

    Investigates the evolution of the definition of public relations by examining cultural and personal determinants of public opinion. Outlines functions of communicators and opinionmakers in forming and influencing public opinion. Available from: Public Relations Review, Ray Hiebert, Dean, College of Journalism, University of Maryland, College Park,…

  15. Public Opinion Survey - Energy - The Present and the Future - 2009/10

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trontl, K.; Jecmenica, R.; Pevec, D.

    2010-01-01

    During the academic year 2009/10 the Department of Applied Physics of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing conducted a public opinion survey entitled 'Energy - The Present and the Future' among student population of 622 individuals age 18-20 (413 male students, 202 female students, and 7 students without the answer on gender question). The tested population consisted of the University of Zagreb four faculties' students: the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, the Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology, the Faculty of Civil Engineering. The questions in the survey covered several different energy issues, including the present and the future energy resources, the acceptability of different fuel type power plants, the environmental protection and global warming, the radioactivity, the waste issues, as well as reliable information sources. The basic results of survey analysis for nuclear oriented questions, as well as the comparison of results of the current survey with the results of the similar survey conducted in the academic year 2007/08, are reported in this paper. Participants generally express high level of formal environmental awareness. However, their choices and attitudes are in a contradiction to claimed eco-orientation, as well as to the scientific facts. The discrepancies are particularly noticeable in parts of the survey dealing with the nuclear energy and the nuclear power plants. The participants are also demonstrating lack of knowledge on nuclear issues especially regarding radioactive waste management, as well as economics and operational safety of nuclear power plants.(author).

  16. Public opinions and antinuclear contestations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Silveira, P.R.N. da

    1978-01-01

    With the aim of demonstrating the importance of public opinion in the development of a nuclear program, a historical analysis of the different forms of anti-technological reactions is shown, starting with a study of the general aspects of mass communication and public opinion. The world-wide communication strategy adopted in the implantation of nuclear programs is discussed and, finally, the nuclear energy issue and public opinion in Brazil are analysed. (F.E.) [pt

  17. Survey data reflecting popular opinions of the causes and mitigation of climate change

    OpenAIRE

    Thompson, Jonathan E.

    2017-01-01

    The data presented within this manuscript reports the results of a 20-question opinion survey concerning popular beliefs regarding the causes of and possible mitigation of climate change. The results and opinions from 746 survey respondents are presented. The data reflects certain misconceptions of climate change, and is useful for investigators to begin forming opinions of the public's knowledge regarding the potentially inflammatory topics of climate change, greenhouse gases, and geo-engine...

  18. Survey data reflecting popular opinions of the causes and mitigation of climate change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, Jonathan E

    2017-10-01

    The data presented within this manuscript reports the results of a 20-question opinion survey concerning popular beliefs regarding the causes of and possible mitigation of climate change. The results and opinions from 746 survey respondents are presented. The data reflects certain misconceptions of climate change, and is useful for investigators to begin forming opinions of the public's knowledge regarding the potentially inflammatory topics of climate change, greenhouse gases, and geo-engineering.

  19. Public opinion on Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hirose, Hirotada

    2013-01-01

    This article showed trend of public opinion on nuclear power after Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, for which the survey had been done five times under the same method and inquiries. Most unreliable source of information at disaster was government ministries and offices, whose unreliability sharply increased from 20% to about 50% after 3 months later and one year later after March 11 and reliability after 2 year and 5 months later (August 2013) was not high and almost comparable with unreliability of 27%. Nuclear disaster was most serious cause of Great East Japan earthquake disaster (60%) and not entirely ended due to such increase of contaminated water. Public opinion survey in August 2013 showed nuclear power stoppage totaled about 80% with immediate of about 30% and phaseout of about 50%, and possibility of occurrence of another nuclear accident comparable with Fukushima disaster was almost 80% with a belief not only earthquakes, tsunamis, terrorism but also human errors might initiate nuclear disaster if nuclear power restarted. Future most serious disaster would be earthquake (50%) and nuclear disaster (35%). Nuclear accident preparedness of government and local government was not enough (58% and 24%) and nothing (33% and 24%). Residents within UPZ (Urgent Protection action Planning Zone) of 30 km radius could not evacuate safely (57%) and entirely (22%). If government and local government encouraged damaged residents to come home with declaration of safety for evacuation area of nuclear accident, damaged residents might not return almost (46%) and entirely (9%). Notwithstanding people's strong feeling against nuclear power, LDP (Liberal Democratic Party) promoting nuclear power won an overwhelming victory at the election of House of Councilors in July 2013. Public opinion survey in August 2013 showed most important issue of voters was party's image (25%), economic measures (20%) and candidate's personality (13%), and nuclear power policy was only 5%. (T

  20. Does the weather influence public opinion about climate change?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donner, S. D.; McDaniel, J.

    2010-12-01

    Public opinion in North America about the science of anthropogenic climate change and the motivation for policy action has been variable over the past twenty years. The trends in public opinion over time have been attributed the general lack of pressing public concern about climate change to a range of political, economic and psychological factors. One driving force behind the variability in polling data from year to year may be the weather itself. The difference between what we “expect” - the climate - and what we “get” - the weather - can be a major source of confusion and obfuscation in the public discourse about climate change. For example, reaction to moderate global temperatures in 2007 and 2008 may have helped prompt the spread of a “global cooling” meme in the public and the news media. At the same time, a decrease in the belief in the science of climate change and the need for action has been noted in opinion polls. This study analyzes the relationship between public opinion about climate change and the weather in the U.S. since the mid-1980s using historical polling data from several major organizations (e.g. Gallup, Pew, Harris Interactive, ABC News), historical monthly air temperature (NCDC) and a survey of opinion articles from major U.S. newspapers (Washington Post, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Houston Chronicle, USA Today). Seasonal and annual monthly temperature anomalies for the northeastern U.S and the continental U.S are compared with available national opinion data for three general categories of questions: i) Is the climate warming?, ii) Is the observed warming due to human activity?, and iii) Are you concerned about climate change? The variability in temperature and public opinion over time is also compared with the variability in the fraction of opinion articles in the newspapers (n ~ 7000) which express general agreement or disagreement with IPCC Summary for Policymakers consensus statements on climate change (“most of

  1. Public Opinion Survey - Energy - The Present and the Future - 2012/2013

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trontl, Kresimir; Pevec, Dubravko; Matijevic, Mario; Jecmenica, Radomir; Lebegner, Josip

    2014-01-01

    During the academic year 2012/13 the Department of Applied Physics of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, University of Zagreb conducted a public opinion survey entitled 'Energy- The Present and the Future' among student population of more than 950 individuals. The tested population consisted of the University of Zagreb five faculties' and one polytechnic school's students: the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, the Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology, the Faculty of Civil Engineering, the Faculty of Science, and the Polytechnic of Zagreb. The questions in the survey covered several different energy issues, including the present and the future energy resources, the acceptability of different fuel type power plants, the environmental protection and global warming, the radioactivity, the waste issues, reliable information sources, and position of participants towards climate change issues, , as well as European Union and Croatian goals set for the year 2020. The basic results of survey analysis for nuclear oriented questions, as well as the comparison of results of the current survey with the results of the similar surveys conducted in the academic years 2007/08 and 2009/2010, are reported in this paper. Participants generally express high level of formal environmental awareness. However, their choices and attitudes are in a contradiction to claimed eco-orientation, as well as to the scientific facts. The discrepancies are particularly noticeable in parts of the survey dealing with the nuclear energy and the nuclear power plants. The participants are also demonstrating lack of knowledge on nuclear issues especially regarding radioactive waste management, as well as economics and operational safety of nuclear power plants. (authors)

  2. Public Opinion Survey-Energy-The Present and the Future

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pejic Bach, M.; Pevec, D.; Bace, M.; Trontl, K.; Jecmenica, R.; Matijevic, M.; Lebegner, J.

    2008-01-01

    During the academic year 2007/08 the Department of Applied Physics of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing conducted a public opinion survey entitled 'Energy - The Present and the Future' among student population of 1439 individuals age 18-20. The tested population consisted of the University of Zagreb nine faculties' students: the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing - 367 students, the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology - 149 students, the Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology - 118 students, the Faculty of Civil Engineering - 102 students, the Faculty of Philosophy - 100 students, the Faculty of Science - 50 students, the Medical School - 217 students, the School of Dental Medicine - 108 students, and the Faculty of Economics and Business - 228 students. The questions in the survey covered several different energy issues, including the present and the future energy resources, the acceptability of different fuel type power plants, the environmental protection and global warming, the radioactivity, the waste issues, as well as reliable information sources. The basic results of survey analysis for nuclear oriented questions are reported in this paper. Although participants expressed high level of formal environmental awareness, their choices and attitudes are in a contradiction to claimed eco-orientation, as well as to the scientific facts. The discrepancies are particularly noticeable in parts of the survey dealing with the nuclear energy and the nuclear power plants. The radioactive waste management, proved to be a potential stumbling-stone for the entire nuclear program. The participants are demonstrating deep lack of knowledge which results in the radioactive waste management becoming the main source of fear from the nuclear technology in general. A very disturbing attitude is a belief that the nuclear energy is non-economic, environmentally unacceptable and operationally unsafe source of energy. Such an attitude

  3. Evolving Trends in Public Opinion on the Quality of Local Schools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bali, Valentina A.

    2016-01-01

    The ratings given by citizens to local public schools in the United States have been rising in the last decades. Using national public opinion surveys, this study seeks to understand the determinants of public evaluations of local schools across time. Aggregate trend analyses indicate that public evaluations of local schools are influenced not…

  4. The trend of the public opinion upon nuclear power generation in internet blog

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Maruta, Katsuhiko; Ueda, Yoshitaka

    2011-01-01

    The authors pay attention to and survey internet information which is called 'blog' to grasp how nuclear power generation information is treated in internet and forms public opinion. Examples of the outcomes are as follows. 1) Numbers of blog reference will change by public opinion upon nuclear power generation. A lot of blog references about nuclear power plants are conducted when a big earthquake occurred. 2) As a feature of the report, numbers of the references against nuclear power generation exceed those which are positive for nuclear power. There are a lot of blog reports which are against nuclear power generation and easy to make readers believe that they are true even if they are based on misunderstanding. It is worried that such reports give people too much negative influence for the public opinion upon nuclear power generation. The authors survey short term trend of the internet public opinion after TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi Power Plants Accident too. As a result, it is made clear that people's concern upon nuclear power became very high and the ratio of the supporters of nuclear power generation changed after the accident. (author)

  5. COMPENDIUM: SURVEYS EVALUATING KNOWLEDGE AND OPINIONS CONCERNING HYDROGEN AND FUEL CELL TECHNOLOGIES

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Truett, Lorena Faith [ORNL; Cooper, Christy [U.S. Department of Energy; Schmoyer, Richard L [ORNL

    2008-10-01

    This compendium updates a 2003 literature review of surveys of knowledge and opinions of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies. Its purpose is to ensure that results of comparable surveys are considered in surveys conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Over twice as many studies related to the DOE survey have been published since 2003 than prior to that date. The fact that there have been significantly more studies implies that there have been further demonstration projects and/or increased interest in hydrogen and fuel cell technologies. The primary findings of these 15 new surveys, all of which were conducted in Europe (E) or North America (NA), to the DOE surveys are as follows: 1.Respondents who are more educated are more accepting of hydrogen technologies (NA). 2.Respondents who are more knowledgeable about hydrogen and/or fuel cells are more accepting of hydrogen technologies (E, NA). 3.When asked about issues of trust, respondents generally expressed distrust of the government or political parties but trusted scientists and environmental protection organizations (E). 4.Technical knowledge about hydrogen and fuel cell technologies is low (E, NA). 5.Respondents may express opinions about a technology even when they are lacking in knowledge of that technology (E). 6.Women and men have different priorities when deciding on an automobile purchase (E). 7.Public acceptance to hydrogen is vulnerable to perceptions of decreased safety (E, NA). 8.Public acceptance to hydrogen is vulnerable to perceptions of increased cost (E, NA). The DOE surveys are similar to surveys that examine technical knowledge of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies, although the technical questions are certainly different. The DOE surveys are also similar to the opinion surveys in that they address many of the same issues, such as safety, sources of energy information, or trust. There are many differences between the surveys reviewed in this compendium and the DOE surveys. The

  6. Situation Concerning Public Information about and Involvement in the Decision-Making Processes in the Nuclear Sector. Public Opinion Review

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prades, A.; Sala, R.; Lopez, M.

    2006-01-01

    This report summarizes the CIEMAT's contribution to the study S ituation concerning Public Information about and Involvement in the Decision-Making Processes in the Nuclear Sector , contract number TREN/ 04/NUC/ S07.39556 between the European Commission and Mutadis Consultants. The research was composed by Mutadis Consultants and CEPN (Nuclear Protection Evaluation Centre) (France), University of Aberdeen (UK) and CIEMAT (Spain). The objective of the project was to build a detailed overview of the EU situation regarding information and participation practices in the nuclear domain, provide an elaborated assessment, and to produce reporting and recommendations in the field. CIEMAT contribution' focused on the review of public opinion polis. Thus, Eurobarometers Standard Surveys (EBs) were analysed to report about the European citizens' public opinion regarding public Information and participation in the nuclear field. Additionally, the International Social Survey Program (ISSP), and some additional national polis were analysed. In terms of the EU public opinion, the follow up of the public information and participation domains receiving as much attention as necessary. Extremely few questions dealing with the subject were identified in the Eurobarometers, the national polis and the ISSP (International Social Survey Program) surveys reviewed in this study. An unambiguous illustration of this lack of attention is the fact that no questions dealing with public participation issues emerged in the n uclear EBs u ntil 1998. Even though, Eurobarometers (EBs) still provide an invaluable source of information on the topics we are interested on at the EU allowing longitudinal descriptions (trend analysis) of some key issues in our area of interest. (Author) 11 refs

  7. [Regulatory policies and public opinion: the case of smoking].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saltó, Esteve; Joan R, Villalbí; Valverde, Araceli; Baranda, Lucía; Plasencia, Antoni

    2006-01-01

    Collecting and disseminating information about the public opinion on a regulatory process gives visibility to the silent social support and facilitates the process, which often confronts resistance from interest groups. This paper presents a survey about a proposed legislation on tobacco in its final stages and its results, and some considerations on the use of this sort of information in change processes. Cross sectional descriptive study. In December 2005 a brief telephone survey was made to a population sample of 18 and more years of age (N=830) in Catalonia (Spain). The questionnaire explored opinions on the proposed regulations under discussion. We present the degree of support and the rating of nine regulatory measures, stratified by the respondents use of tobacco. Daily smokers are 26.3% of the surveyed population. Awareness and general support for tobacco regulation are very high. Aspects with wider support include bans on sales to minors (97.3%), smoking in enclosed public places (92.8%) and workplaces (89%), and publicity (90.8%). The aspect with less social support is banning smoking in bars and cafes (80.2%). The population supports widely tobacco regulation. This reinforces the process and weakens the arguments of those against it. Although smokers are less supportive, most of them accept the regulations, except for limitations in bars and cafes.

  8. Public opinion on water reuse options

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bruvold, W.H.

    1988-01-01

    Public policy on waste water reuse options must be informed by public opinion because it is the public who must pay the cost of developing the option and who will be served by the option in the future. For public policy on reuse, guidance for innovative reuse is not as simple as first believed. It seems that public opinion regarding actual community reuse options is affected by the linkage of several factors, including water conservation, health protection, treatment and distribution costs, and environmental enhancement. Probability sampling was used in 7 studies to select respondents who were queried regarding their opinions on various reclaimed water uses such as ranging from cooling tower water to full domestic use. These 7 are briefly reviewed

  9. Situation Concerning Public Information about and Involvement in the Decision-Making Processes in the Nuclear Sector. Public Opinion Review.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Prades, A.; Sala, R.; Lopez, M.

    2006-07-01

    This report summarizes the CIEMAT's contribution to the study {sup S}ituation concerning Public Information about and Involvement in the Decision-Making Processes in the Nuclear Sector{sup ,} contract number TREN/ 04/NUC/ S07.39556 between the European Commission and Mutadis Consultants. The research was composed by Mutadis Consultants and CEPN (Nuclear Protection Evaluation Centre) (France), University of Aberdeen (UK) and CIEMAT (Spain). The objective of the project was to build a detailed overview of the EU situation regarding information and participation practices in the nuclear domain, provide an elaborated assessment, and to produce reporting and recommendations in the field. CIEMAT contribution' focused on the review of public opinion polis. Thus, Eurobarometers Standard Surveys (EBs) were analysed to report about the European citizens' public opinion regarding public Information and participation in the nuclear field. Additionally, the International Social Survey Program (ISSP), and some additional national polis were analysed. In terms of the EU public opinion, the follow up of the public information and participation domains receiving as much attention as necessary. Extremely few questions dealing with the subject were identified in the Eurobarometers, the national polis and the ISSP (International Social Survey Program) surveys reviewed in this study. An unambiguous illustration of this lack of attention is the fact that no questions dealing with public participation issues emerged in the {sup n}uclear EBs{sup u}ntil 1998. Even though, Eurobarometers (EBs) still provide an invaluable source of information on the topics we are interested on at the EU allowing longitudinal descriptions (trend analysis) of some key issues in our area of interest. (Author) 11 refs.

  10. Are public opinion polls self-fulfilling prophecies?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Rothschild

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available Psychologists have long observed that people conform to majority opinion, a phenomenon sometimes referred to as the ‘bandwagon effect’. In the political domain people learn about prevailing public opinion via ubiquitous polls, which may produce a bandwagon effect. Newer types of information – published probabilities derived from prediction market contract prices and aggregated polling summaries – may have similar effects. Consequently, polls can become self-fulfilling prophecies whereby majorities, whether in support of candidates or policies, grow in a cascading manner. Despite increased attention to whether the measurement of public opinion can itself affect public opinion, the existing empirical literature is surprisingly limited on the bandwagon effects of polls. To address this gap, we conducted an experiment on a diverse national sample in which we randomly assigned people to receive information about different levels of support for three public policies. We find that public opinion as expressed through polls affects individual-level attitudes, although the size of the effect depends on issue characteristics.

  11. Public Opinion regarding Juvenile Life without Parole in Consecutive Statewide Surveys

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kubiak, Sheryl Pimlott; Allen, Terrence

    2011-01-01

    Abolition of the death penalty results in life without parole (LWOP) as the most severe sanction for convicted juveniles. Although internationally the use of LWOP for juveniles is rare, 2,225 youth have been sentenced to LWOP within the United States. To address the dearth of public opinion on the issue, the authors proposed questions to the…

  12. Spent fuel storage choices: What public opinion polls tell us

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bisconti, A.S.

    1995-01-01

    The crux of the issue of spent nuclear fuel for much of the American public is that taking car of our waste now instead of leaving it for future generations is the safe and environmentally responsible think to do. This article summarizes a number of public opinion surveys. Although it is important to recognize that most people are not familiar with specifics, much of the American public has a strong opinions about the fundamental guiding principles for safely managing radioactive waste. First there is clear agreement that we need action. Second, safety means taking the waste to a permanent disposal facility instead of leaving it in many different locations. Third, most of the public would like to keep nuclear energy as a supply option. Fourth, the majority of the public agreed with the statement that the availability of nuclear energy as an option for future energy supply depends on building a national waste storage or disposal facility

  13. Personal Perceptions and Perceived Public Opinion About Stuttering in the United States: Implications for Anti-Stigma Campaigns.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boyle, Michael P

    2017-08-15

    This exploratory study was the first to obtain quantitative and qualitative data on both personal perceptions and perceived public opinion about stuttering in order to identify topics to include in anti-stigma programs for stuttering. Three-hundred ten adults in the United States completed a web survey that assessed knowledge about stuttering and attitudes toward people who stutter (PWS) with questions addressing personal perceptions (direct questions) and perceived public opinion (indirect questions). Many participants reported favorable personal perceptions of PWS regarding their intelligence, competence, and potential for success. However, most participants did not personally believe PWS were confident, and most believed they were shy. Perceived public opinion was more unfavorable as a majority agreed that the public is uncomfortable talking with PWS and that the public would recommend PWS avoid jobs requiring high speech demands and avoid talking to large audiences. A minority of participants agreed PWS are perceived publicly as capable or mentally healthy. The survey demonstrated misunderstandings and negative perceptions of PWS, especially when measured with perceived public opinion. Results can increase our understanding of content areas that should be included in anti-stigma programs for stuttering and highlight different methods for analyzing public perceptions of stuttering.

  14. Impotent science, omnipotent public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guillaume, Nathalie

    2001-01-01

    Full text: Nowadays public opinion has become prominent when political leaders have themselves to vote. Even scientific or economical decisions are often taken more in accordance to these trends than to rational reasons. For a long time it has been widely accepted that a clear and pedagogical explanation was enough to make scientific issues understandable. For nearly 20 years, a true scientific and professional communication has been developed in France towards the general public to make nuclear industry acceptable. Nevertheless today, we notice that the acceptance of the nuclear option has lost many points in public polls. An accident, in the nuclear fields or in another fields, in one point or another of the planet can ruin the work of many years in communication. 1) In order to draw a more precise picture of public opinion, to follow these trends and make them more understandable, the CEA communication direction has built a 'public opinion barometer' dealing with the following fields: - Information on nuclear fields; - The nuclear actors; - The future of nuclear option; - Radioactive waste; - Risks perception; - Nuclear energy and other sources of energy; - Economy and nuclear power; - Image of nuclear. 2) Come and visit our labs to make up your own opinion: As communication methods through the classical media has, up to now, failed in changing public opinion regarding nuclear, the decision was made to offer to people the opportunity to meet searchers at work.400 'Communicating researchers' to day are volunteers to receive the public .They are trained to be able to explain their work to non specialists; they receive documents dealing with current events to help them answer to questions and they are invited to an annual general meeting (last one in January 2001). 85 laboratories are opened (civil and military ones). In 2000, nearly 10,000 visitors have come to us. In 2001, new additional operations will be lead toward young people, teachers, associations. (author)

  15. Fukushima effects in Germany? Changes in media coverage and public opinion on nuclear power.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arlt, Dorothee; Wolling, Jens

    2016-10-01

    Based on a literature review on factors that explain media effects and previous findings on media coverage and public opinion on nuclear power, this article examines the effects of Fukushima on media coverage and public opinion in Germany in two studies. The first study uses content analysis data to analyse changes in media coverage, and the second one is based on panel survey data to examine attitude changes on an individual level. The results of both studies show changes in media coverage and public opinion on nuclear power. Furthermore, the second study reveals that individual attitude changes cannot necessarily be explained by the same factors as the distribution of attitudes. © The Author(s) 2015.

  16. Topological evolution of the internet public opinion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lian, Ying; Dong, Xuefan; Liu, Yijun

    2017-11-01

    The Internet forms a platform featured with high liquidity, accessibility and concealment for the public to express their respective views on certain events, thus leading to a large network graph. Due to such environmental features, the public opinions formed on the Internet are different from those on traditional media. Studies focusing on the former area are relatively fewer. In addition, the majority of existing methods proposed for constructing the Internet public opinion topological structure are based on the classic BA model, thus resulting in drawbacks in the range of simplicity and a lack of strict deduction. Therefore, based on the complex networks theory, a model applied to describe the topology of the Internet public opinion is deduced with rigorous derivation in the present paper. Results show that the proposed expression could well reflect the degree distribution of Internet public opinion which follows an analogous power law distribution, and that the peak value and the degree distribution are not correlative to each other. Moreover, it has been also proved that compared to the classic BA model, the proposed model has better accuracy performance in the description of the degree distribution of the Internet public opinion, which contributes to future studies focusing on this area. Thus, an attempt has been made to give the first theoretical description of the Internet public opinion topology in the present paper. In addition, it is also the first paper focusing on the solution of networks degree distribution with an exponential growth form.

  17. Public-opinion poll on energy saving

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1982-01-01

    A public-opinion poll was carried out on energy saving from November 26 to December 2, 1981, across the country. The number of persons participated in the survey was 5,000, whose age was 20 and above. The recovery ratio was 4,007 persons (80.1 %). The results of the survey and also the question-answer form are given with respective percentages. The questions were in the following three categories: (1) cognizance of energy saving - space-heating temperature, energy saving conscience use of private cars, purchase of highenergy consumption appliances; (2) energy for future - energy consumption, energy consumption trend, new types of energy, main sources of power generation, nuclear power in the overall electric power, apprehension toward nuclear power plants, safety measures in nuclear power plants; (3) governmental energy policy measures. (J.P.N.)

  18. A survey on the regional characteristics of public's nuclear recognition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohnishi, Teruaki; Okada, Osami; Tsujimoto, Tadashi

    2001-03-01

    Public opinion surveys were carried out to clarify the difference of nuclear perception of the public dwelling near the region of nuclear power station and the public in the urban region. A simulation model using the data obtained up to this time was developed to make clear the regional dependence of the public's perception of nuclear energy, and the secular variation of public opinion for nuclear energy corresponding to the two regions cited above was numerically studied by this model. In our surveys, a convenient method using the Internet, together with the ordinary mailing method were adopted to compare the two types of data thus obtained by the different methods and to study the feasibility of the Internet method. The questionnaires in these surveys are, for instance, the extent of the public recognition of energy in general and nuclear energy, the recognition of inhabitant's poll, and the public's attitude to the mass media, with the objective region of Reinan in Fukui prefecture and the urban region in Kinki district for the case of mailing method, and the whole region in our country for the Internet method. By the simulation model of multi-particle type with the input data obtained by our surveys, the behavior of secular variation of nuclear opinion and the effect of PA activity were numerically studied. The present status of public perception and recognition of nuclear energy became clear as a result of our surveys. It was found that the Internet is a quite useful mean to carry out the opinion survey with a low cost in a short time, and that the multi-particle model can be a useful tool to numerically evaluate the effect of PA activity. (author)

  19. UK Public Opinion Review - Working Paper - An overview of public opinion polls since the Edward Snowden revelations in June 2013

    OpenAIRE

    Cable, Jonathan

    2015-01-01

    This document charts public opinion of the Edward Snowden leaks and associated issues\\ud since June 2013. This includes people’s opinions on surveillance, the intelligence services\\ud and personal privacy. Since the Snowden leaks there have been 38 opinion polls on these\\ud topics concerning public opinion in the UK and conducted by large polling organisations,\\ud such as YouGov, ComRes and Ipsos MORI among others.

  20. A survey on the public opinion regarding nuclear power and energy issues in Fukui prefecture

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kosugi, Motoko; Tsuchiya, Tomoko

    2007-01-01

    To 2000 people who were randomly sampled from the basic register of residents in Fukui prefecture, we conducted a questionnaire survey asking their interest in, knowledge of and attitude toward nuclear power, to analyze which perceptions and opinions they had and factors influencing them. The ratios of respondents in Fukui prefecture who think nuclear power is safe, necessary, and should be developed more, are higher than those of surveyed residents who live in other regions where nuclear power plants had been in operation. Differences in gender and age are nearly the same as those found in the nation-wide surveys has shown. The respondents in 'Tsuruga' region, one of the centers of nuclear power research and development, are more acceptive and affirmative to the nuclear power than those in other regions, although they have less knowledge and credibility for nuclear power safety measures, such as regulation and monitoring by government, countermeasure of earthquake, training of workers and so on. We analyzed the perception of risk and the sense of security for nuclear power, and the opinions for necessity and development of nuclear power, using a regression model. According to the estimated 'Tsuruga' model, risk perception of Tsuruga respondents does not affect their opinion if nuclear power should be developed. No influence of the risk perception on their opinion for nuclear power suggest a possibility that residents have strong trust in nuclear power technology and electric power companies based on their long term experience. (author)

  1. Attitudes and Beliefs About Domestic Violence: Results of a Public Opinion Survey. I. Definitions of Domestic Violence, Criminal Domestic Violence, and Prevalence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carlson, Bonnie E.; Worden, Alissa Pollitz

    2005-01-01

    This study reports analyses and findings from a public opinion survey designed to explore beliefs about domestic violence (DV) -- what it is, when it is against the law, and how prevalent it is. The project interviewed 1,200 residents from six New York communities. The analyses reveal substantial first hand and second hand experience with DV and…

  2. Public opinion on age-related degradation in nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Matsuda, Toshihiro

    2005-01-01

    The first objective of this study is to shed light on the public opinion on age-related degradation at nuclear power plants, namely, on how the general public recognizes or views age-related degradation, which is a safety-related issue and one of the factors contributing to accidents and failures which occur at nuclear power plants. The second objective is to look into the impacts of the accident at Mihama Unit 3, which was caused by a failure to check on the piping wall thickness, on the public opinion on age-related degradation. The first survey was conducted in August 2003, followed by the second survey in October 2004, two months after the accident. The surveys found that the age-related degradation is being perceived by people as one of the risk factors that affect the safety of nuclear power plants. The characteristics of the citizens' perceptions toward age-related degradation in the form of piping cracks are that: (a) many respondents feel uneasy but a relatively few people consider that nuclear operators are technologically capable of coping with this problem; (b) many people believe that radioactivity may be released; and (c) numerous respondents consider that signs of cracks must be thoroughly detected through inspections, while on the other hand, a large percentage of the respondents attribute the accident to improper inspections/maintenance. Based on these results, the government and nuclear operators are expected to give most illuminating explanation on the current situation of and remedial measures against age-related degradation at nuclear power plants. As for the effects of the Mihama-3 accident on the public opinion on age-related degradation, it was revealed that the accident has not so significantly affected the general view for the safety of nuclear power plants, but has newly or strongly aroused people's consciousness of two of the risk factors - improper inspections/maintenance and the age-related degradation of piping. (author)

  3. The US Department of Energy hydrogen baseline survey: assessing knowledge and opinions about hydrogen technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Christy Cooper; Tykey Truett; R L Schmoyer

    2006-01-01

    To design and maintain its education program, the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Hydrogen Program conducted a statistically-valid national survey to measure knowledge and opinions of hydrogen among key target audiences. The Hydrogen Baseline Knowledge Survey provides a reference for designing the DOE hydrogen education strategy and will be used in comparisons with future surveys to measure changes in knowledge and opinions over time. The survey sampled four U.S. populations: (1) public; (2) students; (3) state and local government officials; and (4) potential large-scale hydrogen end-users in three business categories. Questions measured technical understanding of hydrogen and opinions about hydrogen safety. Other questions assessed visions of the likelihood of future hydrogen applications and sources of energy information. Several important findings were discovered, including a striking lack of technical understanding across all survey groups, as well as a strong correlation between technical knowledge and opinions about safety: those who demonstrated an understanding of hydrogen technologies expressed the least fear of its safe use. (authors)

  4. Opinion survey among residents in the vicinity of wind farms, elected representatives, and general public. Synthesis of results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fourquet, Jerome; Gariazzo, Marie; Merceron, Adeline

    2016-09-01

    This document presents results of a survey comprising a qualitative survey among residents at the vicinity of wind farms, a quantitative survey among the same kind of residents and among a sample representing the French population older than 18, and a qualitative survey among elected representatives of local communities. Graphs illustrate results in terms of opinion on wind energies, of relationship between information and confidence in a wind farm project. Three sets of residents living everyday at the vicinity of wind farms are synthesised in terms of opinion: the convinced ones, the unconcerned ones, and the upset ones. The opinions in terms of impacts (income for local communities and for farmers, the proof of a commitment for a virtuous ecological policy, a way to impulse a dynamics, or local curiosity) are also assessed. The main levers for a higher acceptance of wind farms are identified

  5. Analysis of national representative opinion surveys concerning gestational surrogacy in Japan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Suzuki, Kohta; Hoshi, Kazuhiko; Minai, Junko; Yanaihara, Takumi; Takeda, Yasuhisa; Yamagata, Zentaro

    2006-05-01

    Although gestational surrogacy offers several advantages, this procedure has given rise to some ethical and legal issues. We aimed to clarify the factors affecting the attitude of the Japanese toward gestational surrogacy. Cross-sectional study. Nationwide opinion surveys concerning assisted reproductive technologies (ART) were carried out in 1999 and 2003. Participants included 2568 and 3647 people from the general public surveyed in 1999 and 2003, respectively (1564 people received only the questionnaire, and 2083 people received a questionnaire and brochure about ART). Multivariate-adjusted odds ratio and 95% confidence interval from logistic regression models for factors affecting the attitude toward gestational surrogacy. In both surveys, approximately half of respondents approved of gestational surrogacy; 20-30% disapproved of the procedure. People with high socioeconomic status clearly expressed their opinion on this issue. A liberal attitude toward gender role promoted approval of gestational surrogacy; a liberal attitude toward family had the opposite effect. Our findings suggest that socioeconomic status affects people's expression of their opinion regarding this issue, while attitudes toward this procedure were influenced by individual belief. Considering socioeconomic status and diversity of individual belief is required for further discussion on this topic.

  6. Nuclear energy and public opinion: arousal of a myth

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Agrafiotis, D.; Delarminat, E.; Morlat, G.; Pages, J.P.

    1977-01-01

    In order to explain why an individual or the public opinion is in favour or against the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, one should not only consider the dimension of the involved risk, as radiation protection and safety experts will often do. Many other dimensions should be considered all the more as the nuclear problem is gaining importance on a national level, becoming the topic of the day in press and other media and the subject of 'definite' position from political parties and social groups. An investigation carried out within the Protection Division of the French Atomic Energy Commission (C.E.A.) has made it possible to specify the socio-cultural dimensions at the origin of the attitudes taken on the nuclear problem in France. The nuclear topic was therefore compared with other present topics interesting public opinion; this comparison was made possible by means of an attitude survey covering various social groups. A model of social perception was thus developed [fr

  7. Reliability Analysis of Public Survey in Satisfaction with Nuclear Safety

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, Moon Soo; Moon, Joo Hyun; Kang, Chang Sun

    2005-01-01

    Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) carried out a questionnaire survey on public's understanding nuclear safety and regulation in order to grasp public acceptance for nuclear energy. The survey was planned to help to analyze public opinion on nuclear energy and provide basic data for advertising strategy and policy development. In this study, based on results of the survey, the reliability of the survey was evaluated according to each nuclear site

  8. Reliability Analysis of Public Survey in Satisfaction with Nuclear Safety

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Park, Moon Soo; Moon, Joo Hyun; Kang, Chang Sun [Seoul National Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2005-07-01

    Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) carried out a questionnaire survey on public's understanding nuclear safety and regulation in order to grasp public acceptance for nuclear energy. The survey was planned to help to analyze public opinion on nuclear energy and provide basic data for advertising strategy and policy development. In this study, based on results of the survey, the reliability of the survey was evaluated according to each nuclear site.

  9. Understanding public opinion regarding transit in southeast Michigan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-04-01

    This report presents findings from a study on public opinion regarding transit in Southeast Michigan. The overall goals of this : study were to assess the nature of public opinion regarding regional transit and to understand its relation to socio-dem...

  10. Nuclear power and public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kazanikov, I.A.; Klykov, S.A.

    2000-01-01

    The public opinion on Nuclear Power is not favorable. A purposeful work with public perception is necessary. One way to create a positive image of the nuclear industry is to improve public radiological education. This challenge can be resolved in the close cooperation with state school and preschool education. The formation about nuclear power should be simple and symbolical. Our society can be divided into 4 parts which can be called as target groups: First group - People from the nuclear industry with special education working at nuclear facilities or related to the industry. Second group - People working in the fields connected with nuclear power. Third group - People not related to nuclear power or even with negative impression to the industry. This group is the largest and the work required is the most difficult. Fourth group - The number of this group's members is the least, but it has strong influence on public opinion. 'Greens' and a broad spectrum of ecological organizations can be included in this group. (Authors)

  11. Public opinion survey on the relationship between society and nuclear energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shinoda, Yoshihiko; Yamano, Naoki; Torii, Hiroyuki

    2008-01-01

    The social research group of the 21st century COE program 'Innovative Nuclear Energy Systems for Sustainable Development of the World' has studied under the theme coevolution of nuclear technology and society. As part of this study, this group conducted a questionnaire survey of 2,500 adults (collection rate of 22.0%; 551 replies) who live in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The purpose of this survey asking opinion about the relationship between attitude toward nuclear technology utilization and social awareness is to determine their request, exception and concern about nuclear technology utilization. The survey reveals that the differences of attitudes towards nuclear technology utilization can be explained in terms of differences of general views on the society, such as the directionality of social progress. Thus, it is necessary to argue with citizens about the strategy on nuclear technology utilization from the viewpoint of the directionality of the future society. The social decision-making process on nuclear technology utilization has to be renovated through dialogue among citizens as the partner taking on the achievement and contribution toward the directionality of the future society. (author)

  12. Analysis of Public Opinion Survey ''Nuclear Energy - the Present and the Future'' (2000-2012)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jakic, Irena; Filipin, Renato

    2014-01-01

    Technical Museum Zagreb, in co-operation with Hrvatska elektroprivreda, has been organizing high-school students' visits to the nuclear power plant Krsko since 1989. From schools that have visited the nuclear power plant so far, Zagreb high schools and technical schools are the most represented ones. They filled in the copies of questionnaire after watching film about nuclear energy and before visiting nuclear power plant Krsko. The copies of the public opinion survey (questionnaire) have been filled since 2000 and results of analysis of data until 2012 are in this paper. Questions were the same and that makes possible comparison of the results. (authors)

  13. Opinion survey on energy and climate in 2013

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Martin, Jean-Philippe

    2013-08-01

    This issue comments the results of a survey on the opinion of French people on the reality of climate change (for the whole population and with respect to age), on the opinion of French people on nuclear energy (in relationship with the opinion on climate change, globally in terms of benefit or drawback with evolution of the opinion since 1994), on the feeling of having suffered from the cold during the winter of 2012-2013, on the dwelling temperature in winter, and on the opinion on energy price

  14. Health care issues in Croatian elections 2005-2010: series of public opinion surveys.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Radin, Dagmar; Dzakula, Aleksandar; Benkovic, Vanesa

    2011-10-15

    To compare the results of a series of public opinion surveys on experiences with the health care sector in Croatia conducted in the time of elections and to analyze whether political party affiliation had any influence on issues of priority ranking. The surveys were conducted during 2005, 2007, and 2009. They were administered through a Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing method to representative samples of Croatian population and were statistically weighted according to sex, age, level of education, and political party affiliation. The random sampling of the person within the household was done using the table of random numbers. Health and health care system was the most important issue (58%) during the 2007 parliamentary election and the second most important issue during the 2005 and 2009 elections (46% and 28%). In the 2007 election, health care was viewed as most important by women, respondents with lower education levels, and respondents with lower income. In 2005, the most important health care issues were corruption and lack of funding (45% and 43%, respectively), in 2007 poor organization and lack of funding (43% and 42%, respectively), and in 2009 lack of funding and corruption (51% and 45%, respectively). Health and health care system were consistently among the top two issues in all elections from 2005 to 2009. The top three most important health care sector issues were corruption, poor organization, and lack of funding. This indicates that political parties should include solutions to these issues in their health care policymaking.

  15. Kyoto or non-Kyoto - people or politics: results of recent public opinion surveys on energy and climate change

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ashworth, Peta; Gardner, John; Littleboy, Anna

    2007-01-01

    Full text: We present the results of a survey of an Australian public opinion survey in the area of climate change and energy technologies and compare the results with similar studies conducted in the other major non-Kyoto-adherent party, the United States, as well as to Kyoto-adherent countries including the UK, Japan, Sweden and Spain. We explore some of the differences and similarities in attitudes and understandings. In our survey, Australians place environment, health care and petrol prices as the most important issues facing their country, while in America it is terrorism, health care and the economy and in the UK it is asylum seekers, crime and health care. In many other areas, the differences are considerably smaller and there are some remarkable similarities. Whereas climate change is increasingly cited as the leading environmental issue in most countries surveyed, in Australia, climate change is second to water availability as the top environmental concern. The study examines where climate change and energy technologies fit within these broader national and environmental priorities and identifies the general public's preferred solutions. We find clear support in Australia and the other countries surveyed for renewable energy technologies, particularly solar energy and to a lesser extent wind and biomass energy. We also find considerable disagreement in all countries regarding the future of nuclear power as well as with regard to carbon dioxide capture and storage technologies (albeit the latter with much larger uncertainty). The paper also explores the current knowledge levels of the general public in a number of countries about carbon dioxide emissions and how much as individuals, they are prepared to pay to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. We find that, in general, at a more detailed level in terms of both attitudes and understandings of energy and climate issues there is considerable agreement across disparate countries Gudged on their national

  16. Influence of communication on public opinion about nuclear energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carvalho, Everton de Almeida

    1997-01-01

    Public opinion on risks and benefits associated to nuclear energy is depending on psychological and social factors and mainly on the communication strategy used to transfer knowledge and facts about nuclear technology to the public. In this work, the individual and collective communication process and the influences on the public opinion on nuclear energy will be analyzed. (author)

  17. From Public International to International Public Law: Translating World Public Opinion into International Public Authority

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    von Bogdandy, A.; Goldmann, M.; Venzke, I.

    This article argues that increasing demands in world public opinion for legitimate and effective international institutions require a paradigm shift in public international law. There is a part of public international law that should be better understood as international public law because it

  18. Health care issues in Croatian elections 2005-2009: series of public opinion surveys

    Science.gov (United States)

    Radin, Dagmar; Džakula, Aleksandar; Benković, Vanesa

    2011-01-01

    Aim To compare the results of a series of public opinion surveys on experiences with the health care sector in Croatia conducted in the time of elections and to analyze whether political party affiliation had any influence on issues of priority ranking. Methods The surveys were conducted during 2005, 2007, and 2009. They were administered through a Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing method to representative samples of Croatian population and were statistically weighted according to sex, age, level of education, and political party affiliation. The random sampling of the person within the household was done using the table of random numbers. Results Health and health care system was the most important issue (58%) during the 2007 parliamentary election and the second most important issue during the 2005 and 2009 elections (46% and 28%). In the 2007 election, health care was viewed as most important by women, respondents with lower education levels, and respondents with lower income. In 2005, the most important health care issues were corruption and lack of funding (45% and 43%, respectively), in 2007 poor organization and lack of funding (43% and 42%, respectively), and in 2009 lack of funding and corruption (51% and 45%, respectively). Conclusion Health and health care system were consistently among the top two issues in all elections from 2005 to 2009. The top three most important health care sector issues were corruption, poor organization, and lack of funding. This indicates that political parties should include solutions to these issues in their health care policymaking. PMID:21990075

  19. Backlash or a Positive Response?: Public Opinion of LGB Issues After Obergefell v. Hodges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kazyak, Emily; Stange, Mathew

    2018-01-10

    Following Obergefell v. Hodges, same-sex marriage remains controversial and anti-LGBT state legislation has been passed, which raises questions about whether the Supreme Court's ruling may have created a backlash. We use data from two waves of a general population survey of Nebraskans conducted before and after the decision to answer three questions. First, we test three theories of how the court decision influenced public opinion. We find that support for same-sex marriage was significantly higher following the ruling, suggesting that there was not a backlash to it. Second, we assess whether people perceive that the court accurately reflects the public's opinion. We find that people who favor same-sex marriage are more likely to think that the ruling refects public opinion very well; those who oppose same-sex marriage are more likely to think that the ruling does not at all reflect public opinion. Third, we examine the association between discussing gay rights and support for same-sex marriage, finding that those who talk about LGB issues very often are more likely to favor same-sex marriage. We discuss the implications of these findings in relation to two of the themes of this special issue: the influence of marriage equality on Americans' understandings of marriage and the impact of marriage equality on future LGBT activism.

  20. Public opinion survey 'Nuclear energy - the present and the future'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prah, M.; Jurkovic, I.-A.; Matanic, R.; Lebegner, J.

    2001-01-01

    As a part of Croatian Nuclear Society Young Generation Network efforts in improving relations with the general public, a survey on nuclear energy issues among a student population (18-22 years old) has been planned. The survey, although somewhat modified, is based on a similar one that has been conducted at high schools as a part of organized educational program by the Museum of Technical Sciences and Hrvatska Elektroprivreda. (authors)

  1. Public opinion survey 'Nuclear energy - the present and the future'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jurkovic, I.-A.; Jecmenica, R.; Prah, M.; Matanic, R.; Lebegner, J.

    2000-01-01

    As a part of Croatian Nuclear Society Young Generation Network efforts in improving relations with the general public, a survey on nuclear energy issues among a student population (18-22 years old) has been planned. The survey, although somewhat modified, is based on a similar one that has been conducted at high schools as a part of organized educational program by the Museum of Technical Sciences and Hrvatska Elektroprivreda. (author)

  2. Limitations on the compensation of gamete donors: a public opinion survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Malinda S; Farland, Leslie V; Missmer, Stacey A; Ginsburg, Elizabeth S

    2017-06-01

    To determine public opinion on gamete donor compensation. Cross-sectional web-based survey. Not applicable. A nationally representative sample of 1,427 people in the United States. Not applicable. Support for the compensation of gamete donors. Of 1,427 respondents, 51 (4%) disagreed with use of IVF for any indication, and 232 (16%) believed that oocyte and/or sperm donation to be always unacceptable. Of the remaining 1,185 respondents, 953 (80%) supported and 41 (4%) opposed paying sperm donors; 1,063 (90%) supported and 24 (2%) opposed paying oocyte donors. Of respondents, 90% believed that appropriate compensation for one cycle of oocyte donation should be less than $10,000. A total of 559 (47%) supported a limit on sperm donor compensation and 544 (46%) supported a limit on oocyte donor compensation. Individuals who had personal knowledge of someone with infertility or who used assisted reproductive technology (ART), and Republicans compared with Democrats, were more likely to support limits on both oocyte and sperm donor compensation. Divorced compared with married respondents were less likely to support limits on gamete donor compensation. Men were less likely to support limits on sperm donor compensation. Most respondents in a nationally representative cohort support compensating gamete donors. Although most do not support limits on gamete donor compensation, most agree the appropriate payment for one cycle of oocyte donation is in line with former American Society for Reproductive Medicine guidelines. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Demographic and Social Factors Influencing Public Opinion on ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    macuser

    the pressing need for empirical research into these opinions, to inform and make .... understanding public opinion on the issue of prostitution has critical relevance. For ..... prostitution and presented three options for legal reform in South Africa: ...

  4. Assessment of online public opinions on large infrastructure projects: A case study of the Three Gorges Project in China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jiang, Hanchen; Qiang, Maoshan; Lin, Peng

    2016-01-01

    Public opinion becomes increasingly salient in the ex post evaluation stage of large infrastructure projects which have significant impacts to the environment and the society. However, traditional survey methods are inefficient in collection and assessment of the public opinion due to its large quantity and diversity. Recently, Social media platforms provide a rich data source for monitoring and assessing the public opinion on controversial infrastructure projects. This paper proposes an assessment framework to transform unstructured online public opinions on large infrastructure projects into sentimental and topical indicators for enhancing practices of ex post evaluation and public participation. The framework uses web crawlers to collect online comments related to a large infrastructure project and employs two natural language processing technologies, including sentiment analysis and topic modeling, with spatio-temporal analysis, to transform these comments into indicators for assessing online public opinion on the project. Based on the framework, we investigate the online public opinion of the Three Gorges Project on China's largest microblogging site, namely, Weibo. Assessment results present spatial-temporal distributions of post intensity and sentiment polarity, reveals major topics with different sentiments and summarizes managerial implications, for ex post evaluation of the world's largest hydropower project. The proposed assessment framework is expected to be widely applied as a methodological strategy to assess public opinion in the ex post evaluation stage of large infrastructure projects. - Highlights: • We developed a framework to assess online public opinion on large infrastructure projects with environmental impacts. • Indicators were built to assess post intensity, sentiment polarity and major topics of the public opinion. • We took the Three Gorges Project (TGP) as an example to demonstrate the effectiveness proposed framework.

  5. Assessment of online public opinions on large infrastructure projects: A case study of the Three Gorges Project in China

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jiang, Hanchen, E-mail: jhc13@mails.tsinghua.edu.cn; Qiang, Maoshan, E-mail: qiangms@tsinghua.edu.cn; Lin, Peng, E-mail: celinpe@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn

    2016-11-15

    Public opinion becomes increasingly salient in the ex post evaluation stage of large infrastructure projects which have significant impacts to the environment and the society. However, traditional survey methods are inefficient in collection and assessment of the public opinion due to its large quantity and diversity. Recently, Social media platforms provide a rich data source for monitoring and assessing the public opinion on controversial infrastructure projects. This paper proposes an assessment framework to transform unstructured online public opinions on large infrastructure projects into sentimental and topical indicators for enhancing practices of ex post evaluation and public participation. The framework uses web crawlers to collect online comments related to a large infrastructure project and employs two natural language processing technologies, including sentiment analysis and topic modeling, with spatio-temporal analysis, to transform these comments into indicators for assessing online public opinion on the project. Based on the framework, we investigate the online public opinion of the Three Gorges Project on China's largest microblogging site, namely, Weibo. Assessment results present spatial-temporal distributions of post intensity and sentiment polarity, reveals major topics with different sentiments and summarizes managerial implications, for ex post evaluation of the world's largest hydropower project. The proposed assessment framework is expected to be widely applied as a methodological strategy to assess public opinion in the ex post evaluation stage of large infrastructure projects. - Highlights: • We developed a framework to assess online public opinion on large infrastructure projects with environmental impacts. • Indicators were built to assess post intensity, sentiment polarity and major topics of the public opinion. • We took the Three Gorges Project (TGP) as an example to demonstrate the effectiveness proposed framework.

  6. Gathering Opinions on Depression Information Needs and Preferences: Samples and Opinions in Clinic Versus Web-Based Surveys.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bernstein, Matthew T; Walker, John R; Sexton, Kathryn A; Katz, Alan; Beatie, Brooke E

    2017-04-24

    There has been limited research on the information needs and preferences of the public concerning treatment for depression. Very little research is available comparing samples and opinions when recruitment for surveys is done over the Web as opposed to a personal invitation to complete a paper survey. This study aimed to (1) to explore information needs and preferences among members of the public and (2) compare Clinic and Web samples on sample characteristics and survey findings. Web survey participants were recruited with a notice on three self-help association websites (N=280). Clinic survey participants were recruited by a research assistant in the waiting rooms of a family medicine clinic and a walk-in medical clinic (N=238) and completed a paper version of the survey. The Clinic and Web samples were similar in age (39.0 years, SD 13.9 vs 40.2 years, SD 12.5, respectively), education, and proportion in full time employment. The Clinic sample was more diverse in demographic characteristics and closer to the demographic characteristics of the region (Winnipeg, Canada) with a higher proportion of males (102/238 [42.9%] vs 45/280 [16.1%]) and nonwhites (Aboriginal, Asian, and black) (69/238 [29.0%] vs 39/280 [13.9%]). The Web sample reported a higher level of emotional distress and had more previous psychological (224/280 [80.0%] vs 83/238 [34.9%]) and pharmacological (202/280 [72.1%] vs 57/238 [23.9%]) treatment. In terms of opinions, most respondents in both settings saw information on a wide range of topics around depression treatment as very important including information about treatment choices, effectiveness of treatment, how long it takes treatment to work, how long treatment continues, what happens when treatment stops, advantages and disadvantages of treatments, and potential side effects. Females, respondents with a white background, and those who had received or felt they would have benefited from therapy in the past saw more information topics as very

  7. To drill or not to drill? An econometric analysis of US public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mukherjee, Deep; Rahman, Mohammad Arshad

    2016-01-01

    Offshore drilling in the United States (US) has been the subject of public and political discourse due to multiple reasons which include economic impact, energy security, and environmental hazard. Consequently, several polls have been conducted over time to gauge public attitude towards offshore drilling. Nevertheless, the economic literature on this issue is sparse. This paper contributes to the literature and analyzes support for offshore drilling based on demographic, economic, social, belief, and shock (e.g. spill) factors. The data is taken from ten nationwide surveys conducted before, during and after the British Petroleum (BP) oil spill and analyzed within the framework of discrete choice model. The results from an ordinal probit model demonstrate that age, annual household income, affiliation to Republican Party, and residence in oil-rich states positively affect the probability of strong support and reduce the probability of strong opposition for offshore drilling. In contrast, the female gender, higher education, association to Democratic Party, and environmental concern affect opinion in opposite direction. Marginal effects show that belief about environmental consequences of drilling has the highest impact on opinion. Binary probit model also yields a similar result and suggests that BP oil disaster resulted in a transient decrease in support for offshore drilling. - Highlights: •US public opinion on offshore drilling is analyzed based on ten national polls. •Ordinal and binary probit models are utilized to identify the underlying factors that shape public opinion. •Belief about environmental cost of drilling and educational attainment have the highest negative impact on opinion. •Age, income, affiliation to Republican party and oil-rich states positively affect support for drilling. •BP oil spill resulted in a transient decrease in support for offshore drilling.

  8. Public opinion and terrorist acts

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Malečková, Jitka; Stanišić, Dragana

    2011-01-01

    Roč. 27, Sup. 1 (2011), S107-S121 ISSN 0176-2680 R&D Projects: GA MŠk LC542 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z70850503 Keywords : support for terrorism * public opinion * international terrorism Subject RIV: AH - Economics Impact factor: 1.437, year: 2011

  9. Do Authoritarian Governments Respond to Public Opinion on the Environment? Evidence from China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Xiao; Chen, Weiwei; Wu, Tian

    2018-02-04

    Given its serious impacts on the public's health, air pollution in China is a matter of strong public concern, particularly in reference to malodorous waste gas. Petition letters related to atmospheric pollution accounted for about 40% of the total petition cases. However, scholarly views differ on whether the Chinese government responds to public opinion on the environment and seeks to improve its environmental governance behavior. For this study, data from national surveys on the public's environmental satisfaction administered during the period 2011-2015 were analyzed to determine whether the public's dissatisfaction with the state of the environment in a given year resulted in increased investments by provincial governments in pollution governance during the following year. The study's findings revealed that governmental behavior in response to public opinion on the environment was selective within the field of environmental governance, with provincial governments being inclined to invest more in waste gas pollution control than in water pollution control. Furthermore, results from this study show that the Chinese government tends to put more efforts into the environmental field where it could more easily achieve short-term benefits.

  10. Implications of Public Opinion for Space Program Planning, 1980 - 2000

    Science.gov (United States)

    Overholt, W.; Wiener, A. J.; Yokelson, D.

    1975-01-01

    The effect of public opinion on future space programs is discussed in terms of direct support, apathy, or opposition, and concern about the tax burden, budgetary pressures, and national priorities. Factors considered include: the salience and visibility of NASA as compared with other issues, the sources of general pressure on the federal budget which could affect NASA, the public's opinions regarding the size and priority of NASA'S budget, the degree to which the executive can exercise leverage over NASA's budget through influencing or disregarding public opinion, the effects of linkages to other issues on space programs, and the public's general attitudes toward the progress of science.

  11. Measuring public opinion on alcohol policy: a factor analytic study of a US probability sample.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Latimer, William W; Harwood, Eileen M; Newcomb, Michael D; Wagenaar, Alexander C

    2003-03-01

    Public opinion has been one factor affecting change in policies designed to reduce underage alcohol use. Extant research, however, has been criticized for using single survey items of unknown reliability to define adult attitudes on alcohol policy issues. The present investigation addresses a critical gap in the literature by deriving scales on public attitudes, knowledge, and concerns pertinent to alcohol policies designed to reduce underage drinking using a US probability sample survey of 7021 adults. Five attitudinal scales were derived from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses addressing policies to: (1) regulate alcohol marketing, (2) regulate alcohol consumption in public places, (3) regulate alcohol distribution, (4) increase alcohol taxes, and (5) regulate youth access. The scales exhibited acceptable psychometric properties and were largely consistent with a rational framework which guided the survey construction.

  12. Assimilation of public opinions in nuclear decision-making using risk perception

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sohn, K.Y.; Yang, J.W.; Kang, C.S.

    2001-01-01

    A method of assimilating public opinions in the decision-making process has been developed in this study. The proposed method will resolve the major shortcomings of existing decision-making models, which are deficient in, or missing public participation during the process. In the nuclear-related decision-making process, a particular concern of the public is nuclear safety, which is numerically characterized by risk. In reality, it is the risk that each individual perceives that is very important. Hence, the public perception of risk has been employed as a key decision-making element in representing public opinions. To quantify the public perception of risk, the psychometric model is used. Psychological risk dimensions are first assessed using factor analysis and a set of factors is identified for optimized computation. Expert opinions formulated by a group of selected professionals and experts are then aggregated with the public opinions. To gather public and expert opinions, separate polls were conducted in this study. In the aggregation, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and multi-attribute utility analysis (MAUA) were employed, and for uncertainty analysis, a fuzzy set based approach was adopted. This method has been applied to analyze six options for spent fuel management in Korea for a case study. As expected, the results of the case study show that public risk perception is an important element in nuclear-related decision-making processes

  13. Radiation safety and formation of public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qurbanov, M.

    2002-01-01

    Full text: Team-administrative system of long years has been a reason of environmental pollution and health consequences and still does. This includes soil pollution with pesticides, ecological condition of micro and macro flora of the Caspian Sea, soil pollution with oil, deforestation and etc. Scientists and environmental NGOs have given some information to public and public opinion has already been formed on this issue. But public opinion is not necessarily formed on radiation - the most important and invisible problem. The reason of this is that radiation danger has been hidden as a closed theme from the public. After the soviet collapse this problem is also being revealed. Number of NGOs have held the seminar on this issue and given some information to public. The researches cover the following problems:To hold the public monitoring in the fields polluted with oil and separate it from the other fields by determining the fields polluted with radiation. To take measures in order to prevent public entrance to these fields; To inform about the usage of radiation based equipment in the industrial fields and to hold the regular monitoring; To advertise the differential signs of radiation sources in the city landfill and other polluted zones; To broaden the advocacy on ultraviolet rays and their influence to human health; To disseminate the brochures and advertisement papers on high technical radiation and their influence to human health; To analyze the radio environmental condition around the Gabala Radar Station; To advocate the possible radiation danger in using the x-ray and other medical equipment; Analyze the possible radon danger in shipping materials; To create the idea on possible transition of radioactive gases and elements from neighbor countries; Creation of idea on possible danger around the high voltage. The formation of public opinion on mentioned problem will depend on combining the scientists' and NGOs activities

  14. Democracy, public opinion, and nuclear weapons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Russett, B.

    1989-01-01

    To the degree that people's fears of nuclear war are deep and pervasive, they become subject to manipulation by cynical or politically utopian promises, whether those promises be to abolish nuclear weapons from the earth or to create a leakproof peace shield (SDI). But the basic yearning for protection could also be mobilized to support serious arms reduction and arms control agreements. Nuclear weapons provide the basis for a vivid form of symbolic politics, perhaps equivalent in foreign policy considerations to the Korean and Vietnam wars during their durations, and in similar ways (although not necessarily as severe) as unemployment does among domestic policy issues. This paper presents survey research directed specifically at the role of public opinion on nuclear imagery (difference between expectation of nuclear war versus any kind of weapon war; willingness to spend on nuclear weapons versus conventional ones or general defense spending) can help in understanding these phenomena

  15. Public opinion about biofuels: The interplay between party identification and risk/benefit perception

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fung, Timothy K.F.; Choi, Doo Hun; Scheufele, Dietram A.; Shaw, Bret R.

    2014-01-01

    Using an experiment embedded within a representative survey, this study examined the interactive effect of party identification and risk/benefit perception on public opinion about biofuels. Democrats tended to be more supportive of biofuels than Republicans. However, the effect of party identification on opinion about biofuels varied when individuals considered the risk/benefit of biofuels in different domains. Individuals who reported greater affiliation with the Democratic Party were likely to support funding biofuels research when primed with the economic risks or the social/ethical benefits of biofuels. For those who considered the social/ethical benefits of biofuels, more self-identified Democrats were likely to support biofuels production and use. However, more self-identified Democrats were less supportive of biofuels production and use when they considered the political risks of biofuels. Implications are discussed. - Highlights: • We examined public opinion about biofuels policies. • Effect of risk/benefit perception varied across respondents' party identification. • Democrats favored more research when considering economic risks or social benefits. • Democrats favored biofuels more when considering social benefits. • Democrats favored biofuels less when considering political risks

  16. Public opinion, information and education

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De La Poza Galiano, A.

    1994-01-01

    The molding of public opinion by media, concerning nuclear energy, is analyzed, and the assumptions such as: nuclear plants equal atomic bombs or 'nuclear plants, no thanks', are emphasized. A response to this media hammering in Spain has been developed through teachers' education seminars organized by the Spanish Atomic forum and the Book on Energy, edited by specialized educators

  17. A multi-particle model applicable to social issues--time-evolution of Japanese public opinion on nuclear energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohnishi, Teruaki

    2002-01-01

    The characteristics of an interacting multi-particle system in natural sciences can form a useful model for the evolution of public attitudes and opinions, provided that each particle corresponds to one individual. A simulation model which uses a multi-particle system to represent society was developed. By using this model, the time evolution of the public attitudes to nuclear energy were investigated. The nuclear attitude of an individual was assumed to be influenced by three factors: a uniform information environment, mutual interactions between members of the public, and spontaneous recovery of the original attitude with time. Also the time-evolution of the socio-psychological position of members of the public was assumed to be given by a Langevin-type equation. Various attributes of individuals obtained by public opinion surveys together with data on the secular variation of availability of nuclear information were used as the input. By numerically solving the simultaneous differential equations for the system of a 1000 particles, the time behavior of Japanese public opinion regarding the promotion of nuclear generation was investigated. It was found from this calculation that the public aversion to nuclear energy is catastrophically aggravated with every large-scale nuclear accident, that the opinions of individual members of the public as to the value of nuclear energy were gradually attracted to a few views with time, and that the unification of such views occurred with the Chernobyl accident as a promoter. It also became clear that the public attitude at a particular time is governed by the information environment over several years immediately prior to that time

  18. Mexican Public Opinion in the aftermath of the 2006 Elections

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alejandro Moreno

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available In this article, I analyze public opinion about the 2006 Mexican presidential election in the context of the post–election conflict. My goal is to determine which individual–level variables influenced opinions about the post–election conflict. The analysis focuses on individual positions about the election fairness, confidence in the electoral Tribunal, claims for a full recount, and the public's stands on street protests and mobilization, among others. I use the Mexican component of the Comparative National Election Project (CNEP, conducted for the first time in Mexico in 2006 as a two–wave, preelection and postelection, panel design. The results highlight the importance of political predispositions in the analysis of public opinion in Mexico.

  19. The Distribution of Climate Change Public Opinion in Canada.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matto Mildenberger

    Full Text Available While climate scientists have developed high resolution data sets on the distribution of climate risks, we still lack comparable data on the local distribution of public climate change opinions. This paper provides the first effort to estimate local climate and energy opinion variability outside the United States. Using a multi-level regression and post-stratification (MRP approach, we estimate opinion in federal electoral districts and provinces. We demonstrate that a majority of the Canadian public consistently believes that climate change is happening. Belief in climate change's causes varies geographically, with more people attributing it to human activity in urban as opposed to rural areas. Most prominently, we find majority support for carbon cap and trade policy in every province and district. By contrast, support for carbon taxation is more heterogeneous. Compared to the distribution of US climate opinions, Canadians believe climate change is happening at higher levels. This new opinion data set will support climate policy analysis and climate policy decision making at national, provincial and local levels.

  20. The Distribution of Climate Change Public Opinion in Canada.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mildenberger, Matto; Howe, Peter; Lachapelle, Erick; Stokes, Leah; Marlon, Jennifer; Gravelle, Timothy

    2016-01-01

    While climate scientists have developed high resolution data sets on the distribution of climate risks, we still lack comparable data on the local distribution of public climate change opinions. This paper provides the first effort to estimate local climate and energy opinion variability outside the United States. Using a multi-level regression and post-stratification (MRP) approach, we estimate opinion in federal electoral districts and provinces. We demonstrate that a majority of the Canadian public consistently believes that climate change is happening. Belief in climate change's causes varies geographically, with more people attributing it to human activity in urban as opposed to rural areas. Most prominently, we find majority support for carbon cap and trade policy in every province and district. By contrast, support for carbon taxation is more heterogeneous. Compared to the distribution of US climate opinions, Canadians believe climate change is happening at higher levels. This new opinion data set will support climate policy analysis and climate policy decision making at national, provincial and local levels.

  1. Results of the 2004 Knowledge and Opinions Surveys for the Baseline Knowledge Assessment of the U.S. Department of Energy Hydrogen Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schmoyer, Richard L [ORNL; Truett, Lorena Faith [ORNL; Cooper, Christy [U.S. Department of Energy

    2006-04-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Hydrogen Program focuses on overcoming critical barriers to the widespread use of hydrogen fuel cell technology. The transition to a new, hydrogen-based energy economy requires an educated human infrastructure. With this in mind, the DOE Hydrogen Program conducted statistical surveys to measure and establish baselines for understanding and awareness about hydrogen, fuel cells, and a hydrogen economy. The baseline data will serve as a reference in designing an education program, and it will be used in comparisons with future survey results (2008 and 2011) to measure changes in understanding and awareness. Scientific sampling was used to survey four populations: (1) the general public, ages 18 and over; (2) students, ages 12-17; (3) state and local government officials; and (4) potential large-scale hydrogen users. It was decided that the survey design should include about 1,000 individuals in each of the general public and student categories, about 250 state and local officials, and almost 100 large-scale end users. The survey questions were designed to accomplish specific objectives. Technical questions measured technical understanding and awareness of hydrogen technology. Opinion questions measured attitudes about safety, cost, the environment, and convenience, as well as the likelihood of future applications of hydrogen technology. For most of the questions, "I don't know" or "I have no opinion" were acceptable answers. Questions about information sources assessed how energy technology information is received. The General Public and Student Survey samples were selected by random digit dialing. Potential large-scale end users were selected by random sampling. The State and Local Government Survey was of the entire targeted population of government officials (not a random sample). All four surveys were administered by computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI). For each population, the length of the survey was less than

  2. Florida's Opinion on K-12 Public Education Spending

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forster, Greg

    2006-01-01

    This scientifically representative poll of 1,200 Floridians finds that public opinion about K-12 public education spending is seriously misinformed. Floridians think public schools need more money, but the main reason is that they are badly mistaken about how much money the public schools actually get. Key findings of the study include: (1) Half…

  3. Public perceptions and preferences regarding large scale implementation of six CO2 capture and storage technologies. Well-informed and well-considered opinions versus uninformed pseudo-opinions of the Dutch public

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De Best-Waldhober, M.; Daamen, D.

    2006-03-01

    Three research projects were carried out within the framework of the programme 'Sustainable use of fossil fuels'. Two research projects focussed on technical aspects of advanced fossil fuel options with CO2 capture and storage (CCS). The focus of the third project was on studying informed opinions of the general public regarding advanced fossil fuel options. This study has investigated the choices the general public would make after having received and evaluated expert information on the consequences pertaining to these choices. The method to collect these informed preferences is called the Information-Choice Questionnaire (ICQ). By comparing informed public preferences, obtained through administration of the ICQ, with current public opinions and preferences regarding fossil fuel options, collected in a more conventional survey, the outcomes of this project can indicate what options would be considered acceptable given sufficient knowledge, and how much and in what respect the current situation deviates from this possible future situation. Answering these questions constitutes the main goal of this project. This report describes the development and deployment of the Information-Choice Questionnaire on advanced fossil fuel options. It furthermore describes the parallel deployment of a more traditional questionnaire without expert information and a second measure of this more traditional questionnaire. This report encompasses all parts of the project 'Informed opinions of the general public as a tool for policy measures regarding advanced fossil fuel options'. This report will explain the ICQ methodology and its usefulness for this project. Furthermore, the development of the current ICQ, the method of the ICQ and of the more traditional questionnaires, and the results thereof, are described.

  4. Public opinion about nuclear energy - year 2003 poll

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Istenic, R.; Jencic, I.

    2003-01-01

    Nuclear Training Centre Milan Copic at Jozef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana is performing extensive public information activities, focused mainly on elementary and high schools in Slovenia. There are over 7000 visitors yearly. Every year in the spring we ask several hundred of visitors the same set of questions about their knowledge and opinion about nuclear energy. They are polled before they listen to the lecture or visit the exhibition. In that way we are trying to obtain their opinion based on the knowledge they obtain in everyday life. In the paper the results of this year's poll are presented and compared with the previous years. No significant changes in public opinion were observed this year. Favourable attitude towards NPP Krsko, which could be observed in the last years, is maintained. On the other hand, misconceptions about radioactive waste repositories and danger of radioactive waste remain very high. (author)

  5. Public opinion and reaction to the Belene NPP construction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jolov, G.; Josifov, A.

    1990-01-01

    The chapter offers a study on the social factors related to the Belene project including an analysis of the public attitude, the public opinion priority motivated pros and cons and the political aspects of the problems. The information sources of the sociological study are discussed. There are stipulations over the possible behavior in case of commissioning. A paragraph deals with the credibility of the opinion and the study of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences among different social groups. 1 tab. (R.Ts.)

  6. Continuous Opinion Dynamics Under Bounded Confidence:. a Survey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lorenz, Jan

    Models of continuous opinion dynamics under bounded confidence have been presented independently by Krause and Hegselmann and by Deffuant et al. in 2000. They have raised a fair amount of attention in the communities of social simulation, sociophysics and complexity science. The researchers working on it come from disciplines such as physics, mathematics, computer science, social psychology and philosophy. In these models agents hold continuous opinions which they can gradually adjust if they hear the opinions of others. The idea of bounded confidence is that agents only interact if they are close in opinion to each other. Usually, the models are analyzed with agent-based simulations in a Monte Carlo style, but they can also be reformulated on the agent's density in the opinion space in a master equation style. The contribution of this survey is fourfold. First, it will present the agent-based and density-based modeling frameworks including the cases of multidimensional opinions and heterogeneous bounds of confidence. Second, it will give the bifurcation diagrams of cluster configuration in the homogeneous model with uniformly distributed initial opinions. Third, it will review the several extensions and the evolving phenomena which have been studied so far, and fourth it will state some open questions.

  7. Contrasting Public Opinion Dynamics and Emotional Response during Crisis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Volkova, Svitlana; Chetviorkin, Ilia; Arendt, Dustin L.; Van Durme, Ben

    2016-11-15

    We propose an approach for contrasting spatiotemporal dynamics of public opinions expressed toward targeted entities, also known as stance detection task, in Russia and Ukraine during crisis. Our analysis relies on a novel corpus constructed from posts on the VKontakte social network, centered on local public opinion of the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian crisis, along with newly annotated resources for predicting expressions of fine-grained emotions including joy, sadness, disgust, anger, surprise and fear. Akin to prior work on sentiment analysis we align traditional public opinion polls with aggregated automatic predictions of sentiments for contrastive geo-locations. We report interesting observations on emotional response and stance variations across geo-locations. Some of our findings contradict stereotypical misconceptions imposed by media, for example, we found posts from Ukraine that do not support Euromaidan but support Putin, and posts from Russia that are against Putin but in favor USA. Furthermore, we are the first to demonstrate contrastive stance variations over time across geo-locations using storyline visualization technique.

  8. Public opinion regarding earmarked cigarette tax in Taiwan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yang Chung-Lin

    2003-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Cigarette taxation has been perceived by academics and policy-makers as one of the most effective ways of reducing the use of cigarettes. On January 1 2002, the Taiwan government imposed a New Taiwan (NT $5 per pack tax earmarked for the purpose of tobacco control. This study uses a survey collected prior to taxation to assess public attitudes toward cigarette taxation, public beliefs about the effectiveness of cigarette taxation at reducing cigarette use and public opinions about the allocation of this tax revenue. Methods Data were drawn from a national face-to-face interview on cigarette consumption in 2000. A total of 3,279 adults were aged 18 to 64 years; 49.9% of whom were male and 50.1% female, and with a smoking prevalence of 49.1% and 4.1%, respectively. The attitudes toward cigarette tax were analysed using multi-logit regressions. We analysed by logistic regression the potential changes in smoking behaviour that smokers might make in response to the five NT (New Taiwan dollar earmarked tax on cigarettes per pack. We summarized public opinions about the allocation of earmarked tax revenue using descriptive statistics. Results Current smokers (OR = 0.34 and former smokers (OR = 0.68 were less likely to support the cigarette tax than non-smokers. A favourable attitude toward the tax was positively associated with personal monthly income, especially among females. Among male smokers, the possibility of reducing/quitting smoking in response to the five-NT-dollar tax was negatively associated with the monthly expense for smoking. The two most frequently-suggested areas to receive money from the revenue collected from the earmarked tax were health education and cancer subsidy. Conclusions Smoking status and economic factors determine the attitude and potential responses of people toward the cigarette tax. Taiwan's five NT-dollar earmarked tax for cigarettes may have only a limited effect upon the reduction in cigarette

  9. Same-sex marriage and other moral taboos : cultural acceptances, change in American public opinion and the evidence from the opinion polls

    OpenAIRE

    MORINI, Marco

    2017-01-01

    Published online: 25 January 2017 Creative Commons Licence This article analyzes the evolution of gay and lesbian rights and same-sex marriage in American public opinion. It describes how Obergefell v. Hodges, state-level decisions and the public opinion trends can be considered as the outcome of a grassroots coordinated campaign which began more than a decade ago and was able to conquer the majority of Americans. It also focuses on the American public opinion trends related to moral is...

  10. A model of public opinion management

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Patacconi, Andrea; Vikander, Nicholas Edward

    2015-01-01

    Policymakers often motivate their decisions using information collected by government agencies. While more information can help hold the government to account, it may also give policymakers an incentive to meddle with the work of bureaucrats. This paper develops a model of biased information...... information is always unbiased, may also not be socially optimal. A biased information-gathering process can benefit the government by helping it to shape public opinion. But it can also benefit the public, by curbing the government's tendency to implement its ex ante favored policy, thus mitigating...... the agency conflict between policymakers and the public....

  11. Do Authoritarian Governments Respond to Public Opinion on the Environment? Evidence from China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiao Tang

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Given its serious impacts on the public’s health, air pollution in China is a matter of strong public concern, particularly in reference to malodorous waste gas. Petition letters related to atmospheric pollution accounted for about 40% of the total petition cases. However, scholarly views differ on whether the Chinese government responds to public opinion on the environment and seeks to improve its environmental governance behavior. For this study, data from national surveys on the public’s environmental satisfaction administered during the period 2011–2015 were analyzed to determine whether the public’s dissatisfaction with the state of the environment in a given year resulted in increased investments by provincial governments in pollution governance during the following year. The study’s findings revealed that governmental behavior in response to public opinion on the environment was selective within the field of environmental governance, with provincial governments being inclined to invest more in waste gas pollution control than in water pollution control. Furthermore, results from this study show that the Chinese government tends to put more efforts into the environmental field where it could more easily achieve short-term benefits.

  12. Do Authoritarian Governments Respond to Public Opinion on the Environment? Evidence from China

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Xiao; Chen, Weiwei

    2018-01-01

    Given its serious impacts on the public’s health, air pollution in China is a matter of strong public concern, particularly in reference to malodorous waste gas. Petition letters related to atmospheric pollution accounted for about 40% of the total petition cases. However, scholarly views differ on whether the Chinese government responds to public opinion on the environment and seeks to improve its environmental governance behavior. For this study, data from national surveys on the public’s environmental satisfaction administered during the period 2011–2015 were analyzed to determine whether the public’s dissatisfaction with the state of the environment in a given year resulted in increased investments by provincial governments in pollution governance during the following year. The study’s findings revealed that governmental behavior in response to public opinion on the environment was selective within the field of environmental governance, with provincial governments being inclined to invest more in waste gas pollution control than in water pollution control. Furthermore, results from this study show that the Chinese government tends to put more efforts into the environmental field where it could more easily achieve short-term benefits. PMID:29401701

  13. DATA COLLECTION, QUALITY ASSURANCE, AND ANALYSIS PLAN FOR THE 2008/2009 HYDROGEN AND FUEL CELLS KNOWLEDGE AND OPINIONS SURVEYS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schmoyer, Richard L [ORNL; Truett, Lorena Faith [ORNL; Diegel, Susan W [ORNL

    2008-09-01

    The 2008/2009 Knowledge and Opinions Survey, conducted for the Department of Energy's Hydrogen Program will measure the levels of awareness and understanding of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies within five target populations: (1) the general public, (2) students, (3) personnel in state and local governments, (4) potential end users of hydrogen fuel and fuel cell technologies in business and industry, and (5) safety and code officials. The ultimate goal of the surveys is a statistically valid, nationally based assessment. Distinct information collections are required for each of the target populations. Each instrument for assessing baseline knowledge is targeted to the corresponding population group. While many questions are identical across all populations, some questions are unique to each respondent group. The biggest data quality limitation of the hydrogen survey data (at least of the general public and student components) will be nonresponse bias. To ensure as high a response rate as possible, various measures will be taken to minimize nonresponse, including automated callbacks, cycling callbacks throughout the weekdays, and availability of Spanish speaking interviewers. Statistical adjustments (i.e., sampling weights) will also be used to account for nonresponse and noncoverage. The primary objective of the data analysis is to estimate the proportions of target population individuals who would respond to the questions in the various possible ways. Data analysis will incorporate necessary adjustments for the sampling design and sampling weights (i.e., probability sampling). Otherwise, however, the analysis will involve standard estimates of proportions of the interviewees responding in various ways to the questions. Sample-weight-adjusted contingency table chi-square tests will also be computed to identify differences between demographic groups The first round of Knowledge and Opinions Surveys was conducted in 2004. Analysis of these surveys produced a

  14. Defining Sustainable Universities Following Public Opinion Formation Process

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zaptcioglu Celikdemir, Deniz; Gunay, Gonca; Katrinli, Alev; Penbek Alpbaz, Sebnem

    2017-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to define the sustainable university in Turkey, by considering perspectives of various stakeholders such as experts, intellectual, public, political parties and media using public opinion formation analysis. The paper aims to re-define the "sustainable university" with all dimensions including…

  15. Determinants of attitude to volunteering in psychiatry: results of a public opinion survey in Switzerland.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lauber, Christoph; Nordt, Carlos; Falcato, Luis; Rössler, Wulf

    2002-09-01

    The United Nations proclaimed 2001 the "International Year of Volunteers". Little is known about factors influencing the attitude to volunteering in psychiatry. However, knowledge about these factors is important as target groups to be addressed by an awareness and promotion campaign could be identified. To determine the influence of demographic, psychological and sociological factors on the attitude to volunteering in psychiatry. Multiple logistic regression analysis of the results of an opinion survey conducted on a representative population sample in Switzerland (n = 1737). Public attitude is mostly positive. It depends, however, on the form of volunteering. Two explanatory models for volunteering in psychiatry were found: first, the "antipathetic person" having social distance to and negative stereotypes towards the mentally ill. Second, the "people with social responsibility and commitment" who have former experience in volunteering, a positive attitude to community psychiatry, interest in mass media, a social profession and perceive discrimination of mentally ill persons. Age and gender are significant predictors. An awareness and promotion campaign to use the vast potential of people willing to volunteer in psychiatry can be primarily focused on those with a basic interest in social issues. Volunteering must be limited in time and responsibility. Contacting people with a positive attitude by mass media is a promising way.

  16. Public opinion towards castration without anaesthesia and lack of access to pasture in beef cattle production.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lemos Teixeira, Dayane; Larraín, Rafael; Melo, Oscar; Hötzel, María José

    2018-01-01

    Recent publications have shown that citizens in developing nations are gaining interest in farm animal welfare. The aims of this study were to assess the opinion of Chilean citizens about surgical castration without anaesthesia and lack of access to pasture in beef cattle production, to investigate how involvement in livestock production influences opinions, and to evaluate if different types of information would affect their opinion towards these management practices. The study was carried out in the Metropolitan Region of Santiago, Chile, and consisted of two surveys with 400 participants in each study. The first one used an online, self-administered questionnaire and the second one used a face to face questionnaire. The second questionnaire had four information treatments assigned randomly to survey participants (no information; negative information; negative and positive information; positive information). Most participants were aware that the two management practices are common in beef production systems and were opposed to them. Involvement in animal production was associated with greater acceptance of both management practices and participants that had visited a beef production farm before the study were more likely to support castration without anaesthesia in Survey 1. Belonging to any socioeconomic group and providing negative or positive information had no impact on participants' opinion. The results show a disconnection between the views of participants recruited for this study and beef production systems that do not provide pain control for male cattle surgical castration or provide little or no access to pasture.

  17. More than 30 years of opinion of French people on nuclear risks - Special release of the 2012 IRSN opinion survey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El Jammal, Marie-Helene; Rollinger, Francois; Mur, Emmanuelle; Schuler, Matthieu; Tchernia, Jean-Francois

    2013-01-01

    Illustrated by many graphs and tables, this report comments and discusses the evolution of opinion surveys performed in France on the perception of nuclear risks through thirty annual IRSN opinion surveys. It appears that the opinion on nuclear is rather steady, and that French people have a rather rational perception of risk hierarchy. The first part outlines that unemployment is the main concern for French people, and that environmental concerns depend on current events. The second part analyses the perception of the nuclear risk with respect to other societal concerns and to other risks, and discusses the evolution of opinion from a quantitative to a qualitative sensitivity. The third part addresses the representations people have of nuclear activities and how they challenge the reality: perception of nuclear plants and of radioactive wastes, fear of a serious accident. The last part deals with issues related to responsibilities, abilities and governance: how actors of nuclear risk management are perceived, and expectations in terms of transparency and opinion plurality

  18. The effect of popular exemplars and expert account base-rate information on perceived public opinion

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lefevere, J.; Walgrave, S.; de Swert, K.

    2012-01-01

    How people perceive public opinion is important because it affects their willingness to express themselves. This paper investigates whether two different portrayals of public opinion in the TV news affect people’s perception of public opinion. We use an experimental design in which roughly one

  19. Public opinion and resident's behaviour toward municipal solid waste plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De Feo, G.; Panza, D.; Belgiorno, V.; Napoli, R.M.A.

    2006-01-01

    The paper presents and discusses the results of a survey on public opinion and resident's concerns, perceptions and attitude toward MSW plants. The study was developed by means of a structured questionnaire designed on literature reviews and experiences. The study area regards four villages in a province of Naples in Campagna Region, in Southern Italy (Tufino, Comiziano, Casamarciano and Visciano). In this area there were two sanitary landfills (in their capping phase) and an RDF production plant. People in the village where MSW plants were localised, showed a 'particular' behaviour: they underestimated environmental impacts of MSW facilities. While, the results obtained from the other three villages confirmed that concerns, perceptions and attitudes towards MSW facilities are distance related [it

  20. Survivalism and Public Opinion on Criminality: A Cross-National Analysis of Prostitution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stack, Steven; Adamczyk, Amy; Cao, Liqun

    2010-01-01

    Explanations of variability in public opinion on crime have drawn disproportionately from the literature on specific symbolic orientations including religious fundamentalism and racial prejudice. In contrast, this article hypothesizes that public opinion is linked to the strength of a general cultural axis of nations: survivalism vs.…

  1. The causal flow between public opinion and policy: government responsiveness, leadership, or counter movement?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hakhverdian, A.

    2012-01-01

    This article examines the causal relationship between public opinion and policy. Does opinion affect policy or is it the other way around? Three hypotheses take centre stage. The responsiveness hypothesis postulates that changes in public opinion lead to subsequent changes in policy in the same

  2. Nuclear Energy and Public Opinion: Chile's Case

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gonzalez, G.

    2015-01-01

    Public opinion is as old as history itself. Its origins date back to the ancient Greece where the Agora was consulted about matters of interest and at the same time it was practiced the art of persuasion through dialogue. Philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle gave proof of their knowledge and skills of persuasion. These aspects were inherited by the Roman Empire, which sought through the senate the idea of transmitting what we know as “Vox Populi” (The Greek doxa), a term that together with the “Consensus” used by Medieval thinkers, constitute its pre-modern origin. From a conceptual point of view, public opinion comes alongside the creation of the idea of the state and as a result of the historical process called the Enlightenment. Thinkers such as Rousseau, Locke, Montesquieu, Kant and Hegel contextualised it within the legal system of the state. For Rousseau, it should be understood as a expression of the general will; for Kant it was the highest realization of the Enlightenment era and a result of the use of reason and law and for Locke human behaviour was defined by three fundamental laws: the divine, civil and…Public Opinion!. Hegel was much more specific and expressed that public opinion was called to be the instrument by which society expressed its support or rejection to the rulers’ decisions. It was in coffee shops and gatherings where opinion was born; for this reason, it was only the elite who was able to expressed about general interest’s topics, therefore the importance of sociability during modern times. This is how we arrive to the contemporary definition of the term. Since the French Revolution the concept has been associated with the sovereignty of the states and people, i.e. the rule of the majority. Today due to the massive participation of people in issues of importance, the opinion delivered by the media, and the globalization of communications, it is difficult to arrive at a definition of the term we have been

  3. Periodical public opinion survey on nuclear energy. Inhabitants living in the Tokyo metropolitan area

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shinoda, Yoshihiko; Tsutida, Shouji; Kimura, Hiroshi

    2014-01-01

    Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident (Fukushima accident) has brought about a great change in many people's perceptions about nuclear power plant safety. When discussing future energy options for Japan, it is important to have a full grasp of the attitude of a large number of people towards nuclear energy. The Atomic Energy Society of Japan has conducted annual questionnaire survey of 500 adults who live within 30 kilometers of Tokyo Station. The aim of this survey is to assess trends in public attitude towards nuclear energy. The authors that designed the questionnaire entries of this survey have been managing questionnaire data as members of the Data Management Working Group under the Social and Environmental Division of the Atomic Energy Society of Japan. We confirmed the change in public attitude towards nuclear energy through this periodical survey after the Fukushima accident. In particular, public concerns about the use of nuclear energy increased after the Fukushima accident, and many people have raised doubts over the use of nuclear energy in the future. (author)

  4. Structure of public opinion and the nuclear debate in Spain

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Garrido, G.; Vacchiano, C.

    1987-01-01

    The current (1986) status of the nuclear power programme in Spain is stated. Developments in the nuclear controversy are traced back to the early 1970s, in particular to left wing politics of 1975-1985. Regional variations in the strength of the anti-nuclear feeling are mentioned. Public opinion is strongly influenced by the Government's attitude. However, although the Government supports a nuclear programme, anti-nuclear feeling is growing. The reasons are suggested. Public beliefs concerning energy sources are examined and the popular image of the different energy sources is considered. Public attitudes (investigated by surveys to establish people's willingness to live near a nuclear plant), the perceived risks of plant operation and of contamination, and the dependence on a foreign country are discussed. Answers to questions on the political and safety factors of nuclear power plants are tabulated. The effect of the Chernobyl accident on nuclear power in Spain is considered. Short-term, the trend seems to be against nuclear power plants but long-term this may not continue. (U.K.)

  5. Survey of Public Understanding on Energy Resources including Nuclear Energy (I)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, Se-Moon; Song, Sun-Ja

    2007-01-01

    Women in Nuclear-Korea (WINK) surveyed the public understanding on various energy resources in early September 2006 to offer the result for establishment of the nuclear communication policy. The reason why this survey includes other energy resources is because the previous works are only limited on nuclear energy, and also aimed to know the public's opinion on the present communication skill of nuclear energy for the public understanding. The present study is purposed of having data how public understands nuclear energy compared to other energies, such as fossil fuels, hydro power, and other sustainable energies. The data obtained from this survey have shown different results according to the responded group; age, gender, residential area, etc. Responded numbers are more than 2,000 of general public and university students. The survey result shows that nuclear understanding is more negative in women than in men, and is more negative in young than older age

  6. Public Opinion on Nutrition-Related Policies to Combat Child Obesity, Los Angeles County, 2011

    OpenAIRE

    Simon, Paul A.; Chiang, Choiyuk; Lightstone, Amy S.; Shih, Margaret

    2014-01-01

    We assessed public opinion on nutrition-related policies to address child obesity: a soda tax, restrictions on advertising unhealthy foods and beverages to children, and restrictions on siting fast food restaurants and convenience stores near schools. We analyzed data from 998 adults (aged ≥18 years) in the 2011 Los Angeles County Health Survey. Support was highest for advertising restrictions (74%), intermediate for a soda tax (60%), and lowest for siting restrictions on fast food restaurant...

  7. Public opinion about large offshore wind power: Underlying factors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Firestone, Jeremy; Kempton, Willett

    2007-01-01

    This paper address factors underlying public opinion regarding offshore wind power based on a survey of residents near a proposed development off Cape Cod, MA, USA. Supporters are found to be younger, better educated, and more likely to own their own home. Opponents are more likely to earn over $200,000/year, and more likely to expect to see the project from their daily routine. The overwhelming majority of the population expects negative impacts from the project; much smaller numbers expect positive effects. When asked which factors most affected their position, the most frequently mentioned was damage to marine life/environmental impacts, followed by electricity rates, aesthetics, and impacts on fishing or boating. When the expectations expressed by our respondents are compared with the findings of the project's draft Environmental Impact Statement, many of the beliefs upon which opinion are based appear to be factually incorrect. Finally, we tested whether change in the project would affect support. The biggest change was an increase in the level of support, by 47% of the sample, if the project was the first of 300 such projects, in sum having proportionately larger impacts as well as greater benefits. Implications of this research are discussed

  8. FY15 Djibouti Country Opinion Survey Report

    OpenAIRE

    World Bank Group

    2015-01-01

    The Country Opinion Survey in Djibouti assists the World Bank Group (WBG) in gaining a better understanding of how stakeholders in Djibouti perceive the WBG. It provides the WBG with systematic feedback from national and local governments, multilateral/bilateral agencies, media, academia, the private sector, and civil society in Djibouti on 1) their views regarding the general environment ...

  9. FY16 Honduras Country Opinion Survey Report

    OpenAIRE

    World Bank Group

    2016-01-01

    The Country Opinion Survey in Honduras assists the World Bank Group (WBG) in gaining a better understanding of how stakeholders in Honduras perceive the WBG. It provides the WBG with systematic feedback from national and local governments, multilateral/bilateral agencies, media, academia, the private sector, and civil society in Honduras on 1) their views regarding the general environment ...

  10. School Library Policy and Legal Opinions of Texas Public School Principals and Certified Librarians

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew Shupala

    2006-09-01

    Full Text Available This study involved a survey of the attitudes of Texas public school principals and certified librarians, perceptions andexperiences with regard to school library policy for media selection, and procedures for responding to complaints againstlibrary media. Analysis of the data included a methodology of mixed-methods explanatory design. Selection of the principalsand certified librarians was proportionate and stratified according to the state's 20 Education Service Centerregions. Of the 1,036 independent school districts that employed the state population of 10,014 principals and certifiedlibrarians, 275 independent school districts (26.5 percent allowed participation in the survey. Although random samplingof the state population had not been possible, the demographic and employment characteristics of the study samplewere comparable to those of the state population. Two key findings were (a that the legal opinions of principals andcertified librarians were useful predictors of their opinions of library media selection policy and complaint proceduresand (b that the principals' appreciation of selection policy and complaint procedures sometimes differed from the librarians'because of the principals' different legal perspective of library selection policy and complaint procedures.

  11. Doctor knows best: physician endorsements, public opinion, and the politics of comparative effectiveness research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gerber, Alan S; Patashnik, Eric M; Doherty, David; Dowling, Conor M

    2014-02-01

    The Obama administration has made a major investment in comparative effectiveness research (CER) to learn what treatments work best for which patients. CER has the potential to reduce wasteful medical spending and improve patient outcomes, but the political sustainability of this initiative remains unclear because of concerns that it will threaten the doctor-patient relationship. An unresolved question is whether it is possible to boost public support for the use of CER as a cost-control strategy. We investigate one potential source of public support: Americans' trust in physicians as faithful agents of patient interests. We conducted two national surveys to explore the public's confidence in doctors compared to other groups. We find that doctors are viewed as harder workers, more trustworthy, and more caring than other professionals. Through survey experiments, we demonstrate that the support of doctors' groups for proposals to control costs and use CER have a greater influence on aggregate public opinion than do cues from political actors including congressional Democrats, Republicans, and a bipartisan commission. Our survey results suggest that the medical profession's stance will be an important factor in shaping the political viability of efforts to use CER as a tool for health care cost control.

  12. National 2010 survey on the awareness and opinion of the French about geological carbon storage

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ha-Duong, Minh; Arnoux, Stephanie; Chaabane, Naceur; Mardon, Gilles; Nadai, Alain; Neri O'Neill, Rebeca

    2011-01-01

    This report presents the results of the 2010 CIRED / TNS Sofres public opinion survey about geological storage of CO 2 in France. The first survey, in April 2007, demonstrated a broad consensus for action against climate change. Three years later in March 2010, even a wide support for action remains, the public opinion was marked from the Copenhagen fiasco and the 'climate-gate'. More generally, in a context of global economic crisis, compared to 2007 the economy/environment balance moves back in 2010 towards the former term. Thus, 62% of the French answered that there is a need to act against climate change, that is 17 points less than three years ago. And 67% estimated that 'the priority must go to the protection of the environment' instead of the economy, that is 11 points less. The 2007 survey suggested that 6% of the respondents were able to define correctly geological storage of CO 2 . The approval rate was 59% at first, but fell to 38% after reading about the risks of the technology. Three years later, the context included emerging CCS projects in France, a (failed) carbon tax proposal and sustained debates on climate change. While CCS has never been a hot topic in the media, it moved from being inexistent to a few specific papers each semesters in important newspapers and some TV / radio air-time. Between 2007 and 2010 the notoriety of CCS increased in France, but the rates of approval mostly stagnated: 57% at first, falling to 37% after the reading on risks. The expression 'stockage geologique du CO 2 ' is now recognized by one third of the French, and about 17% can provide an exact definition. There remain an ambiguity with sequestration in forests, and the mental image of storing CO 2 in underground caves or vessels remains widespread. Our study shows a statistically significant positive correlation between more information and a favorable opinion towards geological sequestration. The opinion of respondents is more stable

  13. An exploratory survey of male and female learner opinions on ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    An exploratory survey was undertaken to determine whether secondary school learners have certain preferences regarding the biology they study at school and whether learners from co-educational and single-sex schools hold the same opinions. A survey schedule comprising two components was developed. The first ...

  14. FY16 Brazil Country Opinion Survey Report

    OpenAIRE

    World Bank Group

    2016-01-01

    The Country Opinion Survey in Brazil assists the World Bank Group (WBG) in gaining a better understanding of how stakeholders in Brazil perceive the WBG. It provides the WBG with systematic feedback from national and local governments, multilateral/bilateral agencies, media, academia, the private sector, and civil society in Brazil on 1) their views regarding the general environment in Bra...

  15. Understanding public opinion in debates over biomedical research: looking beyond political partisanship to focus on beliefs about science and society.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matthew Nisbet

    Full Text Available As social scientists have investigated the political and social factors influencing public opinion in science-related policy debates, there has been growing interest in the implications of this research for public communication and outreach. Given the level of political polarization in the United States, much of the focus has been on partisan differences in public opinion, the strategies employed by political leaders and advocates that promote those differences, and the counter-strategies for overcoming them. Yet this focus on partisan differences tends to overlook the processes by which core beliefs about science and society impact public opinion and how these schema are often activated by specific frames of reference embedded in media coverage and popular discourse. In this study, analyzing cross-sectional, nationally representative survey data collected between 2002 and 2010, we investigate the relative influence of political partisanship and science-related schema on Americans' support for embryonic stem cell research. In comparison to the influence of partisan identity, our findings suggest that generalized beliefs about science and society were more chronically accessible, less volatile in relation to media attention and focusing events, and an overall stronger influence on public opinion. Classifying respondents into four unique audience groups based on their beliefs about science and society, we additionally find that individuals within each of these groups split relatively evenly by partisanship but differ on other important dimensions. The implications for public engagement and future research on controversies related to biomedical science are discussed.

  16. Understanding public opinion in debates over biomedical research: looking beyond political partisanship to focus on beliefs about science and society.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nisbet, Matthew; Markowitz, Ezra M

    2014-01-01

    As social scientists have investigated the political and social factors influencing public opinion in science-related policy debates, there has been growing interest in the implications of this research for public communication and outreach. Given the level of political polarization in the United States, much of the focus has been on partisan differences in public opinion, the strategies employed by political leaders and advocates that promote those differences, and the counter-strategies for overcoming them. Yet this focus on partisan differences tends to overlook the processes by which core beliefs about science and society impact public opinion and how these schema are often activated by specific frames of reference embedded in media coverage and popular discourse. In this study, analyzing cross-sectional, nationally representative survey data collected between 2002 and 2010, we investigate the relative influence of political partisanship and science-related schema on Americans' support for embryonic stem cell research. In comparison to the influence of partisan identity, our findings suggest that generalized beliefs about science and society were more chronically accessible, less volatile in relation to media attention and focusing events, and an overall stronger influence on public opinion. Classifying respondents into four unique audience groups based on their beliefs about science and society, we additionally find that individuals within each of these groups split relatively evenly by partisanship but differ on other important dimensions. The implications for public engagement and future research on controversies related to biomedical science are discussed.

  17. Understanding Public Opinion in Debates over Biomedical Research: Looking beyond Political Partisanship to Focus on Beliefs about Science and Society

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nisbet, Matthew; Markowitz, Ezra M.

    2014-01-01

    As social scientists have investigated the political and social factors influencing public opinion in science-related policy debates, there has been growing interest in the implications of this research for public communication and outreach. Given the level of political polarization in the United States, much of the focus has been on partisan differences in public opinion, the strategies employed by political leaders and advocates that promote those differences, and the counter-strategies for overcoming them. Yet this focus on partisan differences tends to overlook the processes by which core beliefs about science and society impact public opinion and how these schema are often activated by specific frames of reference embedded in media coverage and popular discourse. In this study, analyzing cross-sectional, nationally representative survey data collected between 2002 and 2010, we investigate the relative influence of political partisanship and science-related schema on Americans' support for embryonic stem cell research. In comparison to the influence of partisan identity, our findings suggest that generalized beliefs about science and society were more chronically accessible, less volatile in relation to media attention and focusing events, and an overall stronger influence on public opinion. Classifying respondents into four unique audience groups based on their beliefs about science and society, we additionally find that individuals within each of these groups split relatively evenly by partisanship but differ on other important dimensions. The implications for public engagement and future research on controversies related to biomedical science are discussed. PMID:24558393

  18. SUBJECTIVE RIGHTS ACTIVITY AS A FACTOR OF FORMATION AND OPERATION OF PUBLIC OPINION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arkadiy Evgenevich Peskov

    2016-02-01

    Practical implications: public opinion is realized above all in the social and political sphere, so a basic knowledge of the genesis of public opinion creates the conditions for social inclusion and design rights in the socio-political sphere with the lowest degree of alienation.

  19. Media Influence On Public Opinion Attitudes Toward The Migration Crisis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joana Kosho

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Many studies or facts from the practical experience of many journalist politicians and professors show that the media impact on public opinion is enormous and essential. Many issues of everyday life human crisis or mainstream policies once covered and analyzed from the lenses of the media become the main concerns of the citizens and have a meaningful impact on the attitudes of the public opinion. The migration crisis that is challenging the European countries nowadays is a big concern not only for the host countries citizens but a life challenge for the immigrants themselves. This study will examine of the connection between media reports on immigration and public attitudes and actions and how migration issues presented in the mainstream media impact the public and political discourse on international migration.

  20. Opinions on Tax Deductions and the Consensus Effect in a Survey-Experiment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van der Heijden, E.C.M.; Nelissen, J.H.M.; Potters, J.J.M.

    2004-01-01

    We present the results of a survey-experiment using a representative sample of the Dutch population in which we relate respondents' opinion about the tax deductibility of mortgages to their estimates about other people's opinion.The experiment employs three treatment variables: monetary incentives,

  1. Innovative public information programs. 1. Judgment of Opinion Leaders on Nuclear Energy Use

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Jong Seok

    2001-01-01

    Nuclear energy use requires a delicate balance, which arises between the technological factors involved in generating the power and the socio-psychological factors involved in bringing the power for consumer use. It appears that there are several forces such as media enterprise, civil activists, and political leaders that shape public opinion on nuclear power programs that include the assignment of new sites for nuclear power plants or radioactive waste disposal facilities. These forces often make matters worse or sometimes relieve the public of overstated facts. This paper reviews the structure of public acceptance and examines an extended perception model on nuclear energy among opinion leaders (see Fig. 1). A survey was carried out on 500 opinion leaders in Korean society, including political leaders, professors, seniors in media enterprises, executive members of business, and responsible civil activists in August 2000. The sample included a reasonable mix of opinion leaders. However, males represented 87% of the sample while females represented 13%. Skilled interviewers were joined in visiting the respondents for collecting data. For the data, the structural equation modeling approach was chosen to test the proposed model implied by the hypotheses developed by earlier studies. The model was analyzed using the program AMOS, from SmallWaters Corporation. The model yielded a good fit to the data (GFI = 0.972), which shows general features that indicate a reasonable fit of data to the proposed model. The model gives structural coefficients, and the values in the figure represent standardized estimates. The higher values represent more influence on the affected variables. Opinion leaders believe it should play an important role in providing electricity, and it can be dangerous if it is not controlled properly. Here, risks perceived could be assessed by hazards to health or the environment from radiation and the disaster of a possible accident at a nuclear power

  2. The Misperception of Public Opinion Toward Capital Punishment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McGarrell, Edmund F.; Sandys, Marla

    1996-01-01

    Contends that often lawmakers misread their constituents' opinions on important issues. Presents data from an Indiana survey that suggest support for the death penalty vanishes when citizens are given the option of life in prison without possibility of parole combined with a requirement of work and restitution. (MJP)

  3. Liking the pieces, not the package: contradictions in public opinion during health reform.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brodie, Mollyann; Altman, Drew; Deane, Claudia; Buscho, Sasha; Hamel, Elizabeth

    2010-06-01

    Public opinion played a prominent role during the recent health care reform debate. Critics of reform pointed to poll results as evidence that a majority of Americans opposed sweeping changes. Supporters cited polls showing that people favored many specific aspects of the legislation. A closer examination of past and present polling shows that opinion tracked with historic patterns and was relatively stable, even if the contentious public debate suggested a volatile public mood in 2009 and 2010. Going forward, the public will begin reacting to reform implementation, primarily by judging it in terms of their perceptions of and experiences with what the new law does and does not do for people. These opinions could in turn influence implementation or future legislation.

  4. Risk perception: expert opinion versus public understanding

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brown, Jennifer

    1987-01-01

    A research project looking at the public's attitudes towards the siting of radioactive waste depositories is reported. The risk perception studies seek to compare expert and lay understanding of risk. Adverse public reactions to risk can only be understood if it is known how people relate to risks in their everyday or working lives. Social trends and experiences are important, for example, the adverse public opinion on the siting of nuclear waste facilities. A number of elements have been identified as common to different risk areas such as chemicals, drugs, food or radioactive waste. These are the clashing of values, polarization of beliefs or clashes of interest. (UK)

  5. Polling and public opinion: a Canadian perspective

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Butler, Peter Marshall

    2007-01-01

    ..., advertising, and government policy. Using such controversial issues such as free trade, health care, same-sex marriage, and national security, Butler argues that popular opinion on such hot-button topics as these can be guided and changed according to how polls are interpreted for and presented to the public. As well as analysing the impact of po...

  6. Introduction of direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs in Canada: an opinion survey on regulatory policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mintzes, Barbara; Barer, Morris; Lexchin, Joel; Bassett, Ken L

    2005-06-01

    Canada is strongly influenced by US cross-border direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) and has held consultations to discuss introduction of DTCA since 1996. This article describes a survey of Canadian drug policy experts carried out in 2001, during one such legislative review. The survey results are compared to more recent DTCA policy developments. We recruited key informants on pharmaceutical policy to complete a faxed questionnaire that queried their opinions on DTCA information quality, effects on drug and health care use, and regulatory issues. Respondents were asked about the evidence they had used to back their opinions. Analysis was descriptive. Of 79 identified potential participants, 60 (76%) participated, 40% of whom were from federal and provincial government; 3% were private insurers; 18%, 15%, and 8% were from health professional groups, consumer groups, and patient groups, respectively; 8% and 7% were from pharmaceutical and advertising industries, respectively. Opinions were highly polarized on the effects of DTCA on drug and health care use. Advertising and pharmaceutical industry respondents were generally positive, public sector, health professional and consumer groups generally negative. Over 80% believed DTCA leads to higher private and public drug costs and more frequent physician visits. Fewer judged billboards or television to be appropriate media for DTCA than magazines or the Internet, and most believed that children and adolescents should not be targeted. Given the polarization observed within this survey, we examined how DTCA policy has evolved in Canada since 2001. The federal government has legislative authority over DTCA, but bears few of the additional costs potentially incurred through policy change. These fall to the provinces, which provide an eroding patchwork of public coverage for prescription drugs in the face of rapidly increasing costs. No new federal legislation has been tabled since 2001. However, considerable shifts in

  7. Public opinion research in France: A new approach through people's values understanding

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bres-Tutino, France; Pages, Jean-Pierre; Leger, Laurent

    1998-01-01

    Nuclear energy perception by the public has not only technical aspects but is also relevant to public debate and related to people's values. The developed countries and affluent societies, have been showing, in particular, a shift towards post-materialist values. Some of these values and needs environment protection, quality of life, involvement in decision-making process (government, corporates) must be taken into account when analysing public opinion towards nuclear energy. That is the reason why since 1992 a yearly nuclear barometer survey has been run, jointly, by the main corporations involved in nuclear research and industry CEA, the French Atomic Energy Commission, COGEMA, EDF and FRAMATOME. This barometer includes not only quantitative indicators but also, several series of questions on public attitude towards risk perception, controversial issues discussed in the media, potential energy sources for the future, politicians credibility etc. In addition, a very detailed public segmentation allows researchers to analyse similarities and differences related to age, gender, level of education of the population. This paper intends to give some concrete examples and current results on French public attitude towards nuclear energy and on the relation between social values and support for nuclear power

  8. Elements for Critical and Complex Research of Public Opinion in Chile

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emilio Andrés Venegas Vergara

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we discuss and propose theoretical elements considered relevant to open and develop a theoretical-empiric line of research on the public opinion (PO in Chile today. We suggest that there are different conceptions, practices and actors involved in “making PO”, recognizing five areas in this field: media system, subaltern counter-publics, social digital networks, survey industry and elites. In each of these areas it is necessary to inquire into their specific actors, practices and senses mobilized in the process of production of PO.The paper focuses on discussing the development of the main current comprehensive modalities of the PO and presenting a conceptual proposal for each of the five areas described above, as well as a brief characterization of these areas in Chile. We consider these definitions as a basic starting point to habilitate a line of research that allows us to design a device for monitoring PO. The device will be hosted at the PO observatory and it will contribute to activate networks of knowledge and action in the public sphere by providing periodically with public information regarding issues of general interest to the actors involved in the production of PO.

  9. Public acceptance of CO2 capture and storage technology : a survey of public opinion to explore influential factors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Itaoka, K.; Saito, A.; Akai, M.

    2005-01-01

    A potentially effective tool in managing carbon emissions is carbon capture and storage technology (CCS). However, its effectiveness depends on its acceptability by the public, and very little is known about how willing the general public will accept various options of CCS. This paper presented the results of a study that assessed general perceptions of various forms of CCS and identified various factors that influence public acceptance of CCS. Two versions of a survey were administered and conducted in Tokyo and Sapporo, Japan in December 2003. The paper discussed the design of the questionnaire as well as the administration of the survey. One version of the survey provided limited education about CCS, while another version, provided more extensive information about CCS. The data analysis methodology was also described with reference to factor analysis, comparisons of means and rank order distributions, and multiple regression. Last, the study findings and results were presented. The findings suggest that the general public was supportive of CCS as part of a larger national climate policy, although it was opposed to the implementation of specific CCS options involving deep-sea dilution option of ocean storage, lake type option of ocean storage, onshore option of geological storage, and offshore option of geological storage. In addition, it was found that education about CCS affected public acceptance. The more information respondents obtained about CCS, the more likely they were to be supportive of those storage options, except for onshore option of geological storage. 4 refs., 3 tabs

  10. Public opinion towards 'unhealthy' sponsorship of sporting events in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Public opinion towards 'unhealthy' sponsorship of sporting events in South ... perceptions of such sponsorships according to the demographics of gender, ... was to examine whether there were any significant differences among respondents' ...

  11. Public opinion, risk to reputation: The essentials of societal corporate governance?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Catherine Malecki

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Research Question/Issue: This paper will examine the role of reputation regarding corporate governance in terms of performance, risk control and the possible role of legislature or behaviors in this field (in particular with regards to the recent Green Paper “Companies in the EU: a management of governance”, COM (2011 164 final, of the 5th April 2011, of the European Commission. Research Findings/Insights: Image, reputation, positive or negative opinion, notoriety of the companies and their managers are regarded as an element of their performance. It is accepted that public opinion, inherently linked to the reputation risk is an essential element of corporate governance. Regarding the need of a long term matter, particularly after the financial crisis, a short period of time is enough to transform a positive public opinion into a negative one. In addition, the assessment of public opinion is complex. Everyone can freely form an “opinion”. The opinion may be private and public. Public opinion refers to society, to citizens and to the people. Its classic means of expression are freedom of the press and freedom of speech. This question is particularly crucial regarding the role of the companies to the “society” as recently defined by the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the committee of the Regions, A renewed EU strategy 2011-14 for Corporate Social Responsibility, the European Commission and the European Parliament (Brussels, 25.10.2011 COM (2011 681 final. Theoretical/Academic Implications: How to manage good corporate governance reputation ?As from 1979, the Anglo-Saxon doctrine has acutely highlighted the role of reputation risk regarding corporate governance but what is the situation within the EU? Has legislature, in Europe (and for example, in France, sufficiently acknowledged the concept of reputation risk control? – A long term period

  12. The effect of opinion leader on nuclear public opinion. Its visualization on a socio-psychological plane

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohnishi, Teruaki

    2004-01-01

    Simulation was carried out on what influence an opinion leader (OPL) exerts on the nuclear public opinion, and visualization on a socio-psychological plane was made for the time-evolving feature of the public consciousness regarding nuclear energy. A multi-particle model was introduced in this simulation where the biased degree of information environment to negative or positive directions and the strength α of the mutual interaction of the OPL with the public were treated as parameters. Under the existence of an OPL, the public attitude was found to be subject to two attractors. The one is originated from a non-linear effect arising from the mutual interaction among the public in the information environment, and the other the OPL itself. In case of the OPL with a large α, he was found to be difficult to catch the public heart irrespective of the condition of social atmosphere. In case of a small α, on the other hand, the same thought as the OPL has can become a public consensus when the thought of OPL and the information environment coincide to each other in their biased directions, whereas, otherwise, the OPL has an effect to unify the anti-OPL consciousness into one large consensus with anti-OPL properties. Such behavioral features were visualized on a two-dimensional, socio-psychological plane. (author)

  13. Public Opinion on Organ Donation After Death and Its Influence on Attitudes Toward Organ Donation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aijing, Luo; Wenzhao, Xie; Wei, Wei; Qiquan, Wan; Xuantong, Deng

    2016-08-18

    BACKGROUND China officially launched a pilot program of organ donation after cardiac death to overcome the shortage of available organs since 2011. Voluntary organ donation by deceased citizens became the only source of transplant organs beginning January 1, 2015. To investigate public opinions on organ donation by deceased donors, and discuss the effect of these opinions on the willingness and attitude of the public regarding voluntary organ donation. MATERIAL AND METHODS We designed a questionnaire. The survey was conducted from December 2014 to January 2015 in Changsha City, and 417 valid questionnaires were recovered. RESULTS A total of 162 respondents explicitly expressed a willingness to donate organs, and 269 believed that the organ donors' relatives should be compensated. A total of 255 respondents thought it acceptable to complete the donation-consent form when receiving a driver's license. Among the respondents, 65.3% did not agree with the statement "My body is bestowed by my parents, and to donate my body parts would not display filial respect"; 88.9% agreed that "It is necessary to consider the willingness of my family"; 74.4% agreed that "Donated organs have not been fairly and appropriately used; the wealthy and celebrities have been favored"; and 61.4% agreed that "Organ donation laws and regulations are not well developed, and organ donations will result in unnecessary difficulties." More than 80% believed that organ donation and transplantation extend life. CONCLUSIONS Public opinions on organ donation after death are associated with various factors, including traditional values, religious beliefs, compensation mechanisms, donor registration, institutional credibility, and ideals.

  14. DEMOGRAPHIC AND SOCIAL FACTORS INFLUENCING PUBLIC OPINION ON PROSTITUTION: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY IN KWAZULU-NATAL PROVINCE, SOUTH AFRICA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarah Pudifin

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available This paper examines countervailing South African public opinion on the subject of prostitution in South Africa, and identifies the factors which might influence these attitudes. It also investigates the complex relationship between public opinion and the law. Whilst engaging in prostitution constitutes a criminal offence under the Sexual Offences Act 23 of 1957, it is generally ignored by the police, which results in a quasi-legalised reality on the ground. In recent years there has been growing demand for the decriminalisation of prostitution, and as a result the issue is currently under consideration by the South African Law Reform Commission. The Commission released a Discussion Paper on Adult ProSstitution in May 2009, and is expected to make recommendations to parliament for legal reform in this area. An exploratory survey of 512 South Africans revealed interesting correlations between opinion on prostitution and both demographic characteristics (including gender, age, race and education level and so-called "social" characteristics (including religiosity, belief in the importance of gender equality, the acceptance of rape myths, and a belief that prostitutes have no other options. The survey reveals two key findings in respect of the attitudes of South Africans to prostitution. Firstly, an overwhelming majority of South Africans - from all walks of life - remain strongly morally opposed to prostitution, and would not support legal reforms aimed at decriminalising or legalising prostitution. Secondly, our data confirm that these views are strongly influenced by certain demographic and 'social' variables. In particular, race, gender, religiosity, cohabitation status, and socio-economic status were found to be religiosity, cohabitation status, and socio-economic status were found to be statistically significantly related to opinions on prostitution, while other variables - particularly the belief in the importance of gender equality and the

  15. Images of Non-Western Cultures. The influence of history textbooks on public opinion in Dutch-speaking Belgium 1945- 1984.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antoon De Baets

    1988-09-01

    Full Text Available The This Ph.D. study tries to answer the question "Do history textbooks have an impact on people's ideas about other cultures?", by comparing the contents of a large sample of in- fluential history textbooks and curricula (covering 1945- 1984 with the results of a wide array of public opinion surveys about the Third World and immigrants (covering 1949- 1987. The theoretical part reviews ethnocentrism, cultural relativism and racism as dimensions of cultural images, focuses attention on the phenomenon and mechanism of influence, and assesses the place of the textbook in the complex network of factors acting upon youngsters and adults, inside and outside the school. The methodological part discusses the value of the two sources (relevance, validity and reliability of surveys; availability and use of history textbooks; comparability of both. Univer- ses of both sources are constructed and samples drawn from them. These samples are analysed with mutually attuned question batteries. The double empirical analysis leads to two series of conclusions and trends that are compared with each other. Five parallel trends are found in textbooks and surveys (dominant but decreasing ethnocentrism; decreasing nationalism; absence of racism; poor awareness of other cultures; social-evolutionist thinking. They coincide in time, while, for textbooks to have influence, trends there should precede these in the public. Four other trends only partially coincide, or diverge. In the case of still two other trends, mutual influence could be plausibly postulated. In globo, no firm evidence was found for the thesis that history textbooks autonomously influence the public. It rather is the general climate of opinion that, with years of delay, acts upon the textbook authors. The role of these authors, the immediate influences upon them (editors, curricula planners, academics, inspectors, teachers, parents and pupils, their biographies and their degree of representativeness

  16. Trends in Public Opinion on Nuclear Energy in Slovenia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jencic, I.

    2008-01-01

    Slovenia is considering building a second nuclear power plant in the next 10-15 years, 'if no other, better option to generate electricity becomes feasible in this period.' It is quite obvious that this cautious wording is used in the official government plan because of sensitivity of public towards nuclear energy and potential political feedback. The Nuclear Training Centre was established in 1989 as an organizational unit of Jozef Stefan Institute. Its main mission was - and still is - the initial, theoretical training of NPP operators. Over the years, this mission was complemented by an increasingly intensive activity in public information. The core of this activity is the Information centre which was set up in the basement of the Training Centre in 1993 and which received the 100.000th visitor in May 2007. Public information of the Nuclear Training Centre is based of live lectures, visit of the permanent exhibition, demonstration laboratory, printed materials and web page. A selected group of visitors is also polled each year on the topic of nuclear energy. The poll is performed before the visit in order to receive unbiased opinion. We are aware that the results of these polls are not representative for general public in Slovenia, but to some extent they do reflect public opinion and, even more important, they can be used to monitor changes over the years and also to serve as a guide to information activities. This year we have also started to follow the reports on nuclear energy in the media: what are the topics that media report most, how do they report and in which types of media these reports appear. The paper will describe the results of public opinion polls in the last year and their comparison with the results of polls in the previous years, as well as their comparison with a recent Eurobarometer poll on nuclear safety. Furthermore, analysis of media coverage will be presented. All these data are considered in estimating the strong and the weak points of

  17. Public opinion and its influence on the perspectives of nuclear power development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rudneva, E.A.; Rudnev, A.V.; Tarasova, N.P.

    2003-01-01

    Full text: The absence of the authentic, accessible and clear for various layers of community information about a place of nuclear power in the maintenance of a vital level of the population, and about its influence on an environment and on the person health frequently determines the negative public opinion formation in the questions of the nuclear energy using. In turn, this public opinion can form the basis for the acceptance by government of the erroneous strategic decisions

  18. Research on Hotspot Discovery in Internet Public Opinions Based on Improved -Means

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gensheng Wang

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available How to discover hotspot in the Internet public opinions effectively is a hot research field for the researchers related which plays a key role for governments and corporations to find useful information from mass data in the Internet. An improved -means algorithm for hotspot discovery in internet public opinions is presented based on the analysis of existing defects and calculation principle of original -means algorithm. First, some new methods are designed to preprocess website texts, select and express the characteristics of website texts, and define the similarity between two website texts, respectively. Second, clustering principle and the method of initial classification centers selection are analyzed and improved in order to overcome the limitations of original -means algorithm. Finally, the experimental results verify that the improved algorithm can improve the clustering stability and classification accuracy of hotspot discovery in internet public opinions when used in practice.

  19. "A powerful, opinion-forming public? Rethinking the Habermasian public sphere in a perspective of feminist theory and citizenship"

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fiig, Christina

    2011-01-01

    The article’s main argument is that a public sphere forms a constructive arena for citizenship practice if we by citizenship understand four components: rights, responsibilities, participation and identity as formulated by Gerard Delanty. The Habermasian (re)working of the concept remains...... an essential contribution to theories of democracy and of political participation. With this in mind, the author’s ambition is to address and to rework a specific type of public: an opinion-forming public within a framework of feminist political theory. The article is informed by the assumption that an opinion...

  20. Nuclear energetics and public opinion after decade Chernobyl

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gagarinskij, A.Yu.; Gagarinskaya, I.V.

    1996-01-01

    Analysis of changes in public opinion during the period after the Chernobyl accident is given. It is noted that under the conditions of economical crisis the ecological problems were set aside to the periphery of the public attention in Russia. However in view of some specialists certain positive changes in nuclear power developments took place. Decisions on construction of new power units, completion of conserved NPPs, etc. started to be realized. It is noted that establishment of relations between nuclear specialists and journalists, parliament members and representatives of regional public organizations is most important at the current stage

  1. Nuclear power: Public opinion in social crisis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gagarinski, A.

    1995-01-01

    Nuclear power in Russia found itself in new conditions, if compared with first five years after Chernobyl. It is coming out of the technology crisis from 1986 and the political crisis of 1991, going deeper and deeper in the hard economic crisis, when the nuclear power plants receive about 10 percent of payments for electricity, produced and supplied to the customers. Economic crisis forms the public attitude about nuclear power under conditions, different from opinion formed during the previous decades, when energy supply was considered practically free of charge. These realities have moved ecological problems to the periphery of public conscience. This was, in particular, shown with all evidence during the parliamentary elections in Russia in 1993, when the Russian 'Green Party' had not achieved any seats in the State Duma. This is also confirmed by sociological polls of Russians done in the last two years. It seems, however, that change of priorities in public opinion had increased attention to the problems of environment in the nearest future are as inevitable, as the forthcoming Russia's and Its nearest neighbours getting out of the state of economic fail down. In these conditions the possibility of nuclear power development will be determined not only by economic factors, but also by the factor of public confidence. The progress in the development of public information programme in the field of nuclear power, if compared with the first years after Chernobyl, is evident. Several governing and coordinating structures exist and work in Russia (Department of Minatom, Inter-departmental Council for information and public relations, similar Department in Rosenergoatom Concern), regional public information centres, special services at many nuclear science and industry enterprises. Similar system works in Ukraine and is being established in Kazakhstan. In antinuclear Belarus, where, nevertheless, the objective need of nuclear power is already reflected in the national

  2. City College of San Francisco 1997 Sexual Harassment Student Opinion Survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    City Coll. of San Francisco, CA. Office of Institutional Research, Planning and Grants.

    This document describes the findings of a 1997 sexual harassment student opinion survey conducted at City College of San Francisco. Survey questions were jointly developed by the Sexual Harassment Prevention Sub-Committee of the Diversity Advisory Committee and the Office of Research and Planning, approved by the College Advisory Council, and…

  3. Nuclear power and public opinion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1984-01-01

    The diversity of factors involved in nuclear power development and the complexity of public attitudes towards this source of energy have raised the nuclear debate to a topic of national significance in all the OECD countries with nuclear programmes and even in some countries which have not embarked on the nuclear course. This study examines the different experiences of seventeen member countries and underlines basic approaches and practices aimed at winning greater public acceptance for nuclear power. The first part of the study is a country-by-country presentation of public acceptance activities and the role of the various public or private bodies involved. There is also a description of the background energy situation and the place of nuclear power, the evolution of the nuclear debate and a review of present public and political attitudes to nuclear energy. In the second part, some of the notable factors which determine public attitudes to, and perception of, nuclear energy have been assembled. The study points, in particular, to a number of general principles which require continuous implementation, not least because they contribute to placing nuclear energy in its proper context for the public. Vigorous government leadership in making energy choices, long term efforts in energy education, and open information policies can go a long way towards resolving many doubts about nuclear energy in the public mind. But, perhaps, above all, it is the continuing demonstration of the safe and efficient industrial operation of plants in the nuclear fuel cycle which will have the strongest influence on public opinion. In addition to these basic principles, the study calls attention to some of the most successful means of improving communication between the authorities and the public, notably at the local level. The contribution to the decision-making process of public participation is also evaluated in the light of recent national experiences.

  4. Nuclear power and public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1984-01-01

    The diversity of factors involved in nuclear power development and the complexity of public attitudes towards this source of energy have raised the nuclear debate to a topic of national significance in all the OECD countries with nuclear programmes and even in some countries which have not embarked on the nuclear course. This study examines the different experiences of seventeen member countries and underlines basic approaches and practices aimed at winning greater public acceptance for nuclear power. The first part of the study is a country-by-country presentation of public acceptance activities and the role of the various public or private bodies involved. There is also a description of the background energy situation and the place of nuclear power, the evolution of the nuclear debate and a review of present public and political attitudes to nuclear energy. In the second part, some of the notable factors which determine public attitudes to, and perception of, nuclear energy have been assembled. The study points, in particular, to a number of general principles which require continuous implementation, not least because they contribute to placing nuclear energy in its proper context for the public. Vigorous government leadership in making energy choices, long term efforts in energy education, and open information policies can go a long way towards resolving many doubts about nuclear energy in the public mind. But, perhaps, above all, it is the continuing demonstration of the safe and efficient industrial operation of plants in the nuclear fuel cycle which will have the strongest influence on public opinion. In addition to these basic principles, the study calls attention to some of the most successful means of improving communication between the authorities and the public, notably at the local level. The contribution to the decision-making process of public participation is also evaluated in the light of recent national experiences

  5. A survey of parental opinions on corporal punishment in schools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelly, P C; Weir, M R; Fearnow, R G

    1985-06-01

    Forty-three states permit corporal punishment in schools. This practice continues despite the universal opposition of professional organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics. This study determines parental attitudes concerning the use of physical punishment in schools. The surveyed sample is drawn from parents of military dependents who brought their children to this clinic for routine physical examinations. One hundred and twenty-nine of 132 questionnaires were returned for a 98% response rate. Fifty-one percent of the parents supported the use of corporal punishment in schools, 37% disagreed (77% of these strongly), 11% had no opinion, and 1% did not respond to the question. Analysis of the responses displayed a relationship between parental attitudes on the use of corporal punishment and opinion of the positive effects of physical punishment on children's behavior (p less than 0.0001). No relationship was found between position on corporal punishment and the respondent (mother, father, or both), the age of parents, the military rank of the sponsor (the individual whose military service makes the child eligible for military medical care, i.e., father, mother, guardian, etc.), the sex of the children, the marital status of the parents, or the schools attended by the children (public or private). Thirty-four percent of parents believed corporal punishment would improve behavior, and 20% of parents felt that physical punishment would improve their child's academic performance.

  6. Perception of risks by opinion leaders 2011

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2011-01-01

    The authors report a survey made just after the Fukushima accident on a panel of opinion leaders (belonging to political, economical or media sector) in order to compare their perception of risks with that of the public. The questions addressed the perception of risks, the role of scientific experts, the usefulness and breaks on the diffusion of expertise results, the perception of pluralist bodies, and the Fukushima accident. The answers are analysed and discussed with respect to fifteen hazardous situations, to their opinion of expertise, and to their opinion on safety audit and information

  7. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation: knowledge and opinions among the U.S. general public. State of the science-fiction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marco, Catherine A; Larkin, Gregory L

    2008-12-01

    Cardiopulmonary resuscitation is undertaken more than 250,000 times annually in the United States. This study was undertaken to determine knowledge and opinions of the general public regarding cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Validated multisite community-based cross-sectional survey. Knowledge and opinions about resuscitative practices and outcomes, using hypothetical clinical scenarios and other social, spiritual, and environmental considerations. Among 1831 participants representing 38 states, markedly inaccurate perceptions of cardiac arrest were reported. Participants' mean estimate of predicted survival rate after cardiac arrest was 54% (median 50%, IQR 35-75%), and mean estimated duration of resuscitative efforts in the ED was 28min (median 15min; IQR 10-30). Projected age and health status were independent predictors of resuscitation preferences in a series of 4 hypothetical scenarios. Participants indicated that physicians should consider patient and family wishes as the most important factors when making resuscitation decisions. Participants considered advanced technology and physician communication to be the most important actions during attempted resuscitation. Inaccurate perceptions regarding resuscitation and survival rates exist among the lay public. Participants indicated strong preferences regarding resuscitation and advance directives.

  8. Opinion Polls and Statistical Surveys: What They Really Tell Us

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    from the Indian Statistical. Iastihte in 1986 and the ... any other statistical survey) is the estimation of some un- ... shares are then predicted based on a suitable mathematical model. ..... have some application in opinion polls as well. In the elec ...

  9. Gas/electricity convergence : where is public opinion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Edwards, R.G. [Gallup Canada Inc., Toronto, ON (Canada)

    1998-09-01

    The current status of public opinion regarding gas and electricity convergence was discussed. Gallup Canada Inc. has been in the business of conducting public opinion polls on important issues facing society for over 50 years. Citizens from coast to coast responded with a great deal of confusion, uncertainty and wariness when asked a question on the convergence and privatization of gas and electric utilities. Many expressed the hope that convergence and privatization of the energy industry will have the same effect as deregulation of long distance telephone services has had on choices and costs. For some, the answer meant satisfaction with the notion of competition. Others wanted to know what constituted the local `frozen` rate portion of the delivery. Still others expressed the view that they ought to be rewarded for using less energy and thus help in meeting conservation goals. At the same time, a not insignificant minority thought that they should be rewarded with better prices for consuming more. Improvement in the quality of service was another change that Canadian consumers expect to result from convergence and privatization. In the utility industry `branding` and `value added` to the product, i.e. moving beyond the basic and expected quality, might well be the key to success in developing customer loyalty.

  10. Public opinion and environmental policy output: a cross-national analysis of energy policies in Europe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anderson, Brilé; Böhmelt, Tobias; Ward, Hugh

    2017-11-01

    This article studies how public opinion is associated with the introduction of renewable energy policies in Europe. While research increasingly seeks to model the link between public opinion and environmental policies, the empirical evidence is largely based on a single case: the US. This limits the generalizability of findings and we argue accordingly for a systematic, quantitative study of how public opinion drives environmental policies in another context. Theoretically, we combine arguments behind the political survival of democratic leaders with electoral success and environmental politics. Ultimately, we suggest that office-seeking leaders introduce policies that seem favorable to the domestic audience; if the public prefers environmental protection, the government introduces such policies in turn. The main contribution of this research is the cross-country empirical analysis, where we combine data on the public’s environmental attitudes and renewable energy policy outputs in a European context between 1974 and 2015. We show that as public opinion shifts towards prioritizing the environment, there is a significant and positive effect on the rate of renewable energy policy outputs by governments in Europe. To our knowledge, this is the first systematic, quantitative study of public opinion and environmental policies across a large set of countries, and we demonstrate that the mechanisms behind the introduction of renewable energy policies follow major trends across European states.

  11. How does public opinion become extreme?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramos, Marlon; Shao, Jia; Reis, Saulo D S; Anteneodo, Celia; Andrade, José S; Havlin, Shlomo; Makse, Hernán A

    2015-05-19

    We investigate the emergence of extreme opinion trends in society by employing statistical physics modeling and analysis on polls that inquire about a wide range of issues such as religion, economics, politics, abortion, extramarital sex, books, movies, and electoral vote. The surveys lay out a clear indicator of the rise of extreme views. The precursor is a nonlinear relation between the fraction of individuals holding a certain extreme view and the fraction of individuals that includes also moderates, e.g., in politics, those who are "very conservative" versus "moderate to very conservative" ones. We propose an activation model of opinion dynamics with interaction rules based on the existence of individual "stubbornness" that mimics empirical observations. According to our modeling, the onset of nonlinearity can be associated to an abrupt bootstrap-percolation transition with cascades of extreme views through society. Therefore, it represents an early-warning signal to forecast the transition from moderate to extreme views. Moreover, by means of a phase diagram we can classify societies according to the percolative regime they belong to, in terms of critical fractions of extremists and people's ties.

  12. How does public opinion become extreme?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramos, Marlon; Shao, Jia; Reis, Saulo D. S.; Anteneodo, Celia; Andrade, José S.; Havlin, Shlomo; Makse, Hernán A.

    2015-05-01

    We investigate the emergence of extreme opinion trends in society by employing statistical physics modeling and analysis on polls that inquire about a wide range of issues such as religion, economics, politics, abortion, extramarital sex, books, movies, and electoral vote. The surveys lay out a clear indicator of the rise of extreme views. The precursor is a nonlinear relation between the fraction of individuals holding a certain extreme view and the fraction of individuals that includes also moderates, e.g., in politics, those who are “very conservative” versus “moderate to very conservative” ones. We propose an activation model of opinion dynamics with interaction rules based on the existence of individual “stubbornness” that mimics empirical observations. According to our modeling, the onset of nonlinearity can be associated to an abrupt bootstrap-percolation transition with cascades of extreme views through society. Therefore, it represents an early-warning signal to forecast the transition from moderate to extreme views. Moreover, by means of a phase diagram we can classify societies according to the percolative regime they belong to, in terms of critical fractions of extremists and people’s ties.

  13. Public opinion on environmental and energy issues. Result of the census after 3 years of the Great East Japan Earthquake

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kosugi, Motoko

    2014-01-01

    The public opinion on the energy and environmental issues has changed greatly in Japan through experiences in and along the Great East Japan Earthquake. We conducted a social survey in order to grasp public opinions for environment and energy issues in March, 2014, which obtained 2313 valid responses (response rate was 64.3%). For the energy and environmental issues, while respondents show high interests in matters related to the Fukushima accident and nuclear power generation as well as electricity prices, they show relatively low interest in every other aspect. With regard to Japan's energy policy in the future, as expectations for renewable and natural sources of energy are large, about 60% of respondents have negative attitude in restart of nuclear power. For nuclear power, as compared to the previous survey conducted in August 2008, evaluation of 'control-ability of environmental impacts' and 'the power companies' risk management ability' was greatly reduced in particular. These results suggest the importance of provoke interest in the energy issues in general, as a premise to seek an understanding of the activities of the government and power companies. Furthermore, in order for the power companies to restore trust from the public, it is important to sympathize to public's anticipations of impacts on the health and environment through uses of nuclear power in the future. (author)

  14. Public opinion on motor vehicle-related injury prevention policies: a systematic review of a decade of research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Debinski, Beata; Clegg Smith, Katherine; Gielen, Andrea

    2014-01-01

    Legislation is an effective strategy for reducing road-related fatalities and injuries. Public opinion can be an impetus for passing new laws and can affect the success of their implementation, but little is known about the current state of public opinion toward existing and proposed road-related policies in the United States. This review describes the scope and results of research on public support for state- and local-level evidence-based motor vehicle- and bicycle-related policies. We identify gaps in our understanding of public support for these policies. Published U.S. literature and all reports from the NHTSA from the past decade (2003-2012) were searched for data on opinions about existing or proposed policies related to motor vehicle or bicycle injury prevention. Twenty-six studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria. In all, studies reported public opinion about 7 injury prevention topic areas: all-terrain vehicles (n = 1), automated enforcement with red light and speed cameras (n = 5), distracted driving (n = 4), drinking and driving (n = 5), graduated driver licensing (n = 7), helmets (n = 7), and seat belts (n = 4). Twenty-three studies focused only on one topic, and 3 sought public opinion about multiple topic areas. The studies revealed generally high levels of support for injury prevention policies in all topic areas. Fifteen studies collected information from national samples, and only 7 studies reported data from the state (n = 5) or local (n = 2) level. There is a relatively small evidence base on public opinion related to motor vehicle- and bicycle-related evidence-based policies; even less is less known for state- or county-specific policies. The findings of this review suggest that the public's opinion toward injury prevention legislation is generally favorable. This information can be used to communicate with the media and policy makers to reinforce the need for effective policy solutions to continuing motor vehicle injury problems. More research

  15. Public opinion, public information and public implication in radioactive waste management in the European Union

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Taylor, D.; Webster, S.

    2004-01-01

    The nuclear industry in European must address the issue of the lack of Public acceptance. In particular, the public are very concerned about radioactive waste. It is clear that there is a need to better inform the public about radioactive waste and to consult them as part of the decision-making process concerning the management of these wastes. Existing and proposed new European legislation not only encourage this provision of information and involvement in the decision-making process, but actually require it. The paper examines Public opinion and European legislation in this area and reports on the latest research on societal issues in radioactive waste management carried out under the Community's Euratom Framework Programme. (Author)

  16. Gaining Momentum: How Media Influences Public Opinion To Push Civil-Military Decision Makers Into Formulating Foreign Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-02-09

    1 AIR WAR COLLEGE AIR UNIVERSITY GAINING MOMENTUM: HOW MEDIA INFLUENCES PUBLIC OPINION TO PUSH CIVIL-MILITARY DECISION MAKERS INTO...engagements from the past, evidence suggest the media or press does have an influence over public opinion, especially during times of war and humanitarian...changes and that leaders must take into consideration that public opinion and the media may provide a large amount of influence over how the nation

  17. How much carbon offsetting and where? Implications of efficiency, effectiveness, and ethicality considerations for public opinion formation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anderson, Brilé; Bernauer, Thomas

    2016-01-01

    A fundamental policy design choice in government-led climate change mitigation is: what role should flexibility mechanisms like carbon offsetting play in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Since public opinion affects the policy choices of government, we investigate how arguments regarding carbon offsetting's economic efficiency, effectiveness, and ethicality, which have been key points in the public debate, impact the public's preferences. We fielded an online framing experiment in the United States (N=995) to empirically identify how arguments for and against carbon offsetting influence public preferences for the inclusion of offsetting in national GHG mitigation policy. We find that the public's support for international offsetting increases and support for reductions at their source (i.e. within firms' own operations) diminishes when considerations of economic efficiency gains are at the forefront. Support for offsetting declines when individuals are confronted with arguments concerning its effectiveness and ethicality, which suggests that future policies will require clear standards of additionality in order to address these concerns. Moreover, we find that how carbon offsetting is framed matters even amongst climate skeptics and support could potentially be enhanced via improved communication on efficiency gains. - Highlights: •We use a framing survey experiment to study public opinion on carbon offsetting. •Efficiency gains increase public support for international carbon offsetting. •Concerns about effectiveness/additionality and ethicality reduce support. •More information on efficiency gains and strengthening additionality could help increase support.

  18. Nuclear power and public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1977-01-01

    The speeches by Bethe and Alfven, delivered at the 1977 Conference in Salzburg, and the report of the World Council of Churches are surveyed, as well as the nuclear controversy and the state-of-the-art reports from various countries on public information and public acceptance of nuclear energy provision

  19. A Survey of Public Opinion on Cat (Felis catus) Predation and the Future Direction of Cat Management in New Zealand.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Jessica K; Bruce, Stephanie J; Dale, Arnja R

    2017-07-03

    Cat predation is a prominent issue in New Zealand that provokes strong and opposing views. We explored, via 1011 face-to-face questionnaires, public opinion on (a) support for a National Cat Management Strategy (78% support); (b) concern regarding predation of wildlife by owned and un-owned cats (managed stray, unmanaged stray, and feral cats); (c) the acceptability of management techniques for owned cats; and (d) the acceptability of population management techniques for un-owned cats. The highest concern was expressed regarding the predation of non-native and native wildlife by feral cats (60 and 86% repectively), followed by unmanaged stray cats (59 and 86% respectively), managed stray cats (54 and 82% respectively), and finally owned cats (38 and 69% repectively). Limits to the number of cats owned and cat restriction zones received high levels of support (>65%), and compulsory microchipping, Council registration, and de-sexing were supported by the majority (>58%). Public support of population control methods for unowned cats was explored, and the influence of participant demographic variables on responses is described. These findings provide insight into public opinion regarding the management of cats in New Zealand, which should be considered during the development of legislation in this area.

  20. A Survey of Public Opinion on Cat (Felis catus Predation and the Future Direction of Cat Management in New Zealand

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jessica K. Walker

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Cat predation is a prominent issue in New Zealand that provokes strong and opposing views. We explored, via 1011 face-to-face questionnaires, public opinion on (a support for a National Cat Management Strategy (78% support; (b concern regarding predation of wildlife by owned and un-owned cats (managed stray, unmanaged stray, and feral cats; (c the acceptability of management techniques for owned cats; and (d the acceptability of population management techniques for un-owned cats. The highest concern was expressed regarding the predation of non-native and native wildlife by feral cats (60 and 86% repectively, followed by unmanaged stray cats (59 and 86% respectively, managed stray cats (54 and 82% respectively, and finally owned cats (38 and 69% repectively. Limits to the number of cats owned and cat restriction zones received high levels of support (>65%, and compulsory microchipping, Council registration, and de-sexing were supported by the majority (>58%. Public support of population control methods for unowned cats was explored, and the influence of participant demographic variables on responses is described. These findings provide insight into public opinion regarding the management of cats in New Zealand, which should be considered during the development of legislation in this area.

  1. Research on hotspot discovery in internet public opinions based on improved K-means.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Gensheng

    2013-01-01

    How to discover hotspot in the Internet public opinions effectively is a hot research field for the researchers related which plays a key role for governments and corporations to find useful information from mass data in the Internet. An improved K-means algorithm for hotspot discovery in internet public opinions is presented based on the analysis of existing defects and calculation principle of original K-means algorithm. First, some new methods are designed to preprocess website texts, select and express the characteristics of website texts, and define the similarity between two website texts, respectively. Second, clustering principle and the method of initial classification centers selection are analyzed and improved in order to overcome the limitations of original K-means algorithm. Finally, the experimental results verify that the improved algorithm can improve the clustering stability and classification accuracy of hotspot discovery in internet public opinions when used in practice.

  2. Research on Hotspot Discovery in Internet Public Opinions Based on Improved K-Means

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    How to discover hotspot in the Internet public opinions effectively is a hot research field for the researchers related which plays a key role for governments and corporations to find useful information from mass data in the Internet. An improved K-means algorithm for hotspot discovery in internet public opinions is presented based on the analysis of existing defects and calculation principle of original K-means algorithm. First, some new methods are designed to preprocess website texts, select and express the characteristics of website texts, and define the similarity between two website texts, respectively. Second, clustering principle and the method of initial classification centers selection are analyzed and improved in order to overcome the limitations of original K-means algorithm. Finally, the experimental results verify that the improved algorithm can improve the clustering stability and classification accuracy of hotspot discovery in internet public opinions when used in practice. PMID:24106496

  3. An overview of structurally complex network-based modeling of public opinion in the “We the Media” era

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Guanghui; Wang, Yufei; Liu, Yijun; Chi, Yuxue

    2018-05-01

    As the transmission of public opinion on the Internet in the “We the Media” era tends to be supraterritorial, concealed and complex, the traditional “point-to-surface” transmission of information has been transformed into “point-to-point” reciprocal transmission. A foundation for studies of the evolution of public opinion and its transmission on the Internet in the “We the Media” era can be laid by converting the massive amounts of fragmented information on public opinion that exists on “We the Media” platforms into structurally complex networks of information. This paper describes studies of structurally complex network-based modeling of public opinion on the Internet in the “We the Media” era from the perspective of the development and evolution of complex networks. The progress that has been made in research projects relevant to the structural modeling of public opinion on the Internet is comprehensively summarized. The review considers aspects such as regular grid-based modeling of the rules that describe the propagation of public opinion on the Internet in the “We the Media” era, social network modeling, dynamic network modeling, and supernetwork modeling. Moreover, an outlook for future studies that address complex network-based modeling of public opinion on the Internet is put forward as a summary from the perspective of modeling conducted using the techniques mentioned above.

  4. Understanding Public Opinions from Geosocial Media

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shanqi Zhang

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Increasingly, social media data are linked to locations through embedded GPS coordinates. Many local governments are showing interest in the potential to repurpose these firsthand geo-data to gauge spatial and temporal dynamics of public opinions in ways that complement information collected through traditional public engagement methods. Using these geosocial data is not without challenges since they are usually unstructured, vary in quality, and often require considerable effort to extract information that is relevant to local governments’ needs from large data volumes. Understanding local relevance requires development of both data processing methods and their use in empirical studies. This paper addresses this latter need through a case study that demonstrates how spatially-referenced Twitter data can shed light on citizens’ transportation and planning concerns. A web-based toolkit that integrates text processing methods is used to model Twitter data collected for the Region of Waterloo (Ontario, Canada between March 2014 and July 2015 and assess citizens’ concerns related to the planning and construction of a new light rail transit line. The study suggests that geosocial media can help identify geographies of public perceptions concerning public facilities and services and have potential to complement other methods of gauging public sentiment.

  5. University Opinion Poll 9: Child Care, MPIRG, Lettuce. Preliminary Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matross, Ronald; And Others

    The University Opinion Poll conducted a survey of student opinion on issues related to University-sponsored day care, the role of the Minnesota Public Interest Research Group (MPIRG) and the University's policy on buying lettuce for its food services. Four hundred fifty-two respondents, 76% of a random sample of University of Minnesota students,…

  6. Public perception on nuclear energy and radioactive waste - The second opinion poll

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Diaconu, Stela; Covreag Ilinca

    2009-01-01

    In 2008 ANDRAD started the second national opinion poll which had the purpose to identify the support of Romanian citizen for energy production by nuclear power stations, which is perceived as a less expensive energy, that could reduces the oil dependence of our country. The questionnaire consisted in 22 questions aiming to assess: the level of information about radioactive waste, the actual knowledge about radioactive waste management, the support and the opinion on nuclear energy, the public attitude regarding radioactive waste disposal, the trust in information sources and the public involvement in the decision-making process. (authors)

  7. THE INFLUENCE OF MARKETING PUBLIC RELATION AND SERVICE QUALITY ON CORPORATE IMAGE THROUGH PUBLIC OPINION: STUDIES AT MANDIRI BANK

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vera Suciyati

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available This research aims to analyze the influence of marketing public relation and service quality at Bank Mandiri on corporate image through public. Convenience sampling method has been selected in order to obtain the data in this study. The analysis method that used was the path analysis. The research result had shown that: marketing public relation and service quality have significant influence simultaneously and partially on public opinion on the first structure equation. The second structure equation shows that: marketing public relation, service quality had significant influence simultaneously on corporate image. The service quality have not partially the quality of service have not influence significant partially on corporate, but variable marketing and public relation have  partially influential public opinion influence significant partially on corporate image.DOI: 10.15408/etk.v12i2.1916

  8. Public opinion about nuclear energy. Year 2007 poll

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Istenic, R.; Jencic, I.

    2007-01-01

    Nuclear Training Centre Milan Copic (Izobrazevalni center za jedrsko tehnologijo - ICJT) at Jozef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana incorporates the Information Centre for general public. Most of the visitors are youngsters and almost one half of every generation of schoolchildren in Slovenia is informed on nuclear energy by live lectures, exhibition, publications and laboratory demonstrations. About 1000 visitors are polled every year since 1993 to measure the opinion about nuclear power and get a feed-back for our activities. Continued operation of NPP Krsko is supported by 69% of youngsters (negative trend from the last year's 76%), while opposition remains low. (author)

  9. A survey of attitude and opinions of endodontic residents towards regenerative endodontics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Utneja, Shivani; Nawal, Ruchika Roongta; Ansari, Mohammed Irfan; Talwar, Sangeeta; Verma, Mahesh

    2013-01-01

    Aim: The objective of this survey was to study the level of awareness, current state of knowledge and opinions towards regenerative endodontic treatments amongst the endodontic residents of India. Settings and Design: Questionnaire based survey was designed. Materials and Methods: After approval from the organizing committee of 26th Federation of Operative Dentistry of India and 19th Indian Endodontic Society National conference 2011, 200 copies of the questionnaire were circulated amongst the endodontic residents in conservative dentistry and endodontics at various colleges across the country about regenerative endodontic procedures. The survey included profile of the respondents and consisted of 23 questions about their knowledge, attitude and opinions regarding use of these procedures as part of future dental treatment. Results: The survey showed that half the participants (50.6%) had received continued education in stem cells and/or regenerative dental treatments. The majority of participants were of the opinion (86.6%) that regenerative therapy should be incorporated into dentistry, and most of them (88%) were willing to acquire training in learning this new treatment strategy. The results indicated that half of the participants (52.6%) were already using some type of regenerative therapy in their clinical practice; however, with a majority of these limited to use of membranes, scaffolds or bioactive materials. Conclusions: These results reflect that endodontic residents are optimistic about the use of regenerative endodontic procedures; however, a need for more research and training was felt. PMID:23956532

  10. Energy policy decision making and public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gerstein, L.

    1989-09-01

    By the example of nuclear the author demonstrates the interactions of short-term fluctuations on the world energy market, energy forecasts, specific events and discussions on energy policy both within political parties and in the general public, and draws conclusions which are valid beyond the Federal Republic of Germany: An analysis of the general public's attitude towards nuclear energy shows two initial phases, i.e. euphoria and scepticism/ideology/agitation. The early eighties, then, led to a third phase - realism. Up to 1983 a consensus prevailed between the leading political parties in Germany regarding the basic energy-policy objective of minimizing the supply risk by providing for a well-balanced use of all available energy sources. The resulting attitude had a positive bearing on the public opinion: more than two thirds of the population were in favour of nuclear. In the mid-eighties, the development of nuclear was by and large completed in the Federal Republic of Germany as well as in the United States and other western industrialized countries and the capacity of nuclear power plants is considered sufficient for the years to come. In addition, abundant long-term reserves of domestic lignite and hardcoal are available: this also should have furnished a good reason to envisage calmly the issues of power supply. Instead, we are again facing emotional discussions on the acceptance of nuclear. Public opinion in the Federal Republic of Germany has changed since the Social Democrats followed the example of the Ecologists and advocated a rapid withdrawal from nuclear. In a recent poll four-fifths of the persons asked did not rule out the possibility of a major accident in a German power station. The wish to ignore today's energy supply problems by escaping into a supposedly safe but yet distant and vague future is part of every public debate. Technical and scientific issues are examined no longer in this global context. Predictions of experts and counter

  11. Questionable, Objectionable or Criminal? Public Opinion on Data Fraud and Selective Reporting in Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pickett, Justin T; Roche, Sean Patrick

    2018-02-01

    Data fraud and selective reporting both present serious threats to the credibility of science. However, there remains considerable disagreement among scientists about how best to sanction data fraud, and about the ethicality of selective reporting. The public is arguably the largest stakeholder in the reproducibility of science; research is primarily paid for with public funds, and flawed science threatens the public's welfare. Members of the public are able to make meaningful judgments about the morality of different behaviors using moral intuitions. Legal scholars emphasize that to maintain legitimacy, social control policies must be developed with some consideration given to the public's moral intuitions. Although there is a large literature on popular attitudes toward science, there is no existing evidence about public opinion on data fraud or selective reporting. We conducted two studies-a survey experiment with a nationwide convenience sample (N = 821), and a follow-up survey with a representative sample of US adults (N = 964)-to explore community members' judgments about the morality of data fraud and selective reporting in science. The findings show that community members make a moral distinction between data fraud and selective reporting, but overwhelmingly judge both behaviors to be immoral and deserving of punishment. Community members believe that scientists who commit data fraud or selective reporting should be fired and banned from receiving funding. For data fraud, most Americans support criminal penalties. Results from an ordered logistic regression analysis reveal few demographic and no significant partisan differences in punitiveness toward data fraud.

  12. Changes in public opinion and the occurrence of international terrorism

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Malečková, Jitka; Stanišić, Dragana

    2014-01-01

    Roč. 20, č. 4 (2014), s. 631-653 ISSN 1079-2457 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GAP402/12/0510 Institutional support: RVO:67985998 Keywords : public opinion * international terrorism * Middle East and North Africa Subject RIV: AH - Economics

  13. Thalassemia treatment and prevention in Uva Province, Sri Lanka: a public opinion survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mudiyanse, Rasnayaka M

    2006-01-01

    -free marriages advocates promotion of marriages where at least one partner is a non-carrier. Success of such a project could be monitored at the time of marriage. This opinion survey indicates that the public is motivated to promote carrier screening and the prevention of thalassemia.

  14. Public and Opinion Leader Willingness to Fund Obesity-Focused Policies in Kansas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmitt, Carol L; Curry, Laurel E; Homsi, Ghada; Williams, Pamela A; Glasgow, LaShawn M; Van Hersh, Deanna; Willett, Jeffrey; Rogers, Todd

    2017-08-01

    Obesity increases the risk for leading causes of death, including cardiovascular disease and some cancers. Midwestern and southern states have the highest obesity rates-in Kansas, one in every three adults is obese. We compared the willingness of Kansas adults and opinion leaders to pay more in taxes to fund obesity prevention policies. In 2014, we asked a representative sample of 2,203 Kansas adults (response rate 15.7%) and 912 opinion leaders (response rate 55%) drawn from elected office and other sectors, including business and health, whether they would pay an additional $50 in annual taxes to support five policies that improve access to healthy foods and opportunities for physical activity. We used adjusted Wald tests to compare public and opinion leaders' responses, and regression analysis to assess whether differences in respondents' gender, age, location (urban/rural), race/ethnicity, and political stance affected results. Adjusting for demographic differences, Kansas adults were more willing than opinion leaders to pay $50 in taxes for each of the five policy interventions. This study demonstrates a willingness among residents of a fiscally conservative state to pay increased taxes for policies that could reduce population obesity rates. Health professionals, including nurses, can use these findings to educate policy makers in Kansas and geopolitically similar states about widespread public support for obesity prevention policies. Public health and other nurses could also apply our methods to assess support for obesity prevention policies in their jurisdictions.

  15. Nuclear energy and european public opinions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Libourne, J.

    2008-01-01

    This document presents four texts related to the crucial question of the attitude towards nuclear energy in the countries of the European Union: the first text comments the results of a European Commission inquiry (2006), and is more especially concerned with a comparison between Germany and France where rather similar public opinions lead to very different political approaches; the second text presents a synthesis of inquiries concerning Germany; the third is a review of the main national studies realized in various european countries; the last text is drawn from a study realized by the Cnrs on the position of the French towards nuclear wastes

  16. Public Opinion and the Death Penalty: A Qualitative Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Falco, Diana L.; Freiburger, Tina L.

    2011-01-01

    Strong public support for capital punishment is arguably the number one reason why the death penalty continues to be used as a form of correctional policy in the U.S. criminal justice system. Therefore, it is fundamental that the measure of death penalty opinion be heavily scrutinized. Utilizing a methodological approach not typically employed in…

  17. The Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes-Stuttering (POSHA-S) and Bipolar Adjective Scale (BAS): aspects of validity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    St Louis, Kenneth O; Williams, Mandy J; Ware, Mercedes B; Guendouzi, Jacqueline; Reichel, Isabella K

    2014-01-01

    In order to estimate instrument validity, attitudes toward stuttering measured by the newly developed Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes-Stuttering (POSHA-S) and the Woods and Williams (1976) semantic differential scale (referred to herein as the Bipolar Adjective Scale [BAS]) are compared in college students on one occasion as well as before and after coursework on fluency disorders. Undergraduate and graduate students (n=321) from four universities filled out online versions of the POSHA-S and BAS. Two-thirds were speech-language pathology (SLP) majors; one-third were students in other majors. A subset of the SLP students (n=35) filled out the two instruments again after 8-13 weeks of coursework on fluency disorders. Correlations between all ratings of the POSHA-S and BAS were run for the 321 students. Only 26% of the correlations were statistically significant (R ≥ ± 0.129), and the large majority of these reflected small relationships. POSHA-S ratings were correlated with up to 77% of the items of the BAS while BAS items were correlated with up to 45% of the POSHA-S ratings. After coursework on stuttering, students' attitudes improved on both instruments, but more on the POSHA-S than the BAS. Greater evidence of discriminant validity than convergent validity characterized the POSHA-S and BAS. Both measures showed improved attitudes after fluency disorders coursework, but more so for the POSHA-S, confirming previous reports of construct validity. The POSHA-S taps relevant constructs not included in the BAS, which provide advantages for intracultural, international, and other comparisons of public attitudes toward stuttering. The reader will be able to: (1) describe differentiating characteristics of the POSHA-S and BAS as measures of public attitudes toward stuttering, (2) describe the overlap and lack of overlap in the constructs measured by POSHA-S and BAS, (3) describe discriminant versus convergent validity and (4) describe advantages of the POSHA

  18. Creating informed public opinion: citizen deliberation about nanotechnologies for human enhancements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cobb, Michael D.

    2011-01-01

    Many people believe that ordinary citizens should influence scientific and technological developments, but the American public is routinely uninformed about these issues. As a solution, some scholars advocate creating informed public opinions by encouraging citizens to deliberate about the issues. Although this idea is currently widely applauded in the science and technology literature, deliberative outcomes are infrequently measured and the practice of deliberation is routinely criticized in other disciplines. This research contributes to our understanding of the effectiveness of citizen deliberation as a method for increasing public engagement with science. I report data measuring results of deliberation in a national citizens’ technology forum (NCTF) about nanotechnologies for human enhancement. The NCTF was a month-long process involving six groups of 9–15 ordinary citizens who deliberated in different locations across the United States with the goal of reaching consensus about policy recommendations within their groups. I find that structured deliberation generated informed opinions, sometimes meaningful shifts in preferences, and increased trust and internal efficacy among the participants. Nevertheless, the NCTF has important shortcomings, and it is not obvious that consensus conferences should be preferred over other mechanisms for creating informed opinions. Future research is needed to corroborate the findings of this study and to systematically compare outcomes of structured citizen deliberation to other less resource intensive forms of engagement.

  19. Survey of Expert Opinion on Intelligence: Causes of International Differences in Cognitive Ability Tests.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rindermann, Heiner; Becker, David; Coyle, Thomas R

    2016-01-01

    Following Snyderman and Rothman (1987, 1988), we surveyed expert opinions on the current state of intelligence research. This report examines expert opinions on causes of international differences in student assessment and psychometric IQ test results. Experts were surveyed about the importance of culture, genes, education (quantity and quality), wealth, health, geography, climate, politics, modernization, sampling error, test knowledge, discrimination, test bias, and migration. The importance of these factors was evaluated for diverse countries, regions, and groups including Finland, East Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, Southern Europe, the Arabian-Muslim world, Latin America, Israel, Jews in the West, Roma (gypsies), and Muslim immigrants. Education was rated by N = 71 experts as the most important cause of international ability differences. Genes were rated as the second most relevant factor but also had the highest variability in ratings. Culture, health, wealth, modernization, and politics were the next most important factors, whereas other factors such as geography, climate, test bias, and sampling error were less important. The paper concludes with a discussion of limitations of the survey (e.g., response rates and validity of expert opinions).

  20. The North American opinion climate for nanotechnology and its products: Opportunities and challenges

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Priest, Susanna

    2006-01-01

    A January 2005 telephone survey of 1200 people in the U.S. and 2000 Canadians provides a snapshot of current North American opinion regarding nanotechnology at this crucial early point in its emergence from the laboratory to the arena of public discourse and public understanding. Using a typology of 'publics' developed through analysis of a previous comparative survey (Priest, S., 2006) and subsequently tested against these newer data (Priest, S., 2005) this article describes the opinion climate for nanotechnology across North America. The comparison of key results from the two countries helps illustrate how social and cultural differences contribute to reactions to new technologies, including nanotech. The article also discusses implications for nanotechnology-related public outreach and risk communication efforts

  1. Nuclear power crises and public opinion: Russian Experience

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gagarinski, A.Y.

    1998-01-01

    This report presents the state of Russian nuclear power, which provides 13 per cent of the country's electricity production (up to 80 per cent in some large regions) and shows no recession trends, characteristic of the whole Russian economic complex. The report discusses measures taken both for improvement of the safety of operating and future new-generation NPPs, and for improvement of public confidence in them. Also considered are the problems related to both civil power and the military heritage, which are most actively discussed in mass media. This report provides the prognosis for nuclear power and public opinion for the next 10-15 years. (author)

  2. Public opinion about nuclear energy. Year 2006 poll

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Istenic, R.; Jencic, I.; Tkavc, M.

    2006-01-01

    Public information, one of the important activities of the Nuclear Training Centre Milan Copic at the Jozef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana, is focused on youngsters. Almost one half of every generation of schoolchildren in Slovenia is informed on nuclear energy by live lectures, exhibition, publications and laboratory demonstrations. To measure the opinion of youngsters about nuclear power and get a feed-back for our activities about 1000 youngsters are polled every year since 1993 using the same basic set of questions. Continued operation of the NPP Krsko is supported by 76% of youngsters in Slovenia (slightly positive trend from the last year's 71%). Opposition to NPP Krsko operation remains low. (author)

  3. 45 CFR 73.735-806 - Documentation and publication of opinions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ...-806 Section 73.735-806 Public Welfare DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES GENERAL ADMINISTRATION... Department Ethics Counselor, deputy ethics counselors, and any other individuals required to be involved in... Department Ethics Counselor shall publish summaries of advisory opinions issued by his or her office...

  4. Down to the Wire: How Six Newspapers Reported Public Opinion Polls during the 1988 Presidential Campaign.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sanders, Luther W.; And Others

    A study analyzed the quality of reporting of public opinion polls in six selected newspapers during the final 65 days of the 1988 presidential campaign. The eight disclosure standards used were based upon the latest version of the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) code of Professional Ethics and Practices. The newspapers…

  5. L’opinion publique russe et l’affaire Boudanov [Russian Public Opinion and The Budanov Case

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amandine Regamey

    2008-07-01

    Full Text Available In March 2000, Colonel Yuri Budanov kidnapped, raped and killed a young Chechen girl from the village of Tangui-Chu. After his arrest and during the entire trial, he claimed that she was a sniper who had murdered several of his soldiers, and that he had lost his temper and strangled her, but he denied raping her. High-ranking military officials closed ranks behind him, and at all stages of his trial demonstrations of support were organised in front of the court. He was finally condemned to ten years of imprisonment in July 2003. The aim of this article is to study how Russian public opinion perceived this case, using different kinds of sources (newspapers, forums and discussions on the Internet, public opinion polls, Human rights report, etc.. How were the events covered by the Russian medias? Some groups (the military, the Cossacks, fascist groups can be identified as his supporters. But what support did he receive from the general public and on what basis? Which arguments were used to defend Budanov and how were they perceived? Was this crime “justified” by the vengeance against “a sniper”, by the “laws of war”? Was Budanov a scapegoat sacrificed for the sake of good relations with the West? Defining the attitude towards Budanov might help explain why other Russian servicemen charged with crimes against Chechen civilians (the Ulman group, Arkacheev-Khudiakov have been systematically acquitted by a popular jury.

  6. OpinionFlow: Visual Analysis of Opinion Diffusion on Social Media.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Yingcai; Liu, Shixia; Yan, Kai; Liu, Mengchen; Wu, Fangzhao

    2014-12-01

    It is important for many different applications such as government and business intelligence to analyze and explore the diffusion of public opinions on social media. However, the rapid propagation and great diversity of public opinions on social media pose great challenges to effective analysis of opinion diffusion. In this paper, we introduce a visual analysis system called OpinionFlow to empower analysts to detect opinion propagation patterns and glean insights. Inspired by the information diffusion model and the theory of selective exposure, we develop an opinion diffusion model to approximate opinion propagation among Twitter users. Accordingly, we design an opinion flow visualization that combines a Sankey graph with a tailored density map in one view to visually convey diffusion of opinions among many users. A stacked tree is used to allow analysts to select topics of interest at different levels. The stacked tree is synchronized with the opinion flow visualization to help users examine and compare diffusion patterns across topics. Experiments and case studies on Twitter data demonstrate the effectiveness and usability of OpinionFlow.

  7. Method for Expressing Public Opinions Concerning the Introduction of an Emerging Technology to Society

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamamoto, Satoshi; Ito, Kyoko; Ohnishi, Satoshi; Nishida, Shogo

    Emerging technology may have considerable social impact. Because emerging technology has not yet been introduced in society, it is needed general public express its opinions on emerging technology. It is important that expressing opinion must have social spirit. A method to limit facility of the Internet and activate social spirit is proposed. Evaluation experiment were conducted to test the effectiveness of the proposed method, and the participant could express opinion with social spirit.

  8. Personality Traits and Foreign Policy Attitudes in German Public Opinion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schoen, Harald

    2007-01-01

    This article examines the effects of personality traits on attitudes toward foreign policy issues among the German public. Building on previous research, it argues that personality characteristics shape an individual's motivation, goals, and values, thereby providing criteria to evaluate external stimuli and affecting foreign policy opinions. An…

  9. [Occupational aspects of emergency medicine practice in Catalonia: the OPENCAT opinion survey].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacob, Javier; Gené, Emili; Alonso, Gilberto; Rimbau, Pere; Zorrilla, José; Casarramona, Francesc; Netto, Cristina; Sánchez, Pere; Hernández, Ricard; Escalada, Xavier; Miró, Òscar

    2017-01-01

    To gather information on the contracting and training of members of the Catalan Society of Emergency Medicine (SoCMUE) who work in emergency medicine and services in Catalonia. To survey their opinions on certain aspects of resource availability and working conditions. Cross-sectional descriptive study based on a survey sent to SoCMUE members. We studied the opinions of 5 types of respondent: hospital physicians, out-of-hospital physicians, hospital nurses, out-of-hospital nurses, and emergency medical technicians. Responses were grouped to compare the opinions of physicians and nurses and workers in hospital and prehospital settings. We received 616 responses from 1273 members (48.4% response rate). More physicians than nurses come from outside Catalonia and have contracts specifically linked to emergency care; in addition, physicians have done less postgraduate training in emergency medicine. More hospital staff than prehospital staff have permanent contracts linked to the department where they work. More hospital physicians are specialized in internal medicine than in family and community medicine. The opinion that emergency services are inadequately staffed was widespread. Most respondents believed that patient transport is good or adequate. However, respondents working in prehospital services expressed a lower opinion of transport. Great difficulty in combining work with family (life achieving work-life balance) was expressed by 13.5% overall, and more often by hospital staff. Some type of aggression was experienced by 88.2%; 60% reported the event to superiors. Nurses reported aggression more often than physicians. A police report was filed by 10.1%. Emergency medicine working conditions can be improved in Catalonia according to members of SoCMUE. Relations between groups of professionals are not optimum in some aspects.

  10. International survey on the management of Chiari 1 malformation and syringomyelia: evolving worldwide opinions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singhal, Ash; Cheong, Alexander; Steinbok, Paul

    2018-03-12

    In 2003, pediatric neurosurgeons were surveyed under the auspices of the education committee of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ISPN) to determine prevailing opinions regarding the management of Chiari I malformation (C1M) with and without associated syringomyelia. In the ensuing years, there has been further information from multiple C1M studies, with regards to indications, success rates of different surgical interventions, and complications. The purpose of this study was to re-evaluate current opinions and practices in pediatric C1M. Pediatric neurosurgeons worldwide were surveyed, using an e-mail list provided by the ISPN communication committee chairperson. Respondents were given scenarios similar to the 2003 C1M survey in order to determine opinions regarding whether to surgically intervene, and if so, with which operations. Of 300 surveys electronically distributed, 122 responses were received (40.6% response rate)-an improvement over the 30.8% response rate in 2003. Pediatric neurosurgeons from 34 different countries responded. There was broad consensus that non-operative management is appropriate in asymptomatic C1M (> 90%) as well as asymptomatic C1M with a small syrinx (> 65%). With a large syrinx, a majority (almost 80%) recommended surgical intervention. Scoliotic patients with CIM were generally offered surgery only when there was a large syrinx. There has been a shift in the surgical management over the past decade, with a bone-only decompression now being offered more commonly. There remains, however, great variability in the operation offered. This survey, with a relatively strong response rate, and with broad geographic representation, summarizes current worldwide expert opinion regarding management of pediatric C1M. Asymptomatic C1M and C1M with a small syrinx are generally managed non-operatively. When an operation is indicated, there has been a shift towards less invasive surgical approaches.

  11. Advanced nuclear reactor public opinion project

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Benson, B.

    1991-07-25

    This Interim Report summarizes the findings of our first twenty in-depth interviews in the Advanced Nuclear Reactor Public Opinion Project. We interviewed 6 industry trade association officials, 3 industry attorneys, 6 environmentalists/nuclear critics, 3 state officials, and 3 independent analysts. In addition, we have had numerous shorter discussions with various individuals concerned about nuclear power. The report is organized into the four categories proposed at our April, 1991, Advisory Group meeting: safety, cost-benefit analysis, science education, and communications. Within each category, some change of focus from that of the Advisory Group has been required, to reflect the findings of our interviews. This report limits itself to describing our findings. An accompanying memo draws some tentative conclusions.

  12. Advanced nuclear reactor public opinion project

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Benson, B.

    1991-01-01

    This Interim Report summarizes the findings of our first twenty in-depth interviews in the Advanced Nuclear Reactor Public Opinion Project. We interviewed 6 industry trade association officials, 3 industry attorneys, 6 environmentalists/nuclear critics, 3 state officials, and 3 independent analysts. In addition, we have had numerous shorter discussions with various individuals concerned about nuclear power. The report is organized into the four categories proposed at our April, 1991, Advisory Group meeting: safety, cost-benefit analysis, science education, and communications. Within each category, some change of focus from that of the Advisory Group has been required, to reflect the findings of our interviews. This report limits itself to describing our findings. An accompanying memo draws some tentative conclusions

  13. Urban Sloths: Public Knowledge, Opinions, and Interactions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kissia Ferreira Pereira

    2018-06-01

    Full Text Available Free-range sloths living in an urban environment are rare. In this study, the opinions, attitudes, and interactions with a population of Bradypus variegatus were investigated through short, structured interviews of people in the pubic square where the sloths live, in addition to informal, opportunistic observations of human-sloth interactions. A questionnaire was applied to people in the square where the sloths reside, and informal, opportunistic observations of human-sloth interactions were made. 95% of respondents knew of the sloths’ existence in the square and 87.8% liked their presence. Opinions about population size differed greatly and younger people were concerned as to whether the square was an appropriate place for them. Some human-sloth interactions showed the consequences of a lack of biological knowledge. People initiated all sloth-human interactions. The fact that sloths are strictly folivorous has avoided interactions with humans and, consequently, mitigated any negative impacts of the human-animal interaction on their wellbeing. These results demonstrate that, while there is a harmonious relationship between people and sloths, actions in environmental education of the square’s public could be beneficial for the sloths.

  14. Network public opinion space sentiment tendency analyze based on recurrent convolution neural network

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Gaowei; Xu, Lingyu; Wang, Lei

    2018-04-01

    The purpose of this chapter is to analyze the investor's psychological characteristics and investment decision-making behavior characteristics, to study the investor sentiment under the network public opinion, and then analyze from three aspects: First, investor sentiment analysis and how to spread in the online media; The influence mechanism of investor's emotion on the stock market and its effect; the third one is to measure the investor's emotion based on the degree of attention, trying hard to sort out the internal relations between the investor's sentiment and the network public opinion and the stock market, in order to lay the theoretical foundation of this article.

  15. Examining the Gap between Science and Public Opinion about Genetically Modified Food and Global Warming.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McFadden, Brandon R

    2016-01-01

    There is great uncertainty due to challenges of escalating population growth and climate change. Public perception that diverges from the scientific community may decrease the effectiveness of scientific inquiry and innovation as tools to solve these challenges. The objective of this study was to identify the factors associated with the divergence of public opinion from scientific consensus regarding the safety of genetically modified (GM) foods and human involvement in global warming (GW). Results indicate that the effects of knowledge on public opinion are complex and non-uniform across types of knowledge (i.e., perceived and actual) or issues. Political affiliation affects agreement with science; Democrats were more likely to agree that GM food is safe and human actions cause GW. Respondents who had relatively higher cognitive function or held illusionary correlations about GM food or GW were more likely to have an opinion that differed from the scientific community.

  16. Examining the Gap between Science and Public Opinion about Genetically Modified Food and Global Warming

    Science.gov (United States)

    McFadden, Brandon R.

    2016-01-01

    There is great uncertainty due to challenges of escalating population growth and climate change. Public perception that diverges from the scientific community may decrease the effectiveness of scientific inquiry and innovation as tools to solve these challenges. The objective of this study was to identify the factors associated with the divergence of public opinion from scientific consensus regarding the safety of genetically modified (GM) foods and human involvement in global warming (GW). Results indicate that the effects of knowledge on public opinion are complex and non-uniform across types of knowledge (i.e., perceived and actual) or issues. Political affiliation affects agreement with science; Democrats were more likely to agree that GM food is safe and human actions cause GW. Respondents who had relatively higher cognitive function or held illusionary correlations about GM food or GW were more likely to have an opinion that differed from the scientific community. PMID:27829008

  17. The Fukushima Accident and the Public Opinion in Slovenia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jencic, I.

    2012-01-01

    Nuclear Training Center (ICJT) at the Jozef Stefan Institute is actively involved also in public information of nuclear issues in Slovenia. After the accident in Fukushima ICJT was one of the main sources of technical information and explanation for the journalists. Organized groups, mainly schoolchildren, traditionally come to ICJT, where they listen to a live lecture and visit the permanent exhibition on nuclear energy. Each year in spring, around 1000 of visitors are polled regarding their knowledge and attitude towards nuclear energy. As the visitors of ICJT are not a representative sample of general population, the results of the poll can not be taken absolutely, but they are valuable when compared to previous years' results - to monitor trends in the (younger) public. In the year 2011, the poll was conducted one month after the accident in Fukushima. ICJT is also analysing media reports by following articles in all types of media: TV, radio, press and web. The first two months after the Fukushima accident the frequency of reports increased drastically and then slowly faded away to reach pre-accident level in about 6 months. Naturally there were a lot of concerned reports, some of them also very negative, but given the circumstances and compared with some other countries, e.g. Austria or Germany, the reporting was relatively objective. The paper will analyze the trends in public opinion in Slovenia based on direct contacts with journalists, opinion polls and media analyses.(author).

  18. Influence of communication on public opinion about nuclear energy; Influencia da comunicacao na aceitacao publica da energia nuclear

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Carvalho, Everton de Almeida [ELETROBRAS Termonuclear S.A., (ELETRONUCLEAR), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

    1997-12-31

    Public opinion on risks and benefits associated to nuclear energy is depending on psychological and social factors and mainly on the communication strategy used to transfer knowledge and facts about nuclear technology to the public. In this work, the individual and collective communication process and the influences on the public opinion on nuclear energy will be analyzed. (author) 3 refs., 1 fig.

  19. Education based thinking and behaving? Towards an identity perspective for studying education differentials in public opinion and political participation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Spruyt, Bram; Kuppens, Toon

    2015-01-01

    Education based thinking and behaving? Towards and identity perspective for studying education differentials in public opinion and political participation Abstract Ever since scholars started studying public opinion and political behaviour, they have reported substantial educational differences.

  20. Nuclear energy and the public opinion: analyses, communication strategy and actions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ansel, P.; Pages, J.P.

    1994-01-01

    A series of papers analysing the reactions of the public opinion concerning the nuclear energy, describing the information and communication strategies of some of the main French companies involved in the nuclear field, and presenting some of the actions undertaken in France and abroad

  1. Examining the Gap between Science and Public Opinion about Genetically Modified Food and Global Warming.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brandon R McFadden

    Full Text Available There is great uncertainty due to challenges of escalating population growth and climate change. Public perception that diverges from the scientific community may decrease the effectiveness of scientific inquiry and innovation as tools to solve these challenges. The objective of this study was to identify the factors associated with the divergence of public opinion from scientific consensus regarding the safety of genetically modified (GM foods and human involvement in global warming (GW. Results indicate that the effects of knowledge on public opinion are complex and non-uniform across types of knowledge (i.e., perceived and actual or issues. Political affiliation affects agreement with science; Democrats were more likely to agree that GM food is safe and human actions cause GW. Respondents who had relatively higher cognitive function or held illusionary correlations about GM food or GW were more likely to have an opinion that differed from the scientific community.

  2. Public opinion on nuclear energy - background and causes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rudloff, W.

    1990-01-01

    The nuclear energy discussion is as old as the discovery of nuclear fission. Its technical harnessing is one of the most important basic innovations of this century. The ambivalence of nuclear energy - peaceful and aggresssive utilization habe been equally realized - and potential endangerment by fission products have put a strain on its acceptance worldwide. The forming of public opinion is further complicated by the complexity of the system we call 'nuclear energy'. The beginning of its commercial utilization coincided with the first awareness of the 'limits to growth'. In many discussion and for many groups, also ideologically based ones, nuclear energy plays a substitute role in the social political debate on the 'right' way into the future. By means of one-sided and sometimes distorted representations, many media have contributed to the confusion. Industry and the business world, being interested in nuclear energy, have endeavored to take a stand in its defence, although not always qualitatively or quantitatively appropriate. These endeavors were impeded by sporadic strong politicalization of all relevant decisions. The specific roll behavior of those participating in the discussion was also at times a hindrance. The nuclear energy discussion is not locally limited, it is rather international. This should be taken into consideration in all endeavors for its acceptance. The beginning world-wide climate discussion will inveterately alter the position of nuclear energy and the public's opinion of it. (author)

  3. Capturing public opinion on public health topics: a comparison of experiences from a systematic review, focus group study, and analysis of online, user-generated content

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emma Louise Giles

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available BackgroundCapturing public opinion towards public health topics is important to ensure that services, policy and research are aligned with the beliefs and priorities of the general public. A number of approaches can be used to capture public opinion. MethodsWe are conducting a programme of work on the effectiveness and acceptability of health promoting financial incentive interventions. We have captured public opinion on financial incentive interventions using three methods: a systematic review, focus group study, and analysis of online user-generated comments to news media reports. In this short, editorial-style, piece we compare and contrast our experiences with these three methods.ResultsEach of these methods had their advantages and disadvantages. Advantages include tailoring of the research question for systematic reviews, probing of answers during focus groups, and the ability to aggregate a large data set using online user-generated content. However, disadvantages include needing to update systematic reviews, participants conforming to a dominant perspective in focus groups, and being unable to collect respondent characteristics during analysis of user-generated online content. That said, analysis of user-generated online content offers additional time and resource advantages, and we found it elicited similar findings to those obtained via more traditional methods, such as systematic reviews and focus groups. ConclusionsA number of methods for capturing public opinions on public health topics are available. Public health researchers, policy makers and practitioners should choose methods appropriate to their aims. Analysis user-generated online content, especially in the context of news media reports, may be a quicker and cheaper alternative to more traditional methods, without compromising on the breadth of opinions captured.

  4. Capturing Public Opinion on Public Health Topics: A Comparison of Experiences from a Systematic Review, Focus Group Study, and Analysis of Online, User-Generated Content.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Giles, Emma Louise; Adams, Jean M

    2015-01-01

    Capturing public opinion toward public health topics is important to ensure that services, policy, and research are aligned with the beliefs and priorities of the general public. A number of approaches can be used to capture public opinion. We are conducting a program of work on the effectiveness and acceptability of health promoting financial incentive interventions. We have captured public opinion on financial incentive interventions using three methods: a systematic review, focus group study, and analysis of online user-generated comments to news media reports. In this short editorial-style piece, we compare and contrast our experiences with these three methods. Each of these methods had their advantages and disadvantages. Advantages include tailoring of the research question for systematic reviews, probing of answers during focus groups, and the ability to aggregate a large data set using online user-generated content. However, disadvantages include needing to update systematic reviews, participants conforming to a dominant perspective in focus groups, and being unable to collect respondent characteristics during analysis of user-generated online content. That said, analysis of user-generated online content offers additional time and resource advantages, and we found it elicited similar findings to those obtained via more traditional methods, such as systematic reviews and focus groups. A number of methods for capturing public opinions on public health topics are available. Public health researchers, policy makers, and practitioners should choose methods appropriate to their aims. Analysis of user-generated online content, especially in the context of news media reports, may be a quicker and cheaper alternative to more traditional methods, without compromising on the breadth of opinions captured.

  5. Survey of public participation potential regarding the Muria NPP program

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yarianto-SBS; Sri Hariani Syarif; Heni Susiati; Imam Hamzah; Fepriadi

    2003-01-01

    Socio-culture aspect is a part of site feasibility evaluation of Nuclear Power Plant (NPP)program. Indonesia is under going democratization, therefore the paradigm of development has also been changed where the people have freedom or liberty and they can express their opinion independently. The people are significant factor that involving in the decision making of regional development.Even the socio-culture, such as social riot can reject the site. Therefore socio-culture aspect should be considered in the NPP site evaluation. The first step of the study,mapping of public participation potential should be conducted by field survey. The method used in there search is quantitative approach with field survey guided by questioner without any treatment of object sampled. Qualitative approach was also conducted by in-depth interview technique to collect more detailed information. Information were collected from general public without any stratification in the 10 km radius from NPP site. Sampling method used was full random sampling technique. The results of survey show that the most of the people have significant potential for participating in the NPP Program. Conducive atmosphere should be maintained by social setting, therefore the present good momentum will not be lost. (author)

  6. Examining Characteristics of Opinion Leaders in Social Media: A Motivational Approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephan Winter

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Social networking sites offer various opportunities to express opinions on politics and public affairs and to disseminate information to a large circle of acquaintances. The present research aims to identify the characteristics of people who consider themselves as opinion leaders on these new channels, the features they use in order to influence others, and the psychological motives they pursue. A survey ( N  = 527 among Facebook users identified political interest and personality strength as significant predictors of perceived Facebook opinion leadership, while the influence of extraversion was not significant. Those who write private messages on political debates do this in order to raise awareness of specific topics, while opinion expression in public status updates is also strongly connected to self-presentational goals (impression motivation. Moreover, the motives of presenting oneself positively and convincing others are particularly important for people with high personality strength. The present findings extend previous knowledge by redefining the concept of opinion leadership in new media environments and describing motivational links between individuals’ predispositions and their activities to influence others’ opinions. On a practical level, the pronounced role of self-presentational motives is likely to have important implications for the dynamics of public debates in social media.

  7. Differing professional views or opinions: 1994 Special Review Panel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1996-09-01

    In July 1994, the Executive Director for Operations of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) appointed a Special Review Panel to assess the Differing Professional View or Opinion (DPV/DPO) process, including its effectiveness, how well it is understood by employees, and the organizational climate for having such views aired and properly decided. An additional area within this review was to address the effectiveness of the DPO procedures as they pertain to public access and confidentiality. Further, the Panel was charged with the review of the submittals completed since the last review to identify employees who made significant contributions to the agency or to the public health and safety but had not been adequately recognized for this contribution. The report presents the Special Review Panel's evaluation of the NRC's current process for dealing with Differing Professional Views or Opinions. Provided in this report are the results of an employee opinion survey on the process; highlights and suggestions from interviews with individuals who had submitted a Differing Professional View or Opinion, as well as with agency managers directly involved with the Differing Professional Views or Opinions process; and the Special Review Panel's recommendations for improving the DPV/DPO process

  8. Attitudes and action: public opinion and the occurrence of international terrorism

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Krueger, A. B.; Malečková, Jitka

    2009-01-01

    Roč. 325, č. 5947 (2009), s. 1534-1536 ISSN 0036-8075 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) 7E08090 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z70850503 Keywords : international terrorism * public opinion toward another country Subject RIV: AO - Sociology, Demography Impact factor: 29.747, year: 2009

  9. Fatigued and drowsy driving: a survey of attitudes, opinions and behaviors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vanlaar, Ward; Simpson, Herb; Mayhew, Dan; Robertson, Robyn

    2008-01-01

    There is evidence suggesting that the problem of fatigued or drowsy driving is an important contributor to road crashes. However, not much is known about public perceptions of the issue. The purpose of this study was to obtain information on attitudes, opinions, and professed practices related to fatigued or drowsy driving. The data were gathered by means of a public opinion poll among a representative sample of 750 Ontario drivers. A majority of drivers (58.6%) admitted that they occasionally drive while fatigued or drowsy. Of greater importance, 14.5% of respondents admitted that they had fallen asleep or "nodded off" while driving during the past year. Nearly 2% were involved in a fatigue or drowsy driving related crash in the past year. Respondents were also asked about measures they take to overcome fatigue or drowsiness. Results indicate that relatively ineffective measures such as opening the window or playing music are the most popular; the most effective preventive measure--taking a rest--is the least popular. The prevalence of the behavior, coupled with the ineffective prevention measures favored by the public suggest there is a need for increasing their level of awareness and knowledge about the problem. Results from this study further emphasize the importance of increasing the fatigued and drowsy driving knowledge base and the need to educate the public about it.

  10. An online survey of chiropractors' opinions of continuing education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Smith Dean L

    2005-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Continuing Education (CE for chiropractors is mandatory for licensure in most North American jurisdictions. Numerous chiropractic colleges have begun collaborating with universities to offer master's degree programs. Distance education master's degree programs may be desirable to allow full-time practicing doctors to further their post-graduate education. The present survey sought to answer three questions. First, what is the level of satisfaction of chiropractors with their continuing education? Second, what is the level of interest of chiropractors in online master's degree programs? Lastly, what is the response rate of chiropractors to an online survey? Methods An online survey consisting of 22 multiple choice questions was e-mailed to 1000 chiropractors randomly selected from the mailing list of an online chiropractic newsletter. Upon completion of the questionnaire, participants' answers were saved on a secure site. Data analysis included evaluation of the demographic characteristics of the respondents, their opinions of and patterns of taking CE including online education, preferred learning formats, and their interest in proposed online master's degree programs. A survey response rate was determined. Results Nearly 86% of respondents felt their previously completed CE courses were either somewhat or extremely satisfactory. Over ninety percent of respondents who had completed online or distance CE coursesfound them to be somewhat or extremelysatisfactory. Almost half the respondents indicated that they most preferred online distance learning, while 34.08% most preferred face-to-face interaction. Fifty-three percent of respondents indicated an interest in starting a master's degree program; however 70.46% of respondents were interested in an online master's degree program that would offer CE credit. A response rate of 35.8% was obtained. Conclusion Satisfaction among chiropractors with CE programs is high. The notion of

  11. Public opinion on abortion in Mexico City after the landmark reform.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Kate S; García, Sandra G; Díaz Olavarrieta, Claudia; Villalobos-Hernández, Aremis; Rodríguez, Jorge Valencia; Smith, Patricio Sanhueza; Burks, Courtney

    2011-09-01

    This article presents findings from three opinion surveys conducted among representative samples of Mexico City residents: the first one immediately prior to the groundbreaking legalization of first-trimester abortion in April 2007, and one and two years after the reform. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to assess changes in opinion concerning abortion and correlates of favorable opinion following reform. In 2009 a clear majority (74 percent) of respondents were in support of the Mexico City law allowing for elective first-trimester abortion, compared with 63 percent in 2008 and 38 percent in 2007. A significant increase in support for extending the law to the rest of Mexico was found: from 51 percent in 2007 to 70 percent in 2008 and 83 percent in 2009. In 2008 the significant independent correlates of support for the Mexico City law were education, infrequent religious service attendance, sex (being male), and political party affiliation; in 2009 they were education beyond high school, infrequent religious service attendance, and ever having been married.

  12. Using Spatial, Economic, and Ecological Opinion Data to Inform Gray Wolf Conservation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berry, Meredith S; Nickerson, Norma P; Metcalf, Elizabeth Covelli

    2016-09-01

    Public opinion can be an influential factor in wildlife management decisions. Evaluating public opinions can help legitimize, or delegitimize, management and facilitate long-term conservation goals. This is especially true for the controversial issues surrounding the management of predators. We surveyed Montana, USA, residents during summer of 2013 to measure public opinion regarding economic and ecological impacts of the gray wolf ( Canis lupus ), and current management of this species. Although opinions were polarized in some areas, a greater percentage of Montanans think that wolves negatively affect the economy, but impact tourism (which contributes to the economy) positively. These differences may reflect the belief that rancher economic losses from wolf predation of cattle is greater than overall tourism gains related to wolves (e.g., wolf-watching), in addition to the perception of wolves negatively affecting big game (e.g., elk [ Cervus canadensis ]). Results also show that a slightly greater percentage of Montanans feel that wolves positively rather than negatively affect the ecosystem. Regarding specific practices, more Montanans than not have a positive opinion of maintaining wolves on the landscape and also support hunting of wolves. More Montanans hold negative rather than positive opinions, however, regarding wolf trapping. This result was most evident in western Montana as assessed by a spatial distribution of opinions by county and has implications for current wolf management and nontarget species. Results of ordinal regression analyses revealed that big game hunters, males, and those who held negative opinions of the effect of wolves on the Montana ecosystem and economy were significantly more likely to support both hunting and trapping practices. Living in western Montana predicted positive opinions of hunting, but alternatively, negative opinions of trapping. These results provide an understanding of public opinion of wolf management by county as

  13. Using Spatial, Economic, and Ecological Opinion Data to Inform Gray Wolf Conservation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berry, Meredith S.; Nickerson, Norma P.; Metcalf, Elizabeth Covelli

    2018-01-01

    Public opinion can be an influential factor in wildlife management decisions. Evaluating public opinions can help legitimize, or delegitimize, management and facilitate long-term conservation goals. This is especially true for the controversial issues surrounding the management of predators. We surveyed Montana, USA, residents during summer of 2013 to measure public opinion regarding economic and ecological impacts of the gray wolf (Canis lupus), and current management of this species. Although opinions were polarized in some areas, a greater percentage of Montanans think that wolves negatively affect the economy, but impact tourism (which contributes to the economy) positively. These differences may reflect the belief that rancher economic losses from wolf predation of cattle is greater than overall tourism gains related to wolves (e.g., wolf-watching), in addition to the perception of wolves negatively affecting big game (e.g., elk [Cervus canadensis]). Results also show that a slightly greater percentage of Montanans feel that wolves positively rather than negatively affect the ecosystem. Regarding specific practices, more Montanans than not have a positive opinion of maintaining wolves on the landscape and also support hunting of wolves. More Montanans hold negative rather than positive opinions, however, regarding wolf trapping. This result was most evident in western Montana as assessed by a spatial distribution of opinions by county and has implications for current wolf management and nontarget species. Results of ordinal regression analyses revealed that big game hunters, males, and those who held negative opinions of the effect of wolves on the Montana ecosystem and economy were significantly more likely to support both hunting and trapping practices. Living in western Montana predicted positive opinions of hunting, but alternatively, negative opinions of trapping. These results provide an understanding of public opinion of wolf management by county as

  14. The public opinion of nuclear energy in the Federal Republic of Germany 1955-1986

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dube, N.

    1988-01-01

    With this report an attempt is made to document all opinion polls concerning the peaceful use of nuclear energy in the Federal Republic of Germany. This documentation is designed to serve as a useful tool for social science research. It should support the historical analysis of long-term developments in public opinion and a systematic comparison of questions asked in different polls and at different times. (orig.) [de

  15. The voice of Holland: Dutch public and patient's opinion favours single-port laparoscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fransen, Sofie Af; Broeders, Epm; Stassen, Lps; Bouvy, Nd

    2014-07-01

    Single-port laparoscopy is prospected as the future of minimal invasive surgery. It is hypothesised to cause less post operative pain, with a shorter hospitalisation period and improved cosmetic results. Population- and patient-based opinion is important for the adaptation of new techniques. This study aimed to assess the opinion and perception of a healthy population and a patient population on single-port laparoscopy compared with conventional laparoscopy. An anonymous 33-item questionnaire, describing conventional and single-port laparoscopy, was given to 101 patients and 104 healthy volunteers. The survey participants (median age 44 years; range 17-82 years) were asked questions about their personal situation and their expectations and perceptions of the two different surgical techniques; conventional multi-port laparoscopy and single-port laparoscopy. A total of 72% of the participants had never heard of single-port laparoscopy before. The most important concern in both groups was the risk of surgical complications. When complication risks remain similar, 80% prefers single-port laparoscopy to conventional laparoscopy. When the risk of complications increases from 1% to 10%, 43% of all participants prefer single-port laparoscopy. A total of 70% of the participants are prepared to receive treatment in another hospital if single-port surgery is not performed in their hometown hospital. The preference for single-port approach was higher in the female population. Although cure and safety remain the main concerns, the population and patients group have a favourable perception of single-port surgery. The impact of public opinion and patient perception towards innovative techniques is undeniable. If the safety of the two different procedures is similar, this study shows a positive attitude of both participant groups in favour of single-port laparoscopy. However, solid scientific proof for the safety and feasibility of this new surgical technique needs to be obtained

  16. Public opinion confronted by the safety problems associated with different energy source

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Otway, H J; Thomas, K

    1978-09-01

    Model study of public opinion 'for' and 'against' the various energy sources - oil, coal, solar and nuclear power. Attitudes are examined from four aspects: psychology - economic advantages, sociopolitical problems, environmental problems and safety. The investigation focuses on nuclear energy. (13 refs.) (In French)

  17. The Influence of Marketing Public Relation and Service Quality on Corporate Image Through Public Opinion: Studies at Mandiri Bank

    OpenAIRE

    Suciyati, Vera

    2013-01-01

    This research aims to analyze the influence of marketing public relation and service quality at Bank Mandiri on corporate image through public. Convenience sampling method has been selected in order to obtain the data in this study. The analysis method that used was the path analysis. The research result had shown that: marketing public relation and service quality have significant influence simultaneously and partially on public opinion on the first structure equation. The second structure e...

  18. Elite Polarization and Public Opinion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Robison, Joshua; Mullinix, Kevin

    2016-01-01

    Elite polarization has reshaped American politics and is an increasingly salient aspect of news coverage within the United States. As a consequence, a burgeoning body of research attempts to unravel the effects of elite polarization on the mass public. However, we know very little about how...... polarization is communicated to the public by news media. We report the results of one of the first content analyses to delve into the nature of news coverage of elite polarization. We show that such coverage is predominantly critical of polarization. Moreover, we show that unlike coverage of politics focused...... on individual politicians, coverage of elite polarization principally frames partisan divisions as rooted in the values of the parties rather than strategic concerns. We build on these novel findings with two survey experiments exploring the influence of these features of polarization news coverage on public...

  19. Public opinion on renewable energy: The nexus of climate, politics, and economy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Olson-Hazboun, Shawn K.

    Increased use of renewable energy sources in the generation of electricity is a crucial component of transitioning to a less polluting energy system in the United States. Technologies like solar photovoltaic cells and wind turbines are being deployed at a rapid rate around the country, which means that an increasing portion of the public is becoming aware of renewable energy systems. The construction of these new industrial facilities has resulted in a variety of public reactions, positive and negative. Citizen opposition has been widely observed toward a variety of renewable energy facilities, and citizen groups can influence policy-making at the national, state, and local levels. Further research is needed to understand under what circumstances the public may take oppositional stances. To examine this topic, I analyze public perceptions of renewable energy using three different datasets. First, I used data from a survey conducted in 2014 in five communities in Utah, Wyoming, and Idaho experiencing renewable energy development (n=906). This dataset allowed me to untangle what factors help explain both individual as well as community-level variation in support for renewable energy. Second, I employed nationally representative survey data (n=13, 322) collected from 2008 to 2015 to examine the influence of a number of factors hypothesized to shape individuals' level of support for renewable energy policies including socio-demographic characteristics, political beliefs, belief in anthropogenic climate change, and nearby extractive industry activities. Last, I analyzed discourse about renewable energy in sixty-one semi-structured interviews with individuals representing various community sectors in three energy-producing rural communities in Utah. My research findings, on a whole, suggest that several place-based factors are significant in shaping public opinion about renewable energy, including community experience with renewable energy and local economic reliance on

  20. Good acceptance: Public opinion about nuclear energy in Slovenia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stritar, Andrej; Istenic, Radko

    2000-01-01

    Nuclear Training Centre Milan Copic at the Jozef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana is performing extensive public information activities. All the elementary and high schools in Slovenia are invited to visit our permanent exhibition and attend the lecture about the nuclear energy or radioactive waste disposal. In the year 1998 7427 visitors visited us. Most of them are from the 7th and 8th grade of elementary school, age 14 to 15. Every year in the spring we ask several hundred of visitors the same set of questions about their knowledge and opinion about nuclear energy. They are polled before they listen to the lecture or visit the exhibition. In that way we are trying to obtain their opinion based on the knowledge they obtain in everyday life. This paper shows the Result of the 1999 Poll. Comparison of the results with previous years shows stable and steadily improving public acceptance of nuclear energy in Slovenia. The following conclusions can be obtained: Cleanliness of nuclear power is not well understood and should be stressed in information activities; Radioactive waste is still considered as a major problem of our industry and is even gaining on importance; Percentage of people believing that NPP Krsko should operate until the end of its lifetime is high and steady. For the first time we have determined, that almost of people would accept a new nuclear power plant in the country. No correlation between social environment and understanding of nuclear energy could be found. But, relatively favourable public acceptance can change over night. Therefore a permanent information activity is essential

  1. Track leading to decision of 'framework for nuclear energy policy'. Reading the public attitude with public opinions (the first). Contents of a new plan (as of June 2005)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shimooka, Hiroshi

    2006-01-01

    The Government decides to respect the 'Framework for Nuclear Energy Policy', which was decided by the Atomic Energy Commission on October 11th, 2005, as a basic principle for the nuclear energy policy and promote research, development and utilization of nuclear science and engineering. The Planning Council asked public opinion and received 758 opinions from 393 citizens. The Council continued the deliberation taking these opinions and compiled a preliminary draft of the 'Framework for Nuclear Energy Policy'. Reading the public attitude with public opinions had been conducted by the author, which showed the necessity for the nation to communicate crucial issues such as the nation's role of nuclear program's implementation, reasons for further promotion of nuclear program and its impacts on environments as well as more preferable introduction of new energy or energy conservation in stead of nuclear power, more to the public. (T. Tanaka)

  2. Developing convolutional neural networks for measuring climate change opinions from social media data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mao, H.; Bhaduri, B. L.

    2016-12-01

    Understanding public opinions on climate change is important for policy making. Public opinion, however, is typically measured with national surveys, which are often too expensive and thus being updated at a low frequency. Twitter has become a major platform for people to express their opinions on social and political issues. Our work attempts to understand if Twitter data can provide complimentary insights about climate change perceptions. Since the nature of social media is real-time, this data source can especially help us understand how public opinion changes over time in response to climate events and hazards, which though is very difficult to be captured by manual surveys. We use the Twitter Streaming API to collect tweets that contain keywords, "climate change" or "#climatechange". Traditional machine-learning based opinion mining algorithms require a significant amount of labeled data. Data labeling is notoriously time consuming. To address this problem, we use hashtags (a significant feature used to mark topics of tweets) to annotate tweets automatically. For example, hashtags, #climatedenial and #climatescam, are negative opinion labels, while #actonclimate and #climateaction are positive. Following this method, we can obtain a large amount of training data without human labor. This labeled dataset is used to train a deep convolutional neural network that classifies tweets into positive (i.e. believe in climate change) and negative (i.e. do not believe). Based on the positive/negative tweets obtained, we will further analyze risk perceptions and opinions towards policy support. In addition, we analyze twitter user profiles to understand the demographics of proponents and opponents of climate change. Deep learning techniques, especially convolutional deep neural networks, have achieved much success in computer vision. In this work, we propose a convolutional neural network architecture for understanding opinions within text. This method is compared with

  3. Interest group opinions about fuel reduction in southern Appalachia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carin E. Vadala; Robert D. Bixler; Thomas A. Waldrop

    2013-01-01

    Opinions of interested publics and interest groups (n = 640) about fuel reduction (FR) in the Southern Appalachian Mountains were investigated through social survey using both pictorial and written questions. The study identified three discrete groups based on knowledge of forest history in the Southern Appalachian Mountains, attitudes toward social and ecological...

  4. Risk perception: expert opinion versus public understanding. [Of radioactive waste repositories

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brown, J

    1987-02-01

    A research project looking at the public's attitudes towards the siting of radioactive waste depositories is reported. The risk perception studies seek to compare expert and lay understanding of risk. Adverse public reactions to risk can only be understood if it is known how people relate to risks in their everyday or working lives. Social trends and experiences are important, for example, the adverse public opinion on the siting of nuclear waste facilities. A number of elements have been identified as common to different risk areas such as chemicals, drugs, food or radioactive waste. These are the clashing of values, polarization of beliefs or clashes of interest.

  5. A Survey of Public Opinion on Cat (Felis catus) Predation and the Future Direction of Cat Management in New Zealand

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Jessica K.; Bruce, Stephanie J.; Dale, Arnja R.

    2017-01-01

    Simple Summary The need to balance the benefits of cat ownership with the prevention of wildlife predation in New Zealand evokes strong and opposing views. This paper evaluates public concern for wildlife predation by four categories of cats; owned cats, managed-stray cats, unmanaged-stray cats, and feral cats. In addition, public support for a National Cat Management Strategy and a range of management techniques are investigated. Although the participants expressed concern regarding wildlife predation by all four categories of cats, the highest levels of concern were predation by feral cats, followed by unmanaged stray cats, then managed stray cats, and finally owned cats. The large majority of participants were found to support the implementation of a National Cat Management Strategy. Management techniques for owned cats that obtained public support included; cat exclusion zones, limits on ownership numbers, microchipping, Council registration, and de-sexing. Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) was the favoured management technique for managed stray cats, while TNR and lethal management techniques were equally favoured for unmanaged stray cats. Lethal control methods were favoured for feral cats. The findings presented in this paper will be useful to consider during the development of legislation relating to cat management and predation in New Zealand. Abstract Cat predation is a prominent issue in New Zealand that provokes strong and opposing views. We explored, via 1011 face-to-face questionnaires, public opinion on (a) support for a National Cat Management Strategy (78% support); (b) concern regarding predation of wildlife by owned and un-owned cats (managed stray, unmanaged stray, and feral cats); (c) the acceptability of management techniques for owned cats; and (d) the acceptability of population management techniques for un-owned cats. The highest concern was expressed regarding the predation of non-native and native wildlife by feral cats (60 and 86% repectively

  6. Public opinion, public information and public implication in radioactive waste management in the European Union; La opinion publica, informacion publica e implicacion publica en la gestion de residuos radiactivos en la Union Europea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Taylor, D.; Webster, S.

    2004-07-01

    The nuclear industry in European must address the issue of the lack of Public acceptance. In particular, the public are very concerned about radioactive waste. It is clear that there is a need to better inform the public about radioactive waste and to consult them as part of the decision-making process concerning the management of these wastes. Existing and proposed new European legislation not only encourage this provision of information and involvement in the decision-making process, but actually require it. The paper examines Public opinion and European legislation in this area and reports on the latest research on societal issues in radioactive waste management carried out under the Community's Euratom Framework Programme. (Author)

  7. Students Opinions and Attitudes towards Physical Education Classes in Kuwait Public Schools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohammed, Heyam Reda; Mohammad, Mona Ahmad

    2012-01-01

    The aim of study was to investigate student opinion and attitude toward physical education classes. Two thousand seven hundred (2700) students answered the survey: 1239 (45.3%) were male students and 1497 (54.7%) were female from Kuwait six districts: Al_Hawalli, Al_Asimah, Al_Jahra, Al_Mobarak, Al_Farwniah, Al_Ahmadi. Weight Status was determined…

  8. [Medical students and psychiatry. A survey of students' opinion].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Giberti, F; Corsini, G; Rovida, S

    1994-06-01

    In the last years research on the didactics of Psychiatry and opinions of medical students on Psychiatry has gained great interest. The authors think that this research could be useful for the improvement of didactics, for better understanding the meanings of professional choice, the identity of psychiatrist and their relationship with colleagues in other medical field. The goal of this research work was a preliminary survey of Genoese University Medical Student's opinions about psychiatry didactics, and choice of specialization. A questionnaire was submitted to all the students who passed Clinical Psychiatry examination in the period from November 1987 to December 1988. The students were divided in two randomized groups: the first group of students (224) was submitted to the questionnaire immediately after Clinical Psychiatry examination; while to the second group of students (66) the questionnaire was mailed. The aim of the questions was to assess the student's opinions on psychiatry, psychoanalysis, psychotherapy, the career they wanted to take up, and the difficulties of studying psychiatry: 69% of the students of the first group and 42% of the students of the second group answered the questionnaire. Female students answered that they preferred psychiatric specialization more than their male colleagues did, but the difference has no statistical importance. In most cases, the students who answered that they have taken into account psychiatry as a choice of specialisation, are more interested in medical specialties (primary care, etc.) than in surgical specialties. Most of the medical students declare some emotional troubles (anxiety, sleeplessness, problem in social relations).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

  9. Opinions on Energy and Nuclear Power. Research project energy public opinion in Sweden; Aasikter om energi och kaernkraft. Forskningsprojektet Energiopinionen i Sverige

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hedberg, Per; Holmberg, Soeren

    2012-11-01

    This report includes results from a survey concerning the following issues: opinions on the use of nuclear power in Sweden in the long term, to phase out nuclear power or not, risk analysis, which energy sources should Sweden use, trust in stakeholders, as well as ways to decrease energy consumption.

  10. Opinion barometer on energy and climate in January 2009

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2009-04-01

    This article reports and comments the results of a survey performed by the CREDOC on a representative sample of 2006 French people. Eight questions have been asked, dealing with two main themes: energy production (opinion about the energy production mode, about renewable energies, about nuclear energy) and consumers' attitude (in front of energy price increase, when acquiring expensive equipment like a car, a heater or any other big domestic equipment). Tables give results on the opinion on energy public policy in France, on wind turbine installation. These results are given in terms of gender, age, socio-economic categories, and town size. Graphs indicate the evolution since 1983 of the opinion on nuclear energy and on the worry of nuclear plant incident

  11. A survey on the regional characteristics of public's nuclear recognition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohnishi, Teruaki; Tsujimoto, Tadashi

    1999-03-01

    A public opinion survey was made to obtain fundamental data for the further enhancement of nuclear public acceptance. After processing and making insight into those obtained data, some proposals were made regarding the methodology of nuclear PRs activity to be taken hereafter. The survey was made in October 1998, for respective 1000 and 500 samples in the northern and southern regions of Fukui prefecture by the door-to-door method, and 1000 samples in the urban region of Kinki district and 350 nuclear specialists both by the mailing method. Questionnaires are to clarify the degree of public's recognition of nuclear energy relative to the other sciences and technologies, which include the degrees of contact with and reliance on the newsmedia, the degrees of interest in and attention to the science and technology along with nuclear technologies, the yes-or-no to the promotion of nuclear generation and so on. The obtained data were processed with the attributes of objects, from which data it became clear the remarkable difference of the extend to understanding of nuclear information between two genders, and the peculiarity of the degree of attention to nuclear news for the public in southern Fukui compared to the other public. It was also found the difference of the recognition of nuclear energy between the general public and nuclear specialists, indicating the clear estrangement between technical safety and social easiness in nuclear energy. Some proposals useful for the further acceptance of nuclear energy were made from the viewpoint of PRs activity. (author)

  12. Issue-Relevant Values and Opinions About Gay Rights: Beyond Equality and Morality.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rhodebeck, Laurie

    2018-01-01

    Although many studies have examined the role of values in shaping public opinion, the number of values that inform this research is limited. This article employs the concept of issue-relevant values as a means to explore the broader range of values associated with policy issues. After discussing the concept in general terms, the article explores issue-relevant values pertinent to public opinion about gay rights. Using the policy examples of employment nondiscrimination and same-sex couple adoption, the present study identifies, measures, and assesses several values that add to the very short list previously used to explain public opinion about gay rights issues. Content from interest-group Web sites and news media coverage of the two issues aided in identifying the values. Data from an original Internet survey yield valid measures of the values. Multivariate analyses indicate that the values behave in predictable ways: they are strongly influenced by partisanship, and they strongly affect opinions about the two issues. The performance of the values is consistent with findings from previous research on the partisan basis of values and the value-based nature of opinions. The article concludes with suggestions for further empirical and theoretical work that could apply and extend the concept of issue-relevant values.

  13. Opinions of health care professionals and the public after eight years of euthanasia legislation in the Netherlands: a mixed methods approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kouwenhoven, Pauline S C; Raijmakers, Natasja J H; van Delden, Johannes J M; Rietjens, Judith A C; Schermer, Maartje H N; van Thiel, Ghislaine J M W; Trappenburg, Margo J; van de Vathorst, Suzanne; van der Vegt, Bea J; Vezzoni, Cristiano; Weyers, Heleen; van Tol, Donald G; van der Heide, Agnes

    2013-03-01

    The practice of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (PAS) in the Netherlands has been regulated since 2002 by the Euthanasia Act. In the ongoing debate about the interpretation of this Act, comparative information about the opinions of the different stakeholders is needed. To evaluate the opinions of Dutch physicians, nurses and the general public on the legal requirements for euthanasia and PAS. A cross-sectional survey among Dutch physicians and nurses in primary and secondary care and members of the Dutch general public, followed by qualitative interviews among selected respondents. The participants were: 793 physicians, 1243 nurses and 1960 members of the general public who completed the questionnaire; 83 were interviewed. Most respondents agreed with the requirement of a patient request (64-88%) and the absence of a requirement concerning life expectancy (48-71%). PAS was thought acceptable by 24-39% of respondents for patients requesting it because of mental suffering due to loss of control, chronic depression or early dementia. In the case of severe dementia, one third of physicians, 58% of nurses and 77% of the general public agreed with performing euthanasia based on an advance directive. Interviewees illustrated these findings and supported the Act. Health care professionals and the general public mostly support the legal requirements for euthanasia and PAS. The law permits euthanasia or PAS for mental suffering but this possibility is not widely endorsed. The general public is more liberal towards euthanasia for advanced dementia than health care professionals. We conclude that there is ample support for the law after eight years of legal euthanasia.

  14. Adaptation and Validation of the Brief Sexual Opinion Survey (SOS) in a Colombian Sample and Factorial Equivalence with the Spanish Version

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sierra, Juan Carlos; Soler, Franklin

    2016-01-01

    Attitudes toward sexuality are a key variable for sexual health. It is really important for psychology and education to have adapted and validated questionnaires to evaluate these attitudes. Therefore, the objective of this research was to adapt, validate and calculate the equivalence of the Colombia Sexual Opinion Survey as compared to the same survey from Spain. To this end, a total of eight experts were consulted and 1,167 subjects from Colombia and Spain answered the Sexual Opinion Survey, the Sexual Assertiveness Scale, the Massachusetts General Hospital-Sexual Functioning Questionnaire, and the Sexuality Scale. The evaluation was conducted by online and the results show adequate qualitative and quantitative properties of the items, with adequate reliability and external validity and compliance with the strong invariance between the two countries. Consequently, the Colombia Sexual Opinion Survey is a valid and reliable scale and its scores can be compared with the ones from the Spain survey, with minimum bias. PMID:27627114

  15. Exploring democracy in the Russian Federation: political regime, public opinion and international assistance

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gerrits, A.W.M.

    2010-01-01

    This article discusses three questions: what is the purpose of ‘democratic’ institutions and practices in Russia's authoritarian political system; how do these institutions and practices resonate with Russian public opinion; and how do they relate to the international democracy-promotion effort in

  16. Geographic variation in opinions on climate change at state and local scales in the USA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howe, Peter D.; Mildenberger, Matto; Marlon, Jennifer R.; Leiserowitz, Anthony

    2015-06-01

    Addressing climate change in the United States requires enactment of national, state and local mitigation and adaptation policies. The success of these initiatives depends on public opinion, policy support and behaviours at appropriate scales. Public opinion, however, is typically measured with national surveys that obscure geographic variability across regions, states and localities. Here we present independently validated high-resolution opinion estimates using a multilevel regression and poststratification model. The model accurately predicts climate change beliefs, risk perceptions and policy preferences at the state, congressional district, metropolitan and county levels, using a concise set of demographic and geographic predictors. The analysis finds substantial variation in public opinion across the nation. Nationally, 63% of Americans believe global warming is happening, but county-level estimates range from 43 to 80%, leading to a diversity of political environments for climate policy. These estimates provide an important new source of information for policymakers, educators and scientists to more effectively address the challenges of climate change.

  17. Fertility treatment for the transgender community: a public opinion study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goldman, Randi H; Kaser, Daniel J; Missmer, Stacey A; Farland, Leslie V; Scout; Ashby, Rachel K; Ginsburg, Elizabeth S

    2017-11-01

    The purposes of this study were to evaluate public opinion regarding fertility treatment and gamete cryopreservation for transgender individuals and identify how support varies by demographic characteristics. This is a cross-sectional web-based survey study completed by a representative sample of 1111 US residents aged 18-75 years. Logistic regression was used to calculate odd ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of support for/opposition to fertility treatments for transgender people by demographic characteristics, adjusting a priori for age, gender, race, and having a biological child. Of 1336 people recruited, 1111 (83.2%) agreed to participate, and 986 (88.7%) completed the survey. Most respondents (76.2%) agreed that "Doctors should be able to help transgender people have biological children." Atheists/agnostics were more likely to be in support (88.5%) than Christian-Protestants (72.4%; OR = 3.10, CI = 1.37-7.02), as were younger respondents, sexual minorities, those divorced/widowed, Democrats, and non-parents. Respondents who did not know a gay person (10.0%; OR = 0.20, CI = 0.09-0.42) or only knew a gay person without children (41.4%; OR = 0.29, CI = 0.17-0.50) were more often opposed than those who knew a gay parent (48.7%). No differences in gender, geography, education, or income were observed. A smaller majority of respondents supported doctors helping transgender minors preserve gametes before transitioning (60.6%) or helping transgender men carry pregnancies (60.1%). Most respondents who support assisted and third-party reproduction also support such interventions to help transgender people have children.

  18. Aspects of public opinion research in risk perception studies covering the nuclear field

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tanimoto, Katia Suemi; Hiromoto, Goro, E-mail: ktanimoto@ipen.b, E-mail: hiromoto@ipen.b [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

    2011-07-01

    A project for site selection and construction of a national radioactive waste repository is underway at the Comissao Nacional de Energia Nuclear. Public acceptance is determinant to the deployment of an undertaking of this size. A major concern regarding the use of nuclear energy are the problems related to safe management of the radioactive waste. For effective communication between decision makers and the public, a mutual understanding of views, as well as attitudes towards risk, is needed. The use of opinions polls is necessary in order to achieve it. This work aims to point out the major aspects to be approached by an opinion poll for the study of risk perception on the candidate regions for repository construction. A risk perception research model is presented, to be applied to the case of radioactive waste disposal, along with theoretical support to the organization and implementation of its structure. (author)

  19. Aspects of public opinion research in risk perception studies covering the nuclear field

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tanimoto, Katia Suemi; Hiromoto, Goro

    2011-01-01

    A project for site selection and construction of a national radioactive waste repository is underway at the Comissao Nacional de Energia Nuclear. Public acceptance is determinant to the deployment of an undertaking of this size. A major concern regarding the use of nuclear energy are the problems related to safe management of the radioactive waste. For effective communication between decision makers and the public, a mutual understanding of views, as well as attitudes towards risk, is needed. The use of opinions polls is necessary in order to achieve it. This work aims to point out the major aspects to be approached by an opinion poll for the study of risk perception on the candidate regions for repository construction. A risk perception research model is presented, to be applied to the case of radioactive waste disposal, along with theoretical support to the organization and implementation of its structure. (author)

  20. Opinion data mining based on DNA method and ORA software

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Ru-Ya; Wu, Lei; Liang, Xiao-He; Zhang, Xue-Fu

    2018-01-01

    Public opinion, especially the online public opinion is a critical issue when it comes to mining its characteristics. Because it can be formed directly and intensely in a short time, and may lead to the outbreak of online group events, and the formation of online public opinion crisis. This may become the pushing hand of a public crisis event, or even have negative social impacts, which brings great challenges to the government management. Data from the mass media which reveal implicit, previously unknown, and potentially valuable information, can effectively help us to understand the evolution law of public opinion, and provide a useful reference for rumor intervention. Based on the Dynamic Network Analysis method, this paper uses ORA software to mine characteristics of public opinion information, opinion topics, and public opinion agents through a series of indicators, and quantitatively analyzed the relationships between them. The results show that through the analysis of the 8 indexes associating with opinion data mining, we can have a basic understanding of the public opinion characteristics of an opinion event, such as who is important in the opinion spreading process, the information grasping condition, and the opinion topics release situation.

  1. Secondary School Youth Opinion Survey on Energetics within the Programme Nuclear Physics Use - the Past, Present and Future

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Skulj, B.; Filipin, R.

    2002-01-01

    METHOD OF SURVEY: As a part of the years-long educative programme Nuclear physics use: the past, present and future all parttakers fill in a survey questionaire of 11 topical questions, mostly related to the issues of nuclear energy. The questionaire is filled in before visiting the nuclear power plant Krsko. TARGET GROUP: Technical Musem, in cooperation with Hrvatska elektroprivreda, has been organizing high-school students' visits to the nuclear power plant Krsko since 1989. From all schools that have so far visited the nuclear power plant, Zagreb high schools and technical schools are the most represented ones. The respondents are aged between 16 and 20. The copies of the survey that have been filled in during 2000/2001 are to be analyzed, and the expected number of the respondents is about 600. QUESTIONS: Survey questions reflected several different fields, all in some sort of connection to nuclear energetics. Among them are: -present and future energy resources acceptability of different types of power plants environmental protection and global warming radioactivity radioactive waste issues nuclear power plants types of information resources. Such a wide range of different subjects included in the survey has been chosen so that, after its analysis, further efforts can be taken in quality informing of insufficiently known issues. Also, this kind of public poll will provide the Museum and Hrvatska elektroprivreda with relevant findings about the climate of opinion and the thinking of young generations towards energetics issues and the cause of its future development. The analyzed results of the survey present only a fragment of the material, later to be published in a separate publication. (author)

  2. Public opinion about nuclear energy. Year 2005 poll

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Istenic, R.; Jencic, I.

    2005-01-01

    Public information is one of the important permanent activities of the Nuclear Training Centre Milan Copic at Jozef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana. It is focused on youngsters and about one half of every generation of schoolchildren in Slovenia is informed on nuclear energy. Every year since 1993 we poll youngsters using the same basic set of questions. For comparison we also polled professionals (our colleagues at the Jozef Stefan Institute) using the same questionnaire. Opinion of youngsters about nuclear energy in Slovenia can be considered favourable now (71 %), but the trend is negative. The support is dropping from initial 83% for two consecutive years. Opposition to NPP Krsko operation remains low. (author)

  3. Advanced nuclear reactor public opinion project. Interim report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Benson, B.

    1991-07-25

    This Interim Report summarizes the findings of our first twenty in-depth interviews in the Advanced Nuclear Reactor Public Opinion Project. We interviewed 6 industry trade association officials, 3 industry attorneys, 6 environmentalists/nuclear critics, 3 state officials, and 3 independent analysts. In addition, we have had numerous shorter discussions with various individuals concerned about nuclear power. The report is organized into the four categories proposed at our April, 1991, Advisory Group meeting: safety, cost-benefit analysis, science education, and communications. Within each category, some change of focus from that of the Advisory Group has been required, to reflect the findings of our interviews. This report limits itself to describing our findings. An accompanying memo draws some tentative conclusions.

  4. Demographic and social factors influencing public opinion on prostitution: an exploratory study in Kwazulu-Natal province, South Africa

    OpenAIRE

    Pudifin, S; Bosch, S

    2012-01-01

    This paper examines countervailing South African public opinion on the subject of prostitution in South Africa, and identifies the factors which might influence these attitudes. It also investigates the complex relationship between public opinion and the law. Whilst engaging in prostitution constitutes a criminal offence under the Sexual Offences Act 23 of 1957, it is generally ignored by the police, which results in a quasi-legalised reality on the ground. In recent years there has been grow...

  5. Global nuclear survey: Public support for new power plants remains tentative

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2005-01-01

    Full text: A new 18-country opinion survey sponsored by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) found that 'while majorities of citizens generally support the continued use of existing nuclear reactors, most people do not favour the building of new nuclear plants'. Indeed, the findings of the survey, conducted by Globescan Inc. show that 'six in ten citizens (62%) overall believe that existing nuclear reactors should continue to be used, yet six in ten (59%) do not favour new nuclear plants being built'. At a time when the nuclear power option is being vigorously pursued in the fast developing countries of Asia and being reconsidered in some European nations and the USA, the findings raise questions as to whether the nuclear industry and politicians have sufficiently raised public confidence in the safety and efficiency of the nuclear power option. Regionally, support for nuclear power is highest in South Korea, the United States and India, where clear pluralities support the building of new nuclear plants. In Morocco, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Cameroon, pluralities prefer that all existing plants be shut down. The IAEA-sponsored survey was conducted between May and August this year in 18 countries representing all regions. Approximately 18,000 people were polled by telephone and in-person interviews. The opinion poll fielded six distinct questions, ranging from awareness of the IAEA and the effectiveness of IAEA inspections to support for peaceful nuclear applications and views about the security of nuclear materials and facilities and the threat of nuclear terrorism. Among the many revealing findings from the survey: 1) Pluralities of citizens in all but three of the 18 countries surveyed believe that IAEA inspections are not effective in monitoring countries' nuclear programmes. An average of 46 percent of people across the 18 countries surveyed say that IAEA inspections are not effective, while three in ten people (29%) say that they are; 2) Majorities in

  6. Public reactions to windfarms: the dynamics of opinion formation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Elliott, D.A.

    1994-03-01

    With more than 20 windfarms now in operation in the UK, public responses to the reality rather than to the idea are emerging. The evidence is mixed: most opinion polls show overall strong support, but there are, equally, signs of strong local opposition in some areas and a general polarisation of views. This paper attempts to explore the way in which local and national attitudes and views have developed, looking in particular at the role of the Government, academia, and the media. It argues for more constructive debate aimed at developing a consensus on the UK's 'carrying capacity' for windfarms. (Author)

  7. Public reactions to windfarms: the dynamics of opinion formation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Elliott, D.A.

    1994-01-01

    With more than 20 windfarms now in operation in the UK, public responses to the reality rather than to the idea are emerging. The evidence is mixed: most opinion polls show strong overall support, but there are, equally, signs of strong local opposition in some areas and a general polarisation of views. This paper attempts to explore the way in which local and national attitudes and views have developed, looking in particular at the role of the Government, academic, and the media. It argues for a more constructive debate aimed at developing a consensus on the UK's 'carrying capacity' for windfarms. (author)

  8. Public appraisal of government efforts and participation intent in medico-ethical policymaking in Japan: a large scale national survey concerning brain death and organ transplant

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sato, Hajime; Akabayashi, Akira; Kai, Ichiro

    2005-01-01

    Background Public satisfaction with policy process influences the legitimacy and acceptance of policies, and conditions the future political process, especially when contending ethical value judgments are involved. On the other hand, public involvement is required if effective policy is to be developed and accepted. Methods Using the data from a large-scale national opinion survey, this study evaluates public appraisal of past government efforts to legalize organ transplant from brain-dead bodies in Japan, and examines the public's intent to participate in future policy. Results A relatively large percentage of people became aware of the issue when government actions were initiated, and many increasingly formed their own opinions on the policy in question. However, a significant number (43.3%) remained unaware of any legislative efforts, and only 26.3% of those who were aware provided positive appraisals of the policymaking process. Furthermore, a majority of respondents (61.8%) indicated unwillingness to participate in future policy discussions of bioethical issues. Multivariate analysis revealed the following factors are associated with positive appraisals of policy development: greater age; earlier opinion formation; and familiarity with donor cards. Factors associated with likelihood of future participation in policy discussion include younger age, earlier attention to the issue, and knowledge of past government efforts. Those unwilling to participate cited as their reasons that experts are more knowledgeable and that the issues are too complex. Conclusions Results of an opinion survey in Japan were presented, and a set of factors statistically associated with them were discussed. Further efforts to improve policy making process on bioethical issues are desirable. PMID:15661080

  9. The 2009 Health Confidence Survey: public opinion on health reform varies; strong support for insurance market reform and public plan option, mixed response to tax cap.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fronstin, Paul; Helman, Ruth

    2009-07-01

    PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR HEALTH REFORM: Findings from the 2009 Health Confidence Survey--the 12th annual HCS--indicate that Americans have already formed strong opinions regarding various aspects of health reform, even before details have been released regarding various key factors. These issues include health insurance market reform, the availability of a public plan option, mandates on employers and individuals, subsidized coverage for the low-income population, changes to the tax treatment of job-based health benefits, and regulatory oversight of health care. These opinions may change as details surface, especially as they concern financing options. In the absence of such details, the 2009 HCS finds generally strong support for the concepts of health reform options that are currently on the table. U.S. HEALTH SYSTEM GETS POOR MARKS, BUT SO DOES A MAJOR OVERHAUL: A majority rate the nation's health care system as fair (30 percent) or poor (29 percent). Only a small minority rate it excellent (6 percent) or very good (10 percent). While 14 percent of Americans think the health care system needs a major overhaul, 51 percent agree with the statement "there are some good things about our health care system, but major changes are needed." NATIONAL HEALTH PLAN ELEMENTS RATED HIGHLY: Between 68 percent and 88 percent of Americans either strongly or somewhat support health reform ideas such as national health plans, a public plan option, guaranteed issue, expansion of Medicare and Medicaid, and employer and individual mandates. MIXED REACTION TO HEALTH BENEFITS TAX CAP: Reaction to capping the current tax exclusion of employment-based health benefits is mixed. Nearly one-half of Americans (47 percent) would switch to a lower-cost plan if the tax exclusion were capped, 38 percent would stay on their current plan and pay the additional taxes, and 9 percent don't know. CONTINUED FAITH IN EMPLOYMENT-BASED BENEFITS, BUT DOUBTS ON AFFORDABILITY: Individuals with employment

  10. Time, science and consensus: the different times involving scientific research, political decision and public opinion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Aparecido de

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available This essay analyses the asymmetrical relationship between the time of scientific research and the time of the different segments interested in their results, focusing mainly on necessity to establish technical consensus about the fields of science that require rigorous investigations and texts. In the last years, civil society sectors - mainly scientific journalism, legislative power, and public opinion - has shown growing interest in participating of the decision making process that regulates science routes. In this study, we analyzed the decision making process of the Biosafety Law, as it allows research with embryonic stem cells in Brazil. The results allow us to conclude that this asymmetrical relationship between the different times (of science, scientific disclosure, public opinion, and public power contribute to the maturing of the dialog on scientific policies, as well as to the establishment of a consensus concerning science routes, which aims at the democratization of scientific work.

  11. Long Distance Solidarity: Polish Public Opinion and the Boer War 1899–1902

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Szlanta Piotr

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The bloody conflict which was taking place in South Africa in the years 1899-1902 was followed with a great interest by Polish public opinion. Its greatest part strongly sympathized with the Boer republics. Their burgers were idealized and presented by the Polish press as brave fighters for independence, who dared to stand up against the world empire to defend their rights while Great Britain was attributed full responsibility for the outbreak of the war. For many Poles the Boers personified the general idea of freedom fighters and symbolized all suppressed nations. Their sad fate seemed to be quite similar to the Polish one and this similarity was the main source of sympathy toward defenders of the Transvaal and Free Orange State. Voices of few Polish intellectuals, who called for a more objective and not so emotional view on the war, could not change the pro-Boers stance of the greatest part of Polish public opinion.

  12. Determining and Analyzing Public Support for Gifted Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karnes, Frances A.; Riley, Tracy L.

    1997-01-01

    Statewide support for gifted education was assessed through a public opinion telephone survey with 400 respondents in one state. Results indicated general support for specialized programs, except residential schools, for gifted children. Appropriate public relations strategies utilizing such survey results are suggested. (DB)

  13. The current state of radiation education in schools and results of the opinion survey on radiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Murai, Kenji

    2013-01-01

    In 2008, a new guideline about radioactivity was added to the government guidelines for teaching junior high school science. Since then people involved with school education have been trying to spread correct information about radioactivity. On the other hand, people's confusion in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident has clearly shown that people do not know much about radioactivity. Considering the situation, the author conducted an investigation about the current state of radiation education and carried out an opinion survey about radioactivity among adults. The investigation about education showed the following: (1) the nature of radiation, such as its permeability, and its uses were described in the government-approved textbooks; (2) basic knowledge, such as what are radiation effects, were described comprehensively in the supplementary reading recommendations made by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology; and (3) locale education committees created teaching materials such as guidance to present topics. The opinion survey had questions to judge: (1) current public understanding of radioactivity; (2) the degree of general information that people collected for themselves; (3) the degree of specific knowledge about radioactivity that people had; and (4) people's attitudes toward various problems with radioactivity in the environment. The results suggested that for radiation education the following items are important: (1) to learn that radioactivity exists in people's daily lives and is used safely in various field; (2) to get basic knowledge and better quantitative understanding of such things as radioactivity units, radiation dose and radiation effects; and (3) to acquire practical experience to use the information effectively. (author)

  14. Opinions of Spanish pig producers on the role, the level and the risk to public health of antimicrobial use in pigs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moreno, Miguel A

    2014-08-01

    Antimicrobial use is a major driver of antimicrobial resistance and prescribers (physicians and veterinarians) and end users (patients, food producers and pet owners) are the cornerstones of this scenario. Intensive pig farming is a livestock activity that has a high antimicrobial use. This study is based on the opinions of pig producers. The study was done at national level and comprised two independent cross-sectional surveys using a questionnaire-based methodology and face-to-face interviews carried out between April and October, 2010. The collected data, which consisted of opinions of producers on 48 farrow-to-finish farms and 62 finisher farms, showed that, irrespective of farm type, pig producers in Spain have an imperfect knowledge of the main use of antimicrobials. Antimicrobials are perceived as valuable cost-effective tools for animal health and husbandry and there is little concern among pig producers about the harmful effects on public health of on-farm antimicrobial use. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Stimulating energy conservation: the use of the opinion-leadership process

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yavas, U [Univ. of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia; Riecken, G

    1981-09-01

    While the US federal government, public utilities and oil companies, among others, have instigated programs to educate the general public on energy conservation and to stimulate an energy-conservation ethic, results of a number of surveys indicate that such efforts in promoting energy conservation have had only limited success. This may be particularly attributable to the low credibility ascribed by the public to energy-information-disseminating sources. This article investigates the feasibility of utilizing opinion leadership, an untried approach, to overcome the credibility problem in disseminating energy information to the general public. 23 references, 4 tables.

  16. What did the public think of health services reform in Bangladesh? Three national community-based surveys 1999–2003

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hossain Md Zakir

    2007-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Supported by development partners, the Government of Bangladesh carried out a comprehensive reform of health services in Bangladesh between 1998 and 2003, intended to make services more responsive to public needs: the Health and Population Sector Programme (HPSP. They commissioned a series of surveys of the public, as part of evaluation of the HPSP. This article uses the survey findings to examine the changes in public opinions, use and experience of health services in the period of the HPSP. Methods We carried out three household surveys (1999, 2000 and 2003 of a stratified random sample of 217 rural sites and 30 urban sites. Each site comprised 100–120 contiguous households. Each survey included interviews with 25,000 household respondents and managers of health facilities serving the sites, and gender-stratified focus groups in each site. We measured: household ratings of government health services; reported use of services in the preceding month; unmet need for health care; user reports of waiting times, payments, explanations of condition, availability of prescribed medicines, and satisfaction with service providers. Results Public rating of government health services as "good" fell from 37% to 10% and the proportion using government treatment services fell from 13% to 10%. Unmet need increased from 3% to 9% of households. The proportion of visits to government facilities fell from 17% to 13%, while the proportion to unqualified practitioners rose from 52% to 60%. Satisfaction with service providers' behaviour dropped from 66% to 56%. Users were more satisfied when waiting time was shorter, prescribed medicines were available, and they received explanations of their condition. Conclusion Services have retracted despite increased investment and the public now prefer unqualified practitioners over government services. Public opinion of government health services has deteriorated and the reforms have not specifically

  17. Using expert opinion surveys to rank threats to endangered species: a case study with sea turtles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donlan, C Josh; Wingfield, Dana K; Crowder, Larry B; Wilcox, Chris

    2010-12-01

    Little is known about how specific anthropogenic hazards affect the biology of organisms. Quantifying the effect of regional hazards is particularly challenging for species such as sea turtles because they are migratory, difficult to study, long lived, and face multiple anthropogenic threats. Expert elicitation, a technique used to synthesize opinions of experts while assessing uncertainty around those views, has been in use for several decades in the social science and risk assessment sectors. We conducted an internet-based survey to quantify expert opinion on the relative magnitude of anthropogenic hazards to sea turtle populations at the regional level. Fisheries bycatch and coastal development were most often ranked as the top hazards to sea turtle species in a geographic region. Nest predation and direct take followed as the second and third greatest threats, respectively. Survey results suggest most experts believe sea turtles are threatened by multiple factors, including substantial at-sea threats such as fisheries bycatch. Resources invested by the sea turtle community, however, appear biased toward terrestrial-based impacts. Results from the survey are useful for conservation planning because they provide estimates of relative impacts of hazards on sea turtles and a measure of consensus on the magnitude of those impacts among researchers and practitioners. Our survey results also revealed patterns of expert bias, which we controlled for in our analysis. Respondents with no experience with respect to a sea turtle species tended to rank hazards affecting that sea turtle species higher than respondents with experience. A more-striking pattern was with hazard-based expertise: the more experience a respondent had with a specific hazard, the higher the respondent scored the impact of that hazard on sea turtle populations. Bias-controlled expert opinion surveys focused on threatened species and their hazards can help guide and expedite species recovery plans.

  18. Public opinion change after the Fukushima nuclear accident: The role of national context revisited

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Latré, Edwin; Perko, Tanja; Thijssen, Peter

    2017-01-01

    This study explores how national context moderated change in support for nuclear energy after the Fukushima accident. The following national contextual variables are tested: geographical distance, nuclear energy production status, freedom of the press, and the building of new nuclear reactors. The results illustrate that previous research has misunderstood the moderating role of national context on opinion change after the Fukushima accident. A survey conducted shortly after the accident with more than 23,000 respondents from 41 countries has shown that geographical distance from the accident mattered: Contradicting a previous study, the decrease in support for nuclear energy was stronger in countries closer to Fukushima. In addition, support for nuclear energy decreased more in countries where new nuclear reactors were under construction. The country's nuclear energy production status and press freedom did not determine opinion change after the Fukushima accident. The non-effect of freedom of the press on opinion change contradicts the role of media after a focusing event as described in the literature. Overall results demonstrate a limited effect of national context on opinion change following a focusing event. Hence, national context provides only limited information to policy makers on how to respond to a nuclear accident. - Highlights: • National context had limited effect on opinion change after Fukushima. • Support for nuclear energy decreased more in counties closer to the accident. • Support for nuclear energy decreased more where the nuclear energy debate was salient. • Freedom of the press did not determine opinion change after Fukushima. • Not all contextual factors are relevant when designing appropriate policy response.

  19. Application of information and complexity theories to public opinion polls. The case of Greece (2004-2007)

    OpenAIRE

    Panos, C. P.; Chatzisavvas, K. Ch.

    2007-01-01

    A general methodology to study public opinion inspired from information and complexity theories is outlined. It is based on probabilistic data extracted from opinion polls. It gives a quantitative information-theoretic explanation of high job approval of Greek Prime Minister Mr. Constantinos Karamanlis (2004-2007), while the same time series of polls conducted by the company Metron Analysis showed that his party New Democracy (abbr. ND) was slightly higher than the opposition party of PASOK -...

  20. Trends in public perceptions and preferences on energy and environmental policy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Farhar, B.C.

    1993-02-01

    This report presents selected results from a secondary analysis of public opinion surveys, taken at the national and state/local levels, relevant to energy and environmental policy choices. The data base used in the analysis includes about 2000 items from nearly 600 separate surveys conducted between 1979 and 1992. Answers to word-for-word questions were traced over time, permitting trend analysis. Patterns of response were also identified for findings from similarly worded survey items. The analysis identifies changes in public opinion concerning energy during the past 10 to 15 years.

  1. The results of opinion tracking in the UK

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gittus, J.; Margerison, T.

    1991-01-01

    The British Nuclear Forum, or more accurately its predecessor, the Nuclear Electricity Information Group, undertook its first public attitudes survey in 1986 during the weekend following the Chernobyl accident. The original idea was to obtain guidance on the public's attitude to the relative credibility of the different authorities who might be offering information and advice. But the opportunity was also taken to measure the changing attitudes to nuclear energy and this proved to be the more rewarding part of the exercise. The most important question asked was 'Are you in favour or not of Britain producing electricity by means of nuclear power stations? The results of the surveys show there is a difference in the attitudes of men and women and between socio-economic class groups. The survey was continued at monthly intervals over the year following Chernobyl. Since then public attitudes have been surveyed at three monthly intervals with some changes in the questions and sampling procedure. The results of this monitoring are shown. Specific events, such as the issuing of the Gardner report suggesting a link between a father's exposure to radiation and the subsequent susceptibility of his children to leukaemia, are shown to influence public opinion. (UK)

  2. Yucca Mountain public tours: Can they impact public opinion?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reilly, B.; Austin, P.

    1991-01-01

    The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada was selected by Congress in 1987 as the only site for the US Department of Energy (DOE) to study for suitability as a high-level radioactive waste repository. Several years of site characterization studies are needed to determine if the site is suitable. However, DOE's study of the site is one of the most intensely opposed federal programs today. The fight against DOE's effort to study the repository leads the political agendas of Nevada's governor and Congressional delegation. The politicians and the press have been the primary sources of information for Nevada citizens on the Yucca Mountain site characterization program. However, there is a more direct source of factual information regarding the program - the site itself and the participating scientists. The DOE is offering Nevada citizens the opportunity to form their own opinions by touring the Yucca Mountain site and interacting with DOE scientists and engineers. Feedback from monthly tours conducted from March to June 1991 has indicated substantial support from Nevada citizens for DOE's study of the site. In fact, a surprising number of citizens have indicated that the opportunity to gather information and formulate their own opinions led them to change their opinions

  3. Public opinion about nuclear energy - year 2004 poll

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Istenic, R.; Jencic, I.

    2004-01-01

    Public information is one of the permanent activities of the Nuclear Training Centre Milan Copic at Jozef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana. It is focused on youngsters from elementary and high schools in Slovenia that visit the Centre as organized groups. Every year in the spring since 1993 some 800 youngsters are polled with basically the same set of questions inquiring about their knowledge and opinions on nuclear energy. Polling is performed at the beginning of the visit to obtain results based on information from everyday life. In the paper the results of this year's poll are presented and compared with the previous years. The attitude towards NPP Krsko is still favourable but the support has unexpectedly dropped from 83% to 73%. Misconceptions about dangers of nuclear energy and radioactive waste still remain high. (author)

  4. Public Opinion and Repression in Yucatan: 1808-1816

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Laura Machuca Gallegos

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Across the Hispanic world, the first two decades of the 19th Century were characterized by the development of a new political force called public opinion. The objective of this article is to analyze its appearance in Merida, Yucatan: though far from the great centers of power, this city actively participated in the same political, social and cultural processes as the rest of ibero-America in the period starting in 1808. The author centers their attention on the Sanjuanistas, a group active during this time whose goal was to defend the Constitution of Cadiz. Yucatan, far from representing  a local case, instead reveals the ins and outs of new forms of sociability, above all in the field of political practices, and their embrace by society.

  5. Watching the Evolution of the American Family? Amazon's Transparent, Ecological Systems Theory, and the Changing Dynamics of Public Opinion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Becker, Amy B; Todd, Maureen E

    2018-01-01

    Using Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems theory as an organizing framework, the research closely examines the text of the Amazon Studios hit show Transparent and, by extension, the evolution of public opinion toward transgender individuals. By examining the Pfefferman family in detail and their related microsystem and macrosystem, we are able to closely unpack the transition of Jeffrey Tambor's character from Mort to Maura and the show's connections with broader developments in the Los Angeles LGBT community and the Jewish diaspora in postwar and contemporary Los Angeles. In addition, by focusing on the influence of the chronosystem, we are able to examine how both opinions toward Maura and public opinion toward transgender issues more generally have evolved within the family system and the larger American community over time.

  6. Public opinion and acceptability in Lithuania: Swedish support to the visitors' centre at Ignalina NPP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Medeliene, Diana; Alvers, Margareta

    1998-01-01

    As the visitors' centre receives over 500 visitors per month it could be very interesting to take advantage of this fact and organise a survey of public opinion. First there must be a questionnaire prepared to be filled by visitors to the INPP, people of different sex, age, profession and education, coming from different regions. If needed, the same questionnaire could be spread in the biggest towns of Lithuania and in those parts of the country which are far away from the plant. The objective of the survey is to examine people's opinion about the energy sector and the role and safety of the INPP as well as to find out what they think about the future of the energy sector and nuclear. Another important question is if there is enough information about the INPP and the safety improvements. The comparison of results can certainly give interesting statistical data and conclusions. On the basis of the results of the survey an action plan can be prepared as part of the Public Information Programme. The visitors' centre was established in 1995 with the financial support from EBRD's Nuclear Safety Account. Sweden was asked for assistance by the INPP a year later and we stepped in when the centre was already well equipped and manned. Still, a lot was missing and together we made a list of priorities. First of all we ordered high quality ITV-equipment. Cameras were installed in the control room, reactor hall, turbine hall and in waste storage. Through monitors at the centre the visitors can see, in colour, what is going on inside the plant. Video films for general public were badly needed and SiP contacted a young Lithuanian film producer living in Stockholm. Two films are made: about every day work at the plant and about safety improvements financed within SiP's assistance programme. One of the films will be shown at PIME. At the same time SSI, the Swedish Institute for Radiation Protection, made a commitment to support the information centre and ordered a video film about

  7. Teachers' Opinion Survey on the Use of ICT Tools to Support Attendance-Based Teaching

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castro Sanchez, Jose Juan; Aleman, Elena Chirino

    2011-01-01

    The present paper reports on the results obtained from a teachers' opinion survey on the use of ICT tools to support of attendance-based teaching. In order to carry out this study, it was necessary to design a questionnaire to collect data among all in-service teachers with access to the university virtual campus. The findings show that…

  8. International Public Relations in the EU: Development Cooperation Public Opinion and Public Policies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Victor Negrescu

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available In the context of the growing importance of the cooperation for development in the European Union and the appearance of a common growing public opinion agreement supporting this kind of initiatives, it is necessary to understand if we can talk today about a true common European consensus. Still covered on intergovernmental level and considered to be a part of the national foreign policies, EU development aid is still far from reaching the maximum of its efficiency. In this paper we try to introduce a new evaluation method of the cooperation for development policies and interpretation of the degree of communitarisation of the national policies that will enable us to appreciate the stages that have to be completed by the member countries but also by the EU to realize a completely uniform European assistance strategy and of the activities, so necessary for raising the efficiency of the funds allocated by the EU, but also in the perspective of achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

  9. IRSN 2014 opinion survey - The perception of risks and security by the French population. Global results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El Jammal, Marie-Helene; Mur, Emmanuelle; Rollinger, Francois; Schuler, Matthieu; Tchernia, Jean-Francois

    2014-06-01

    A first and synthetic part of this report comments the most remarkable results of the opinion survey. It first addresses results related to a context of economic crisis (importance of the economic crisis and unemployment as major concerns for French people, environmental concerns) and then analyzes the different aspects of the nuclear risk, from the accident to nuclear safety: strong fears of a nuclear accident, Fukushima and Chernobyl are immediately present in people's mind, concerns about nuclear are also related to the environment and health, the actual benefit of nuclear is an economic one, nuclear safety is a major challenge on which French people doubt, French people wish a citizen look on nuclear safety, the opinion of French people on nuclear worsened in 2013. Then, this report, illustrated by several graphs, presents and discusses the results of an annual opinion survey on the present concerns of French people (in the present society, for the environment, and as far as science is concerned), the opinion of French people on expertise (about who must control a risky installation, about the role and image of scientific experts, about the diffusion and sharing of scientific expertise, and about the perception of pluralistic structures), on the attitude of French people in front of 33 risk situations (risks to which French people feel exposed to, confidence of French people in authorities to protect them, the truth of information on hazards, the hierarchy of 33 situations according to 3 aspects and their relationship with installation acceptability). The fourth part addresses more particularly the nuclear sector: expectations in terms of nuclear risk management, fear of a serious accident, benefits and drawbacks of nuclear energy, skill and credibility of interveners. Graphs notably present the evolution of opinions with respect to last year or over the past years

  10. The shift of the public opinion to the favour of nuclear energy in Slovenia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lengar, I.; Nemec, T.

    2001-01-01

    In late August and early September of 1999, nuclear energy topics occupied a central place in the Slovenian media because of the transport of two new steam generators to the Krsko nuclear power plant, and also due to the protest action of an Austrian Greenpeace group. Before these events, the public opinion in Slovenia was not in favour or nuclear energy and Greenpeace had a good reputation. In September it has lost much credibility because of their clumsy action of protest, and in just one month this caused a shift of public opinion in Slovenia towards support of Slovenia's only nuclear power plant. The Greenpeace protest action occurred during the transport of the two new steam generators to Krsko. By replacement of the old steam generators the operation of the Krsko NPP will be extended until 2023. The transport envoy travelled during the first half of September '99 across a considerable part of Slovene territory, passing by the capital of Ljubljana. (authors)

  11. Public Opinion shifts to the favour of nuclear energy due to steam generator transport

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lengar, I.; Nemec, T.

    2000-01-01

    In late August and early September of 1999, nuclear energy topics occupied a central place in the Slovenian media because of the transport of two new steam generators to the Krsko nuclear power plant, and also due to the protest action of an Austrian Green peace group. Before these events, the public opinion in Slovenia was not in favour or nuclear energy ;and Green peace had a good reputation. In September it has lost much credibility because of their clumsy :action of protest, and in just one month this caused a shift of public opinion in Slovenia towards support of Slovenian's only nuclear power plant. The Green peace protest action occurred during the transport of the two new steam generators to Krsko. By replacement of the old steam generators the operation of the Krsko NPP will be extended until 2023. The transport envoy travelled during the first half of September '99 across a considerable part of Slovene territory, passing by the capital of Ljubljana. (authors)

  12. Direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising: physician and public opinion and potential effects on the physician-patient relationship.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinson, Andrew R; Hohmann, Kirsten B; Rifkin, Julie I; Topp, Daniel; Gilroy, Christine M; Pickard, Jeffrey A; Anderson, Robert J

    2004-02-23

    Previous studies have shown that direct-to-consumer (DTC) pharmaceutical advertising can influence consumer behavior and that many physicians have negative views of these advertisements. Physician and public opinions about these advertisements and how they may affect the physician-patient relationship are not well established. Mail survey of 523 Colorado physicians and 261 national physicians and telephone survey of 500 Colorado households asking respondents to rate their agreement with statements about DTC advertising. Most physicians tended to view DTC advertisements negatively, indicating that such advertisements rarely provide enough information on cost (98.7%), alternative treatment options (94.9%), or adverse effects (54.8%). Most also believed that DTC advertisements affected interactions with patients by lengthening clinical encounters (55.9%), leading to patient requests for specific medications (80.7%), and changing patient expectations of physicians' prescribing practices (67.0%). Only 29.0% of public respondents agreed that DTC advertising is a positive trend in health care and 28.6% indicated that advertisements make them better informed about medical problems; fewer indicated that advertisements motivated them to seek care (10.5%) or led them to request specific medications from their physicians (13.3%). Most physicians have negative views of DTC pharmaceutical advertising and see several potential effects of these advertisements on the physician-patient relationship. Many public respondents have similarly negative views, and only a few agree that they change their expectations of or interactions with physicians. While these advertisements may be influencing only a few consumers, it seems that the impact on physicians and their interactions with patients may be significant.

  13. Development of a health-based air quality index for Canada : public opinion research 2004-05 : final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2005-05-01

    Canadians rely on an air quality indexes (AQIs) to inform them about air pollution conditions in their communities. However, there is no AQI common to all of Canada, and there is a lack of consistency in the way in which air quality is calculated and reported, as well as in the use of health-based messages. This paper reported findings of a public opinion research survey conducted to gauge Canadians' awareness, perceptions and behavioural responses to air quality, air pollution and AQIs. The aim of the study was to guide the development of health messages to more effectively communicate the AQI to Canadians with respect to the health risks associated with poor air quality. Telephone surveys were conducted immediately following a poor air quality episode to measure the public's awareness and response to these events, as well as residents' general awareness and use of AQIs. A separate research project was then conducted which consisted of in-depth qualitative interviews with 28 individuals recruited from the general population. A comprehensive national telephone survey was then conducted following the summer 2004 'smog season', which focused on the public's awareness of air pollution and AQIs. Results from the first 2 phases of the research were then presented at a workshop comprised of health and environmental communities specializing in air issues in Canada. Focus groups were then held to test public reaction to new AQI communications concepts derived from the research. Results indicated that Canadians widely identify air pollution as a significant environmental problem. However, the information from AQIs had a limited impact in terms of prompting actions to reduce personal exposure. A new type of national AQI for Canada was developed that conveyed information on air quality conditions and their significance. Key features include a 0 to 10 point unbounded scale showing current air quality conditions; a forecast of future conditions; standardized information

  14. Perceived risk and benefit of nuclear waste repositories: four opinion clusters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seidl, Roman; Moser, Corinne; Stauffacher, Michael; Krütli, Pius

    2013-06-01

    Local public resistance can block the site-selection process, construction, and operation of nuclear waste repositories. Social science has established that the perception of risks and benefits, trust in authorities, and opinion on nuclear energy play important roles in acceptance. In particular, risk and benefit evaluations seem critical for opinion formation. However, risks and benefits have rarely been studied independently and, most often, the focus has been on the two most salient groups of proponents and opponents. The aim of this exploratory study is to examine the often-neglected majority of people holding ambivalent or indifferent opinions. We used cluster analysis to examine the sample (N = 500, mailed survey in German-speaking Switzerland) in terms of patterns of risk and benefit perception. We reveal four significantly different and plausible clusters: one cluster with high-benefit ratings in favor of a repository and one cluster with high-risk ratings opposing it; a third cluster shows ambivalence, with high ratings on both risk and benefit scales and moderate opposition, whereas a fourth cluster seems indifferent, rating risks and benefits only moderately compared to the ambivalent cluster. We conclude that a closer look at the often neglected but considerable number of people with ambivalent or indifferent opinions is necessary. Although the extreme factions of the public will most probably not change their opinion, we do not yet know how the opinion of the ambivalent and indifferent clusters might develop over time. © 2012 Society for Risk Analysis.

  15. Public acceptance of nuclear energy in Canada

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Warwick, J.

    1990-01-01

    This paper starts from the premise that there is no future for nuclear energy without public support. It traces the history of Canadian public attitudes toward this technology from the early years of opinion polling in the 1940s to the present day. It briefly discusses why nuclear energy is mistrusted by many and the nature of the challenge to the industry in this regard. It describes in some detail current public attitudes in Canada, concentrating on opinion polls, surveys, reports and focus group studies on attitudes towards the nuclear industry, the environment, waste disposal and nuclear safety. In conclusion, it suggests some new directions the industry might consider to stop the decline in public opinion and turn it around. (author)

  16. Public perspectives of fire, fuels, and the Forest Service in the Great Lakes Region: a survey of citizen-agency communication and trust

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruce A. Shindler; Eric Toman; Sarah M. McCaffrey

    2009-01-01

    Relative to the western United States, where fire and fuel management programs have received greater emphasis, few community-based studies have focused on the Great Lakes region. The present paper describes public opinion research from counties surrounding National Forests inWisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan. Survey data address citizen perspectives on (1) fuel...

  17. Formation of public opinion on the question of nuclear waste

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Asp, K.; Hedberg, P.

    1988-06-01

    The aim of the report is double. Firstly will bases and issues behind the media studies within the research project be presented. Secondly will the empirical investigations which are included in this part of the project be shown. Headings: - The question of nuclear waste - a controversial question. - The mass media as intermediaries of information and opinion. - The information merit of the mass media. The bias of the mass media. - The decision merit of the mass media. - Empirical investigations. * The question of nuclear waste in the news-distribution. * The question of nuclear waste in the public debate. (O.S.)

  18. In black and white: Media's role in shaping public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choi Yearn-hong

    2004-01-01

    In a modern, democratic society, the newspaper's role is important and critical in shaping citizens' opinions on nuclear power and other issues. Citizens acquire knowledge on current issues in their society, nation, and the world through newspapers. Today, television and internet media is increasingly becoming more popular among citizens, but newspaper media continues to affect intellectual citizens, policy makers and think tanks. Therefore, assessing major daily newspaper editorials covering nuclear issues and affairs is necessary for their sound bridging between nuclear science and engineering and the public. Bridging the two cultures, science and humanities, is an enormous task for modern democratic society

  19. Measuring corruption in Europe: Public opinion surveys and composite indices

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Chábová, Kristýna

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 51, č. 4 (2017), s. 1877-1900 ISSN 0033-5177 R&D Projects: GA MŠk LM2015066 Institutional support: RVO:68378025 Keywords : Corruption * Surveys * Quantitative * Europe Subject RIV: AO - Sociology, Demography OBOR OECD: Sociology Impact factor: 1.094, year: 2016

  20. Images and symbols of nuclear energy and environment in Argentine public opinion: the need of a new strategy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chahab, Martin

    2006-01-01

    The need to create in the Argentine public opinion new positives symbols and images on nuclear energy and on the benefits of its peaceful applications, is al present so important as the development of new technical tools to improve the nuclear industry. These positives symbols and imagines on nuclear energy must be created in the framework of a joint strategy of all the country's nuclear institutions as well as other public organizations, in view of the new nuclear plan recently announced. This joint strategy will permit to create not only the new positives symbols and images in the public opinion, but also to obtain the support of the mass media and new spaces for negotiation in the national, provincial and municipal levels. (author) [es

  1. Targeting improved patient outcomes using innovative product listing agreements: a survey of Canadian and international key opinion leaders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Thompson M

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Melissa Thompson,1 Chris Henshall,2 Louis P Garrison,3 Adrian D Griffin,4 Doug Coyle,2,5 Stephen Long,6 Zayna A Khayat,7 Dana L Anger,1 Rebecca Yu8 1Cornerstone Research Group Inc., Burlington, ON, Canada; 2Health Economics Research Group, Brunel University London, London UK; 3Pharmaceutical Outcomes Research and Policy Program, School of Pharmacy, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; 4Government Affairs & Policy, Johnson & Johnson, High Wycombe, UK; 5School of Epidemiology, Public Health and Preventive Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada; 6Health and Life Sciences, Global Public Affairs, Calgary, AB, 7Health Systems Innovation at MaRS Discovery District, Toronto, ON, Canada; 8Strategic Health Technology Assessment, Government Affairs & Market Access, Janssen Inc., Toronto, ON, Canada Objectives: To address the uncertainty associated with procuring pharmaceutical products, product listing agreements (PLAs are increasingly being used to support responsible funding decisions in Canada and elsewhere. These agreements typically involve financial-based rebating initiatives or, less frequently, outcome-based contracts. A qualitative survey was conducted to improve the understanding of outcome-based and more innovative PLAs (IPLAs based on input from Canadian and international key opinion leaders in the areas of drug manufacturing and reimbursement. Methods: Results from a structured literature review were used to inform survey development. Potential participants were invited via email to partake in the survey, which was conducted over phone or in person. Responses were compiled anonymously for review and reporting. Results: Twenty-one individuals participated in the survey, including health technology ­assessment (HTA key opinion leaders (38%, pharmaceutical industry chief executive officers/vice presidents (29%, ex-payers (19%, and current payers/drug plan managers/HTA (14%. The participants suggested that ~80%–95% of

  2. A study of the public opinion concerning nuclear power generation in the United States

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oiso, Shinichi

    2008-01-01

    In this study, I surveyed the outcome of opinion poll about people's attitude toward nuclear power and analysed their awareness of nuclear power generation in the United States. As a result, it was found that percentage of the people who have positive attitude toward nuclear power has been over 60% since 1998. This result corresponds to the fact that people's preference is tending more toward nuclear power generation which is called the nuclear power Renaissance in the United States. Furthermore, analysis of the outcome of the opinion poll in power stations site region was also conducted and it was found that attitude of the people in the site region was more positive than that of average level in the United States. (author)

  3. Socio-economic aspects and public opinion concerning radioactive waste sites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gonzalez, V.

    1998-01-01

    Spain has nine nuclear power units in operation covering 33% of the country's electricity consumption. Radioactive waste management in Spain is carried out by Empresa Nacional de Residuos Radiactivos, S.A. (ENRESA), a public sector company created by the Government in 1984. ENRESA has developed a management system for low and intermediate level waste. For spent fuel and high level waste, it has enlarged the capacity of the reactor pools and has licensed, in the United States and in Spain, a dual-use container for use in case the capacity of any pool is exhausted before the end of the reactor's service life. In Spain, as in all other countries, there is public opposition to radioactive waste management. This opposition is basically attributable to the lack of objective information causing the public to base its opinion on the alarmist approach taken by the mass media reports on radioactivity or nuclear power plants. ENRESA has had to conduct its activities in this context, pursuing an active policy of communication and information. (author)

  4. Sentiment Diffusion of Public Opinions about Hot Events: Based on Complex Network.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiaoqing Hao

    Full Text Available To study the sentiment diffusion of online public opinions about hot events, we collected people's posts through web data mining techniques. We calculated the sentiment value of each post based on a sentiment dictionary. Next, we divided those posts into five different orientations of sentiments: strongly positive (P, weakly positive (p, neutral (o, weakly negative (n, and strongly negative (N. These sentiments are combined into modes through coarse graining. We constructed sentiment mode complex network of online public opinions (SMCOP with modes as nodes and the conversion relation in chronological order between different types of modes as edges. We calculated the strength, k-plex clique, clustering coefficient and betweenness centrality of the SMCOP. The results show that the strength distribution obeys power law. Most posts' sentiments are weakly positive and neutral, whereas few are strongly negative. There are weakly positive subgroups and neutral subgroups with ppppp and ooooo as the core mode, respectively. Few modes have larger betweenness centrality values and most modes convert to each other with these higher betweenness centrality modes as mediums. Therefore, the relevant person or institutes can take measures to lead people's sentiments regarding online hot events according to the sentiment diffusion mechanism.

  5. Travel opinion leaders and seekers

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Yoo, Kyung-Hyan; Gretzel, Ulrike; Zach, Florian

    2011-01-01

    While opinion leadership has been recognized as important in tourism, there has been very little empirical research investigating the phenomenon. Given new developments in social media technologies, it is especially important to understand whether travel opinion leadership and seeking are drivers...... of specific social media perceptions and behaviours. Based on an online survey of US online travellers, this paper seeks to identify travel opinion leaders and seekers and their characteristics. Further, the research conducted investigated linkages between travel opinion leadership/seeking and travel social...... media use. The findings suggest that travel opinion leadership and seeking are distinct but connected. Both opinion leaders and seekers are technology savvy, young, educated, involved in travel planning and engaged in social media use for travel. What distinguishes opinion leaders is their greater...

  6. Survey of Professional Opinion on Critical Transition Skills for Adolescents and Young Adults Who Are Deaf.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bullis, Michael; Reiman, John W.

    1989-01-01

    Surveyed national sample of 307 professionals in relevant fields to obtain professional opinion on critical competencies necessary for deaf individuals to live and work successfully in the community. Findings identified 12 critical skills in employment and 10 critical skills in independent living. (Author/NB)

  7. The Asilomar Survey: Stakeholders? Opinions on Ethical Issues Related to Brain-Computer Interfacing

    OpenAIRE

    Nijboer, Femke; Clausen, Jens; Allison, Brendan Z.; Haselager, Pim

    2011-01-01

    Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) research and (future) applications raise important ethical issues that need to be addressed to promote societal acceptance and adequate policies. Here we report on a survey we conducted among 145 BCI researchers at the 4th International BCI conference, which took place in May–June 2010 in Asilomar, California. We assessed respondents’ opinions about a number of topics. First, we investigated preferences for terminology and definitions relating to BCIs. Second, w...

  8. Emotions, Public Opinion, and U.S. Presidential Approval Rates: A 5-Year Analysis of Online Political Discussions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gonzalez-Bailon, Sandra; Banchs, Rafael E.; Kaltenbrunner, Andreas

    2012-01-01

    This article examines how emotional reactions to political events shape public opinion. We analyze political discussions in which people voluntarily engage online to approximate the public agenda: Online discussions offer a natural approach to the salience of political issues and the means to analyze emotional reactions as political events take…

  9. Etiological explanation, treatability and preventability of childhood autism: a survey of Nigerian healthcare workers' opinion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Okonkwo Kevin O

    2009-02-01

    workers in subscribing to treatability of childhood autism, while working experience of less than 6 years among the healthcare workers significantly influenced the opinion of the healthcare workers in admitting to believing in the preventability of childhood autism. Conclusion In designing policies and programs to change negative opinions or beliefs of healthcare workers about childhood autism, there is a need for baseline information such as this survey. Changing the negative opinions or beliefs of the healthcare workers about childhood autism should encourage appropriate help-seeking behavior among parents of children with ASD who may be seeking advice or information from the healthcare workers. This would encourage early interventions, which are essential to prognosis of childhood autism.

  10. The IRSN 2006 barometer. The opinion on risks and security of the French population. Global results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2006-01-01

    This report presents and comments the results of a survey during which a sample of the French population has been questioned on their current concerns (about the society, about the environment, about their opinion on industrial risks, on scientific expertise, on who should control a risky installation), the opinion on 28 risk situations (risks to which French people feel exposed, confidence in authorities, truth of information on hazards, hierarchy of the 28 situations, acceptability of installations), the opinion on the nuclear activity and industry (the nuclear risk, the credibility and expertise of interveners, and the issue of radioactive wastes and public debate)

  11. Track leading to decision of 'framework for nuclear energy policy'. Reading the public attitude with public opinions (the second). Framework for nuclear energy policy (as of July 2005)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shimooka, Hiroshi

    2006-01-01

    The Government decides to respect the 'Framework for Nuclear Energy Policy', which was decided by the Atomic Energy Commission on October 11th, 2005, as a basic principle for the nuclear energy policy and promote research, development and utilization of nuclear science and engineering. The Atomic Energy Commission asked the public to comment on the draft and held Public Hearings at five different venues. The Planning Council finalized the draft, taking the 1717 opinions from 701 citizens thus gathered into the consideration. Reading the public attitude with public opinions had been conducted by the author, which showed a large percentage of the consent to the policy and, at the same time, the necessity for the nation to make more efforts to communicate with the public in simple and more concise terms or listen to the public, and also to gain the public trust through education and public relations. The pros and cons both commented that the mass media was not fair. (T. Tanaka)

  12. Visualizing Public Opinion in Croatia Based on Available Social Network Content

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ševa, Jurica

    2016-01-01

    the held governmental elections. Public opinion is only a few tweets away, but are the results similar to the election results? If tweet-based opinion can be constructed, does it differ from the real results? These and similar questions will be addressed in this paper.

  13. Oral contraception and menstrual bleeding during treatment of venous thromboembolism: Expert opinion versus current practice: Combined results of a systematic review, expert panel opinion and an international survey

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Klok, F. A.; Schreiber, K.; Stach, K.; Ageno, W.; Middeldorp, S.; Eichinger, S.; Delluc, A.; Blondon, M.; Ay, C.

    2017-01-01

    The optimal management of oral contraception and menstrual bleeding during treatment of venous thromboembolism (VTE) is largely unknown. We aimed to elicit expert opinion and compare that to current practice as assessed by a world-wide international web-based survey among physicians. 10

  14. Resolving regional conflicts and public opinion: The Nigerian experience in Liberian crisis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Salami, B.O.

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Nigeria played an important role which led to the resolution of the Liberian crisis between 1990 and 1997. But between 1990 and 1993 towards the end of General Ibrahim Babangida’s regime (1985-1993, Nigeria’s role in the Liberian peace process became a major issue which preoccupied Nigeria’s external relations within the West African Sub-region. This paper examines in how public opinion influences government attitude and posture towards the Liberian situation.

  15. Surveying Public Attitudes of Security Sector Reforms in the Arab ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    The notion that the security sector's primary responsibility is to protect and preserve autocratic Arab regimes is widely discredited today. ... of public opinion in security sector reform by providing evidence-based information on public perceptions, and in so doing, encouraging civilian oversight and transparency in the sector.

  16. Research and Development on a Public Attitude Instrument for Stuttering

    Science.gov (United States)

    St. Louis, Kenneth O.

    2012-01-01

    This paper summarizes research associated with the development of the "Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes-Stuttering" ("POSHA-S"), a survey instrument designed to provide a worldwide standard measure of public attitudes toward stuttering. Pilot studies with early experimental prototypes of the "POSHA-S" are summarized that relate to…

  17. A survey on the public perception of CCS in France

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Minh, Ha-Duong; Campos, A.S.; Nadai, A.

    2007-12-01

    An awareness and opinion survey on Carbon Capture and Storage was conducted on a representative sample of French aged 15 years and above. About 6% of respondents were able to provide a satisfying definition of the technology. The key question about 'approval of or opposition to' the use of CCS in France was asked twice, first after presenting the technology, then after exposing the potential adverse consequences. Approval rates, 59% and 38%, show that there is no a priori rejection of the technology, but public trust needs to be build. The sample was split in two to test for a semantic effect: questioning one half about 'Stockage' (English: storage), the other about 'Sequestration'. Manipulating the vocabulary had no statistically significant effect on approval rates. Stockage is more meaningful, but does not convey the idea of permanent monitoring. (authors)

  18. Trends in public perceptions and preferences on energy and environmental policy: Executive summary

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Farhar, B.C.

    1993-03-01

    This is a summary of a report that presents selected results from a secondary analysis of public opinion surveys, taken at the national and state/local levels, relevant to energy and environmental policy choices. The data base used in the analysis includes about 2,000 items from nearly 600 separate surveys conducted between 1979 and 1992. Answers to word-for-word questions were traced over time, permitting trend analysis. Patterns of response were also identified for findings from similarly worded survey items. The analysis identifies changes in public opinion concerning energy during the past 10 to 15 years.

  19. The Asilomar Survey: Stakeholders' Opinions on Ethical Issues Related to Brain-Computer Interfacing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nijboer, Femke; Clausen, Jens; Allison, Brendan Z; Haselager, Pim

    2013-01-01

    Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) research and (future) applications raise important ethical issues that need to be addressed to promote societal acceptance and adequate policies. Here we report on a survey we conducted among 145 BCI researchers at the 4 th International BCI conference, which took place in May-June 2010 in Asilomar, California. We assessed respondents' opinions about a number of topics. First, we investigated preferences for terminology and definitions relating to BCIs. Second, we assessed respondents' expectations on the marketability of different BCI applications (BCIs for healthy people, BCIs for assistive technology, BCIs-controlled neuroprostheses and BCIs as therapy tools). Third, we investigated opinions about ethical issues related to BCI research for the development of assistive technology: informed consent process with locked-in patients, risk-benefit analyses, team responsibility, consequences of BCI on patients' and families' lives, liability and personal identity and interaction with the media. Finally, we asked respondents which issues are urgent in BCI research.

  20. Humanitarian interventions and public opinion: from demands to disillusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rafael Ajangiz Sánchez

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available Since the end of the Cold War, foreign and defence policies of the NATO member states have been focussed on missions intervening in third countries, a circumstance that has led to far-reaching reforms in military structures and a new discourse of legitimacy. Public opinion has played a decisive role in the push toward humanitarian and peacemaking interventions and, has backed a new line of action. The scant resolution and effectiveness shown by the governments in these missions and their interest in carrying out others most motivated by interests of state, however, have discouraged that mighthave been a way to a real democratization of foreign policy and produces disillusionment. Evidence is for an end to this cycle and a return to the traditional divorce between governments and societies in this area.

  1. How are Voters Influenced by Opinion Polls? The Effect of Polls on Voting Behavior and Party Sympathy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dahlgaard, Jens Olav; Hansen, Jonas Hedegaard; Hansen, Kasper Møller

    2016-01-01

    Similar to all other types of information, public opinion polls can influence public opinion. We present two hypotheses to understand how polls affect public opinion: the bandwagon and the underdog effect. The bandwagon effect claims that voters "jump on the bandwagon," which means that if a party...... hypotheses. We find evidence of the bandwagon effect, and the effect is strongest in the positive direction. When voters learn that a party is gaining in the polls, voters will be more likely to vote for it. There is also some evidence for the negative bandwagon effect. We find no evidence for the underdog...... is gaining in the polls, the party will gain additional support from the voters, and vice versa if the party is losing in the polls. The underdog effect suggests that if a party is losing in the polls, the party will gain some sympathy votes to offset this loss. We use a survey experiment to test the two...

  2. Leader's opinion priority bounded confidence model for network opinion evolution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Meixia; Xie, Guangqiang

    2017-08-01

    Aiming at the weight of trust someone given to participate in the interaction in Hegselmann-Krause's type consensus model is the same and virtual social networks among individuals with different level of education, personal influence, etc. For differences between agents, a novelty bounded confidence model was proposed with leader's opinion considered priority. Interaction neighbors can be divided into two kinds. The first kind is made up of "opinion leaders" group, another kind is made up of ordinary people. For different groups to give different weights of trust. We also analyzed the related characteristics of the new model under the symmetrical bounded confidence parameters and combined with the classical HK model were analyzed. Simulation experiment results show that no matter the network size and initial view is subject to uniform distribution or discrete distribution. We can control the "opinion-leader" good change the number of views and values, and even improve the convergence speed. Experiment also found that the choice of "opinion leaders" is not the more the better, the model well explain how the "opinion leader" in the process of the evolution of the public opinion play the role of the leader.

  3. The brazilian nuclear policy with respect to the public opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Freitas Brandao Bittencourt, C.

    1988-01-01

    Four decades of the Brazilian nuclear history have been analysed with special emphasis placed on government policy and its repercussion on public opinion. The implications of the new constitutional regulations which rule the issue are discussed. it is also studied the change in the nuclear program structure, enforced in August 1988. At different times, the government decisions on nuclear energy could be classified as miser, extravagant, dissimulated and frank, successively. Their aftermaths, which show little consistency with the expectations laid on them, have led to discredit by part of the society, which is controlled by a scientific - intellectual elite. However, recent successes are likely to reverse this trend, if the government explores them properly. (author) [pt

  4. Public Claims about Automatic External Defibrillators: An Online Consumer Opinions Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Barnett Julie

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Patients are no longer passive recipients of health care, and increasingly engage in health communications outside of the traditional patient and health care professional relationship. As a result, patient opinions and health related judgements are now being informed by a wide range of social, media, and online information sources. Government initiatives recognise self-delivery of health care as a valuable means of responding to the anticipated increased global demand for health resources. Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs, designed for the treatment of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA, have recently become available for 'over the counter' purchase with no need for a prescription. This paper explores the claims and argumentation of lay persons and health care practitioners and professionals relating to these, and how these may impact on the acceptance, adoption and use of these devices within the home context. Methods We carry out a thematic content analysis of a novel form of Internet-based data: online consumer opinions of AED devices posted on Amazon.com, the world's largest online retailer. A total of #83 online consumer reviews of home AEDs are analysed. The analysis is both inductive, identifying themes that emerged from the data, exploring the parameters of public debate relating to these devices, and also driven by theory, centring around the parameters that may impact upon the acceptance, adoption and use of these devices within the home as indicated by the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM. Results Five high-level themes around which arguments for and against the adoption of home AEDs are identified and considered in the context of TAM. These include opinions relating to device usability, usefulness, cost, emotional implications of device ownership, and individual patient risk status. Emotional implications associated with AED acceptance, adoption and use emerged as a notable factor that is not currently reflected

  5. Public claims about automatic external defibrillators: an online consumer opinions study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Money, Arthur G; Barnett, Julie; Kuljis, Jasna

    2011-05-18

    Patients are no longer passive recipients of health care, and increasingly engage in health communications outside of the traditional patient and health care professional relationship. As a result, patient opinions and health related judgements are now being informed by a wide range of social, media, and online information sources. Government initiatives recognise self-delivery of health care as a valuable means of responding to the anticipated increased global demand for health resources. Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), designed for the treatment of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA), have recently become available for 'over the counter' purchase with no need for a prescription. This paper explores the claims and argumentation of lay persons and health care practitioners and professionals relating to these, and how these may impact on the acceptance, adoption and use of these devices within the home context. We carry out a thematic content analysis of a novel form of Internet-based data: online consumer opinions of AED devices posted on Amazon.com, the world's largest online retailer. A total of #83 online consumer reviews of home AEDs are analysed. The analysis is both inductive, identifying themes that emerged from the data, exploring the parameters of public debate relating to these devices, and also driven by theory, centring around the parameters that may impact upon the acceptance, adoption and use of these devices within the home as indicated by the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). Five high-level themes around which arguments for and against the adoption of home AEDs are identified and considered in the context of TAM. These include opinions relating to device usability, usefulness, cost, emotional implications of device ownership, and individual patient risk status. Emotional implications associated with AED acceptance, adoption and use emerged as a notable factor that is not currently reflected within the existing TAM. The value, credibility and

  6. A Self-Categorization Explanation for Opinion Consensus Perceptions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Jinguang; Reid, Scott A.

    2013-01-01

    The public expression of opinions (and related communicative activities) hinges upon the perception of opinion consensus. Current explanations for opinion consensus perceptions typically focus on egocentric and other biases, rather than functional cognitions. Using self-categorization theory we showed that opinion consensus perceptions flow from…

  7. Non-physician-assisted suicide in The Netherlands: a cross-sectional survey among the general public.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schoonman, Merel Kristi; van Thiel, Ghislaine José Madeleine Wilhelmien; van Delden, Johannes Jozef Marten

    2014-12-01

    In The Netherlands, approximately 45% of patients' requests for euthanasia are granted by a physician. After a rejected request, some patients approach non-physicians and ask them for assistance in suicide. Recently, a non-physician who assisted his mother's suicide was declared guilty without punishment. The aim of the current study was to investigate the opinion of the Dutch general public on non-physician-assisted suicide. A cross-sectional survey among the Dutch general public was performed. A total of 1113 respondents were included (response rate 80%). The survey covered two case descriptions in which a patient asks a non-physician for assisted suicide after a non-granted request for physician-assisted dying. In both cases, a son, friend or professional facilitates the suicide by either the provision of information or the purchase of lethal medication. Respondents were invited to give their opinion on these cases and in addition on 10 propositions on non-physician-assisted suicide. When a son provides information on how to acquire lethal medication in case of a patient with a terminal illness, this involvement is accepted by 62% of the respondents. The actual purchase of lethal medication receives less support (38%). If the patient suffers without a serious disease, both forms of assistance are less accepted (46% and 24%, respectively). In addition, only 21% support the legalisation of non-physician-assisted suicide. The Dutch public prefer involvement of a physician in assisted suicide (69%). The Dutch general public consider non-physician-assisted suicide in some specific cases a tolerable alternative for patients with a rejected request for physician-assisted dying if the assistance is limited to the provision of information. However, the majority do not support the legalisation of non-physician-assisted suicide. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

  8. Distinctive role of opinion leaders in the social networks of school adolescents: an investigation of e-cigarette use.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gentina, E; Kilic, D; Dancoine, P-F

    2017-03-01

    This study examines a diverse set of social motives (e.g. peer support, peer pressure, social loneliness) for e-cigarette use, through the mediating effects of opinion leadership, among both male and female adolescents. Prospective cohort study. The data were obtained from a survey conducted among 666 adolescents across 14 school classes, namely, students at three urban schools, public and private, in Lille, France. The proposed integrative model includes social motives, opinion leadership and e-cigarette use in a trilateral relationship; gender is proposed and tested as a potential moderator in a structural equation model. More positive peer support is negatively associated with opinion leadership and e-cigarette use. Both loneliness and susceptibility to peer influence are positively related to opinion leadership and e-cigarette use. Moreover, social support from peers and opinion leadership shape e-cigarette use differently across genders. Policy makers should account for the various (positive and negative) roles of peers and consider the gender of their audience when designing anti-e-cigarette policies. Copyright © 2016 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. [Response rates in three opinion surveys performed through online questionnaires in the health setting].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aerny Perreten, Nicole; Domínguez-Berjón, Ma Felicitas; Astray Mochales, Jenaro; Esteban-Vasallo, María D; Blanco Ancos, Luis Miguel; Lópaz Pérez, Ma Ángeles

    2012-01-01

    The main advantages of online questionnaires are the speed of data collection and cost savings, but response rates are usually low. This study analyzed response rates and associated factors among health professionals in three opinion surveys in the autonomous region of Madrid. The participants, length of the questionnaire and topic differed among the three surveys. The surveys were conducted by using paid Internet software. The institutional e-mail addresses of distinct groups of health professionals were used. Response rates were highest in hospitals (up to 63%) and administrative services and were lowest in primary care (less than 33%). The differences in response rates were analyzed in primary care professionals according to age, sex and professional category and only the association with age was statistically significant. None of the surveys achieved a response rate of 60%. Differences were observed according to workplace, patterns of Internet usage, and interest in the subject. Copyright © 2011 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  10. Hospital doctors' Opinions regarding educational Utility, public Sentiment and career Effects of Medical television Dramas: the HOUSE MD study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haboubi, Hasan N; Morgan, Holly; Aldalati, Omar

    2015-12-14

    To evaluate the opinions of practicing clinicians on medical television dramas and the effects these series have on society as well as their own practice. Observational study using a structured questionnaire disseminated among doctors of all grades and specialties at one tertiary centre and two large secondary care district general hospitals in Wales, United Kingdom. Three hundred and seventy-two questionnaires were distributed over a 3-month period, with 200 completed questionnaires received (response rate, 54%). Frequency and reasons for watching these programs, and opinions regarding realism, educational value and public perception, evaluated by doctors' grades and specialties. Identification of work practice with any observed traits in fictional doctors was also analysed. 65% of doctors surveyed admitted to watching these programs on more than one occasion. Junior doctors (interns and resident medical officers) were more regular viewers. Most doctors who admitted to watching medical dramas did so for entertainment purposes (69%); 8% watched for educational purposes and, of these, 100% watched House MD, 82% felt that these dramas were unrepresentative of daily practice, and 10% thought that they accurately portrayed reality. Most of the positive responses were from junior doctors. 61% of doctors identified some aspect of their clinical practice with another doctor (fictional or non-fictional; most junior doctors identified with a fictional doctor, compared with non-fictional role models for more senior practicing clinicians. This survey shows that a large body of the medical workforce watches medical television dramas and that such programs exercise a growing influence on the practice of junior doctors, particularly those in physicianly specialties. The reasons for certain role model selections remain unknown and may require further evaluation.

  11. Nuclear power in Australia: A comparative analysis of public opinion regarding climate change and the Fukushima disaster

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bird, Deanne K.; Haynes, Katharine; Honert, Rob van den; McAneney, John; Poortinga, Wouter

    2014-01-01

    A nation-wide survey was conducted in 2010 to investigate the Australian public's attitudes to nuclear power in relation to climate change and in comparison to other energy alternatives. The survey showed a majority of respondents (42%) willing to accept nuclear power if it would help tackle climate change. Following the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Complex in Japan, an event triggered by the 11 March 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, it was expected that support for nuclear power in Australia would change. In light of this, a follow-up survey was conducted in 2012. Indeed, the post-Fukushima results show a majority of respondents (40%) were not willing to accept nuclear power as an option to help tackle climate change, despite the fact that most Australians still believed nuclear power to offer a cleaner, more efficient option than coal, which currently dominates the domestic production of energy. Expanding the use of renewable energy sources (71%) remains the most popular option, followed by energy-efficient technologies (58%) and behavioural change (54%). Opposition to nuclear power will continue to be an obstacle against its future development even when posed as a viable solution to climate change. - Highlights: • Australia-wide survey assessed opinions of nuclear power in 2010 and 2012. • Study examined attitudes in relation to climate change and Fukushima disaster. • Australians believe nuclear power offers a cleaner, more efficient option to coal. • Australians are against nuclear power due to safety concerns and distrust. • Reluctant acceptance of nuclear power is a fragile attitudinal state easily swayed

  12. Opinions on cell phone use on airplanes, congestion, and telecommuting — from the 2006 and 2007 Omnibus Household Survey

    Science.gov (United States)

    2008-07-01

    The annual Omnibus Household Survey (OHS), administered by the U.S. Department of Transportations Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), asks respondents about their weekly travel habits, journey to work, opinions about the transportation syst...

  13. Attitude of public opinion to nuclear power, and reasons of prejudiced position towards it

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vishnevs'kij, Yi.M.; Trofimenko, A.P.

    1998-01-01

    A review of events which have led to the public opposition to nuclear power is given. Arguments of 'Greens' and social structure of this movement are exposed. INIS Database was used for finding the main directions of works in nuclear power in the World and for their comparison with such directions in thermal power field. The results obtained demonstrate that the 'Greens' strongly exaggerate the nuclear hazards and do not pay due attention to environmental pollution from fossil-fuel power plants. Attitude of the population in Ukraine to nuclear power after Chernobyl accident is analysed and actions for public opinion balancing are proposed

  14. Impact of the TEPCO incident on the public's attitude to nuclear power generation. Periodic survey No.3

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kitada, Atsuko

    2003-01-01

    The impact of the TEPCO incident, was examined, using the data collected by public opinion polls on power generation, which have been conducted persistently since 1993. The survey revealed that there were no negative changes in the public's attitude overall (including their concerns about nuclear power accidents, their sense of danger of such accidents, the image of organizations involved in nuclear power generation, their confidence in such organizations, and their opinion on the use of nuclear power generation), and that the TEPCO incident had no impact on the public's attitude to nuclear power generation. In contrast with the JCO accident, which did affect the public's attitude to nuclear power generation, the TEPCO incident left a strong impression on few people, and public awareness was limited. Such low public awareness is deemed to relate to its lack of impact on the public's attitude to nuclear power generation. In the case of the JCO accident, even individuals who had limited exposure to the mass media were highly of it, whereas in the case of the TEPCO incident, individuals who were relatively unexposed to the mass media were substantially less aware of the incident than their more mass-media-exposed counterparts. This is deemed to have been due to the difference in mass media reports. A comparison of newspaper articles covering the TEPCO and the JCO accident substantiated the quantitative difference in mass media reports: articles on the former numbered less than half of the latter. Correlation analysis with respect to the awareness of the TEPCO incident was conducted, in order to identify the impact of the incident on individuals with a high level of awareness. Such individuals were highly confident that safe operation is being regarded as the top-priority objective by staff at the nuclear power plants, indicating that their confidence was not undermined by the TEPCO incident. However, there was a high level of distrust, that the truth about safety is

  15. Vestibular Assessment and Rehabilitation: Ten-Year Survey Trends of Audiologists' Opinions and Practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nelson, M Dawn; Akin, Faith W; Riska, Kristal M; Andresen, Kimberly; Mondelli, Stephanie Stamps

    2016-02-01

    The past decade has yielded changes in the education and training of audiologists and technological advancements that have become widely available for clinical balance function testing. It is unclear if recent advancements in vestibular instrumentation or the transition to an AuD degree have affected audiologists' vestibular clinical practice or opinions. The purpose of this study was to examine predominant opinions and practices for vestibular assessment (VA) and vestibular rehabilitation (VR) over the past decade and between master's- and AuD-level audiologists. A 31-question survey was administered to audiologists via U.S. mail in 2003 (N = 7,500) and electronically in 2014 (N = 9,984) with a response rate of 12% and 10%, respectively. There was an increase in the number of audiologists providing vestibular services in the past decade. Most respondents agreed that audiologists were the most qualified professionals to conduct VA. Less than half of the surveyed audiologists felt that graduate training was adequate for VA. AuD-level audiologists were more satisfied with graduate training and felt more comfortable performing VA compared to master's-level audiologists. Few respondents agreed that audiologists were the most qualified professionals to conduct VR or that graduate training prepared them to conduct VR. The basic vestibular test battery was unchanged across surveys and included: calorics, smooth pursuit, saccades, search for spontaneous, positional, gaze and optokinetic nystagmus, Dix-Hallpike, case history, and hearing evaluation. There was a trend toward greater use of air (versus water) calorics, videonystagmography (versus electronystagmography), and additional tests of vestibular and balance function. VA is a growing specialty area in the field of audiology. Better training opportunities are needed to increase audiologists' knowledge and skills for providing vestibular services. The basic tests performed during VA have remained relatively unchanged

  16. Nuclear energy and public opinion: an analysis of international experience

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Souza, Jair A. Marques de; Spitalnik, Jorge

    1996-01-01

    Nuclear power occupies nowadays the third place among the different sources of energy in the world (17%), after coal (40%) and hydropower (18%). In the more developed countries of OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development), nuclear power already represents the second most utilized source of energy (coal; 40%, nuclear: 24%, hydro: 17%). It has been frequently stated that inadequate public information constitutes one of the main hindrances for broad use worldwide of nuclear power. However, in those countries where nuclear power has been more successful their well informed populations are generally in favor of its utilization. In countries like France, Japan, Republic of Korea and the U.S., big users of nuclear power, public opinion has been either in favor or has evolved favorably to the nuclear option. The experience in this field varies from country to country, depending mainly on their cultural and socio-political traditions. This report summarizes the situation in various countries as background information for possible adaptation to the conditions in Brazil. (author)

  17. Perspectives of tax reforms in Croatia: expert opinion survey

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hrvoje Šimović

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available In order to shape tax reform it is necessary objectively to assess the current stateof-the-art of and of the outlook for the tax system. After having reviewed all previous reforms in the light of the consumption-based (interest-adjusted concept of direct taxation, which was almost systematically implemented in Croatia in 1994, we present the results of a broad expert opinion survey about the Croatian tax system. The most interesting results suggest the maintenance/(reintroduction of different tax incentives and reduced VAT rates, rejection of a flat tax as well as decrease of tax brackets, an increase in alcohol and tobacco duties, the introduction of a financial activities tax, a further shift from income to consumption, a decrease of the tax share in GDP and a belief in the behavioral responsiveness of tax decreases/exemptions, as well as a firm commitment to the principle of equity. The last three economic views/values are important predictors of other tax attitudes.

  18. Surveyed opinion of American trauma surgeons in management of colon injuries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eshraghi, N; Mullins, R J; Mayberry, J C; Brand, D M; Crass, R A; Trunkey, D D

    1998-01-01

    Primary repair or resection and anastomosis of colon wounds have been advocated in many recent studies, but the proportion of trauma surgeons accepting these recommendations is unknown. To determine the current preferences of American trauma surgeons for colon injury management. Four hundred forty-nine members of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma were surveyed regarding their preferred management of eight types of colon wounds among three options: diverting colostomy (DC), primary repair (PR), or resection and anastomosis (RA). The influence of selected patient factors and surgeons' characteristics on the choice of management was also surveyed. Seventy-three percent of surgeons completed the survey. Ninety-eight percent chose PR for at least one type of injury. Thirty percent never selected DC. High-velocity gunshot wound was the only injury for which the majority (54%) would perform DC. More than 55% of the surgeons favored RA when the isolated colon injury was a contusion with possible devascularization, laceration greater than 50% of the diameter, or transection. Surgeons who managed five or fewer colon wounds per year chose DC more frequently (p colon wounds per year. The prevailing opinion of trauma surgeons favors primary repair or resection of colon injuries, including anastomosis of unprepared bowel. Surgeons who manage fewer colon wounds prefer colostomy more frequently.

  19. Digital Trace Data in the Study of Public Opinion : An Indicator of Attention Toward Politics Rather Than Political Support

    OpenAIRE

    Jungherr, Andreas; Schoen, Harald; Posegga, Oliver; Jürgens, Pascal

    2017-01-01

    In this article, we examine the relationship between metrics documenting politics-related Twitter activity with election results and trends in opinion polls. Various studies have proposed the possibility of inferring public opinion based on digital trace data collected on Twitter and even the possibility to predict election results based on aggregates of mentions of political actors. Yet, a systematic attempt at a validation of Twitter as an indicator for political support is lacking. In this...

  20. The Xanton-Chassenon II wind farm site - Non technical summary of the impact study, opinion of the environmental authority, public inquiry, additional impact study on avifauna after the opinion of the environmental authority, analysis of chiropterans activity in altitude

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2013-01-01

    A first document aims at public information and consultation by proposing a synthetic overview of the wind farm project. It presents the involved actors, the methodology adopted to select the site and the project scenario. It describes the actual project (wind turbines, agreement, exploitation duration, compliance with urban planning documents), gives an overview of the results of the impact study (social-economic impacts, impacts on the environment, on landscape and heritage, on acoustics, on health, climate and air quality, and soil and water). It indicates measures aimed at avoiding, reducing or compensating drawbacks. The official opinion of the environmental authority is then provided. The public enquiry process is reported, with a presentation of various studied impacts, an overview of public opinion expressions and of counter-proposals. A detailed additional impact study regarding avifauna is provided as an answer to the opinion of the environmental authority. Another opinion of the environmental authority on the exploitation authorisation request is provided. The last report contains an analysis of chiropterans activity in altitude (methodology, ecological diagnosis)

  1. Nuclear energy and public opinion. Chilean Nuclear Energy Commission (CCHEN) dissemination and extension program

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oviedo, Gonzalo Torres; Quintana, Rosamel Mufioz

    2000-01-01

    In Chile, demand for electricity will soon exceed water resources. The country will then face severe energy dependence, with very little control over generation costs, and with increasing emission of contaminating gases into the atmosphere. Nuclear energy may be considered an appropriate and stabilizing alternative for the system in the medium term, the benefits of nuclear generation to be thus extended to a country which has a moderate demand for electricity. This new scenario will require an additional technical and regulating effort by CCHEN and by the state, as well as re-orientation of their activities in connection with public opinion. The Public Nuclear Energy Education Program, initiated in 1976 by CCHEN, has been developed for purposes of achieving public acceptance of nuclear energy as a way of facilitating development of various activities which pertain to CCHEN's scope of action, and of creating a climate which is favorable to acceptance of nuclear energy as an alternative source of energy. Thus, the object is that the public draw informed conclusions on the benefits and risks implicit in the use of isotopes, radiation, and nuclear power generation. The Program consists of activities for high school students aimed at vocational orientation of those who stand out in the science area, training and extension activities for teachers, journalists, and professionals, a program of guided tours of the nuclear centers, a publicity campaign conducted in the various media and, since 1980, massive distribution of brochures and magazines. There are no declared anti-nuclear movements in Chile. Nevertheless, there are opinions against nuclear power in different relevant sectors. Lately, the social communication media have preferred CCHEN as their source of information, a fact which makes it possible for the latter to have access to good coverage of its activities

  2. THE IMAGE OF PISA TESTS IN TWO COLOMBIAN NEWSPAPERS REFERRALS TO SHAPE PUBLIC OPINION ON THE ASSESSMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guillermo Torres Zambrano

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available The PISA tests applied by OECD in 2012 had a strong impact in Colombia because of the low scores obtained by students . The news had more coverage in the press. In order to establish how they can shape public opinion on the subject because of the manner and direction in which they were addressed, were analyzed news , editorials, opinion columns and letters from readers (total 39 information units appeared in two Colombian daily newspapers in two and a half months. Recognizing the evaluation as a social fact , the analysis focused around : quality of information sources used , breadth of perspective on the evidence by reference to the evidence and formulate action alternatives . The basic conclusions are : the sources of information to give opinion are very limited, they aren´t criticized and the focus is on the scores ; these show a very negative picture that is extended to all the country's education ; teachers are largely responsible for the failure. The opinion that the media contribute to form is negative.

  3. 78 FR 73238 - Currently Approved Information Collection: Comment Request for Customer Satisfaction and Opinion...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-12-05

    ... Request for Customer Satisfaction and Opinion Surveys and Focus Group Interviews AGENCY: United States... Treasury, is soliciting comments on the United States Mint customer satisfaction and opinion surveys and.... Abstract: The proposed customer satisfaction and opinion surveys will allow the United States Mint to...

  4. Use of Twitter Polls to Determine Public Opinion Regarding Content Presented at a Major National Specialty Society Meeting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosenkrantz, Andrew B; Hawkins, C Matthew

    2017-02-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of using Twitter polls to assess public opinion regarding session content at a national specialty society meeting. Twitter polls allow users to embed multiple-choice questions within tweets and automatically aggregate responses. Two radiologists attending the 2016 annual meeting of the ACR posted a Twitter poll containing the hashtag #ACR2016 during 10 meeting sessions addressing socioeconomics/advocacy, patient experience, and social media/informatics (20 polls total). Each poll contained a question asking for an opinion regarding the session's content. Polls were open for responses for 24 hours. The average number of responses per poll was significantly higher for the user with the larger number of Twitter followers (24.3 ± 14.4 versus 11.2 ± 9.8, P = .015). A total of 57% of respondents agreed that radiologists' payments should shift to value-based payments, and 86% agreed that radiologists should routinely survey their patients to monitor quality; however, 83% disagreed with basing physician payments on patient satisfaction scores. A total of 85% disagreed that the artificial intelligence supercomputer Watson will entirely replace radiologists. A total of 76% agreed that social media can drive business at less cost than standard marketing. A total of 56% agreed with the direction of the ACR's advocacy and regulatory efforts, whereas 74% considered the ACR's advocacy efforts to be moderately or very useful for their practice. A total of 50% planned to change their practice on the basis of keynote remarks by Dr Ezekiel Emanuel. Twitter polls provide a free and easy infrastructure to potentially capture global public sentiment during the course of a medical society meeting. Their use may enrich and promote discussions of key session content. Copyright © 2016 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. FY 2008 Public Libraries Survey

    Data.gov (United States)

    Institute of Museum and Library Services — Dig into FY 2008 data on public library systems (referred to as administrative entities in the Public Libraries Survey) and main libraries, branches, and bookmobiles...

  6. FY 2010 Public Libraries Survey

    Data.gov (United States)

    Institute of Museum and Library Services — Dig into FY 2010 data on public library systems (referred to as administrative entities in the Public Libraries Survey) and main libraries, branches, and bookmobiles...

  7. FY 2011 Public Libraries Survey

    Data.gov (United States)

    Institute of Museum and Library Services — Dig into FY 2011 data on public library systems (referred to as administrative entities in the Public Libraries Survey) and main libraries, branches, and bookmobiles...

  8. FY 2009 Public Libraries Survey

    Data.gov (United States)

    Institute of Museum and Library Services — Dig into FY 2009 data on public library systems (referred to as administrative entities in the Public Libraries Survey) and main libraries, branches, and bookmobiles...

  9. Long Distance Solidarity: Polish Public Opinion and the Boer War 1899–1902

    OpenAIRE

    Szlanta Piotr

    2017-01-01

    The bloody conflict which was taking place in South Africa in the years 1899-1902 was followed with a great interest by Polish public opinion. Its greatest part strongly sympathized with the Boer republics. Their burgers were idealized and presented by the Polish press as brave fighters for independence, who dared to stand up against the world empire to defend their rights while Great Britain was attributed full responsibility for the outbreak of the war. For many Poles the Boers personified ...

  10. Public Opinion and frames: crisis of the dugout canoes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dra. Raquel Rodríguez Díaz

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available According to public opinion the increasing number of foreign population has became one of the most problematic issues in the last decade. Since 2005 immigration is the second biggest concern for Spaniards after unemployment and followed by terrorism. It is has became a state issue and a central government worry of utmost importance. The media coverage given to immigration is very important, specifically the way in which it is approached and presented to the readers. This paper shows the different perspectives or frames used by two key nationwide Spanish newspapers, El País y El Mundo, to cover one of the migration crises that took place in the Canary Islands in spring 2006. Following Framing theory, media content has been analyzed using variables to show the different ways in which these media depict the phenomenon of migration and the approach which each newspaper follows.

  11. An exploration of the dynamics and influences upon second medical opinion consultations in cancer care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Philip, Jennifer; Gold, Michelle; Schwarz, Max; Komesaroff, Paul

    2011-03-01

    The aim of this study was to explore the dynamics within second medical opinion consultations in patients with cancer. Semi-structured interviews were held with four oncologists and were subjected to a thematic analysis to define the broad issues. These formed the basis of a survey distributed to Australian medical oncologists. Overall 65 surveys were returned representing an overall response rate of 30% (10% and 63% electronic and hardcopy response rates, respectively). The dynamics in giving second medical opinions are influenced by the collegiate relationships of the doctors. Nearly two-thirds of oncologists believed that the first doctors' treatment and recommendations influenced the outcome of the second opinion, more than one-third believed the outcome was influenced by the relationship between the two doctors, and 41% believed the public nature of a second opinion was influential. In each case, these figures were more than double their assessments of patients' beliefs of these influences. Care was taken not to criticise the primary doctor. Second medical opinions provide an opportunity for oncologists to review medical care and engage in enhanced communication with patients who have additional needs. These consultations do not, however, occur in a vacuum but are influenced by the need to attend to relationships between the patient and their primary doctor and between the doctors themselves. The second medical opinion is embedded within a network of relationships and within the illness journey. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

  12. The association between money and opinion in academic emergency medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Birkhahn, Robert H; Blomkalns, Andra; Klausner, Howard; Nowak, Richard; Raja, Ali S; Summers, Richard; Weber, Jim E; Briggs, William M; Arkun, Alp; Diercks, Deborah

    2010-05-01

    Financial conflicts of interest have come under increasing scrutiny in medicine, but their impact has not been quantified. Our objective was to use the results of a national survey of academic emergency medicine (EM) faculty to determine if an association between money and personal opinion exists. We conducted a web-based survey of EM faculty. Opinion questions were analyzed with regard to whether the respondent had either 1) received research grant money or 2) received money from industry as a speaker, consultant, or advisor. Responses were unweighted, and tests of differences in proportions were made using Chi-squared tests, with pmoney. Respondents with research money were more likely to be comfortable accepting gifts (40% vs. 29%) and acting as paid consultants (50% vs. 37%). They had a more favorable attitude with regard to societal interactions with industry and felt that industry-sponsored lectures could be fair and unbiased (52% vs. 29%). Faculty with fee-for-service money mirrored those with research money. They were also more likely to believe that industry-sponsored research produces fair and unbiased results (61% vs. 45%) and less likely to believe that honoraria biased speakers (49% vs. 69%). Accepting money for either service or research identified a distinct population defined by their opinions. Faculty engaged in industry-sponsored research benefitted socially (collaborations), academically (publications), and financially from the relationship.

  13. Research study on public relations and public participation in the nuclear energy field

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gunji, Ikuko; Tabata, Rimiko; Otoshi, Sachio; Kuwagaki, Reiko; Ishibashi, Yoichiro

    2006-01-01

    The purpose of this research is to clarify the effect of public relations activities in the nuclear energy field and public participation toward the improvement of the risk literacy of nuclear energy. According to the survey results of the actual public relations activities taken by nuclear energy industry, the opportunity for interactive communications between the public and the industry is insufficient. Consequently, we propose building up more opportunities for participation and collaboration of citizens and industries in order to improve interactive communications reflecting public opinions and points of view. (author)

  14. CIGEO public debate. Presentation of the Citizens' Conference - Press file. Presentation of the citizens panel opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hermitte, Marie-Angele; Bedu, Clemence; Besnus, Francois; Brom, Jean-Marie; Grambow, Bernd; Ruedinger, Andreas; Fourniau, Jean-Michel; Bobbio, Luigi; Blatrix, Cecile

    2013-01-01

    After a presentation of the organisation and implementation of the Citizens' Conference, a presentation of the members of the steering committee and of the assessment committee of this conference, this document presents the opinion of the citizen panel in the framework of the public debate on the Cigeo project of deep underground disposal of radioactive wastes. This opinion notably outlines the waste issue as an inter-generational issue, comments the calendar and condition of the Cigeo project, states the panel opinion on risks which are specific to the Cigeo project, discusses the issue of recoverability and reversibility, discusses the issue of site memory, evokes the possibility of exploitation of geothermal energy, outlines the importance of health and environmental monitoring, comments opportunities for local development, and discusses cost and financing assessments. An appendix presents the different training programmes proposed during the citizens' conference

  15. Comparative assessment of public opinion on the landscape quality of two biosphere reserves in Europe.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sowińska-Świerkosz, Barbara; Chmielewski, Tadeusz J

    2014-09-01

    The European Landscape Convention (2000) obligates European Union countries to identify and implement landscape quality objectives (LQOs) understood as the specification of public expectations and preferences concerning the landscape of a given area, expressed by competent public authorities. The convention emphasizes the important role of local community representatives in this field. In Poland, the implementation of the LQO concept was first undertaken in two regions with radically different landscape characteristics: (1) the West Polesie Biosphere Reserve and (2) the selected protected areas of the Roztocze-Solska Forest, nominated to the rank of a biosphere reserve. The first stage of the presented study was the recognition of public opinion on the quality of key features of landscape, based on a questionnaire (n = 470). The primary objective of the study was to provide an answer to the following questions: (1) Whether similar social expectations regarding landscape quality exist in spite of radically different landscape characteristics of the regions investigated (landscape quality is understood as spatial arrangement, scenic beauty, and lack of environmental pollution); (2) which landscape features are considered to be most preservation worthy by the representatives of both local communities; and (3) What processes or development impacts pose the greatest threat to the landscape quality of both regions according to the public opinion? The conducted comparative assessment revealed that it is possible to define a set of features fundamental to the quality of both areas and that representatives of local communities pointed out the same threats to the natural and cultural values of both regions investigated.

  16. Technical Report, Outcome of the public consultation on the draft Scientific Opinion of the EFSA Panel on Contaminants on the Food Chain (CONTAM) on acrylamide in food

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, Annette

    The EFSA Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain (CONTAM Panel) has endorsed its draft Scientific Opinion on the risks to public health related to the presence of acrylamide (AA) in food. The opinion has undergone a public consultation from 1 July 2014 to 15 September 2014. Overall, EFSA has...

  17. A Survey of First-Year Biology Student Opinions Regarding Live Lectures and Recorded Lectures as Learning Tools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simcock, D. C.; Chua, W. H.; Hekman, M.; Levin, M. T.; Brown, S.

    2017-01-01

    A cohort of first-year biology students was surveyed regarding their opinions and viewing habits for live and recorded lectures. Most respondents (87%) attended live lectures as a rule (attenders), with 66% attending more than two-thirds of the lectures. In contrast, only 52% accessed recordings and only 13% viewed more than two-thirds of the…

  18. IRSN 2011 opinion survey. The perception of risks and safety by French people. Global results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2011-01-01

    Like every year, this report presents and comments the results of an opinion survey on risks, and more particularly on nuclear and radiological risks. The first part addresses the current concerns of French people (the main concerns in the present society and with respect to the environment, how science is considered). The second part addresses the opinion on expertise (who should control a hazardous installation, the role and image of experts, the access to expertise files, the perception of pluralist bodies). The third part examines the reaction of people in front of 33 different hazardous situations (risks to which people feel being exposed, confidence in authorities, confidence in information on hazards, hierarchy of 33 situations and relationship with installation acceptability). The fourth part addresses the nuclear issue (nuclear risk, ability and credibility of nuclear actors, the Chernobyl accident, radioactive wastes, demand of information on the nuclear risk).

  19. The use and value of polling to determine public opinion on GMOs in Europe: limitations and ways forward.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Desaint, Nilsy; Varbanova, Mariana

    2013-01-01

    In this article, we review and assess existing surveys that attempt to gauge public opinion about GM crops. This review shows that consumer surveys can be something of a blunt instrument. Questionnaires, however well-constructed and professionally delivered, are answered in a vacuum of knowledge and elicit misleading responses. People recurrently admit they lack information on the technology behind GM food. It is a part of the general unfamiliarity with the food production process with which people show equal, if not greater, concern. Lacking control over a process involving such an emotive subject like food makes people uneasy and reluctant to accept "unknowns". In addition, if people give answers to hypothetical questions, they do so as "cautious citizens" rather than consumers and this is not a good guide to actual behavior in real life. Qualitative studies using focus groups can be a much better guide to how people really feel about issues, but they also need expert facilitation and analysis to be of real value. An even better guide to acceptance and purchasing behavior (if that is the objective) is to put people in a situation where they are actually making a choice of whether or not to buy GM products.

  20. Public opinion of the electricity supply: Opinions and preferences of the Dutch with regard to the present and future electricity supply; Publieke oordelen over de elektriciteitsvoorziening: Oordelen en voorkeuren van de Nederlander met betrekking tot de huidige en toekomstige elektriciteitsvoorziening

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Daamen, D.D.L.; Kips, J. [Werkgroep Energie en Milieu-onderzoek, Faculteit der Sociale Wetenschappen, Rijksuniversiteit Leiden, Leiden (Netherlands)

    1995-06-01

    The Energy Monitor is a periodical survey of the public opinion on the use of nuclear energy, coal and other energy sources for the production of electric power. The first three chapters of this report deal with the Energy Monitor measurements of November 1993, May 1994, and November 1994. The Energy Choice Questionnaire is carried out in 1993/94. The questionnaire differs from traditional inquiries in the fact that respondents were confronted with a real policy problem (make a choice from a number of energy supply options to provide for the electricity demand in the year 2010), and provided with information on the consequences of the different options by experts in the field. The authors reported on the impact of that information on the preferences of the public with regard to the future electricity supply. In chapter 4 the results of the follow-up of the Energy Choice Questionnaire, carried out in November 1994, are discussed. Finally, attention is paid to the differences and agreements between the Monitor survey and the Questionnaire survey. The overall conclusion is that a comparison of the results of both surveys is not relevant, while the difference in method and object of investigation is too dominant. It is much more useful to compare the results of the Monitor in time. The same goes for a comparison of the trends in the Questionnaire. 12 figs., 28 tabs., 7 appendices, 35 refs.

  1. The Public Opinion participation in the Nuclear Facilities Licensing Regime: A study for The Egyptian Nuclear Law and other countries laws

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ali, A. M.; Abd El-Moniem, A. E.

    2012-12-01

    This paper deals with the Nuclear Facilities Licensing Regime and the public Opinion participation. It discusses the general conceptual framework such as the importance of public opinion in the licensing process for nuclear facilities. It deals with the transparency principle and the nuclear safety. It also an analysis the Egyptian nuclear law for regulating the nuclear and radiological activities(law No.7) and its provisions that regulate the participation of the public in the licensing process (Article No.12 paragraph No.7 and 16 ) that staled that the regulatory body will set the regulation to involve the public in the licensing and it will also issues publicly a garrulity report about the nuclear safety situation in the state. It also deals with the legal rules for licensing and the participation of public in it many states such as Japan, France and Germany. The paper concluded that the lunch of a nuclear programme should lunch, in parallel, a programme for the public communications because in the absent of such a public programme, the political decisions of nuclear programme might be lose its effectiveness and the programme might be slow dow. (Author)

  2. Post-concussion driving behaviors and opinions: A survey of collegiate student-athletes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmidt, Julianne D; Lynall, Robert C; Lempke, Landon Bryce; Weber, Michelle L; Devos, Hannes

    2018-05-08

    Post-concussion driving restrictions are eminent, but we lack understanding of current behaviors and opinions about driving following concussion among populations at risk of concussion. We aimed to describe post-concussion driving behaviors and opinions among collegiate student-athletes. Student-athletes completed a survey (response rate=45.3%, 223/492) regarding their post-concussion driving behaviors and opinions. Response frequencies and percentages are presented. Student-athletes self-reported a total of 169 lifetime concussions (0.76±1.02 each). Of the 169 concussions, 52.1% (88/169) were diagnosed and 52.7% (89/169) occurred while the student-athlete possessed a valid driver's license. Student-athletes refrained from driving following 43.8% (39/89) of the concussive events. Student-athletes that refrained most commonly did so for only 24-48 hours (20.5%, 8/39) and because a health care provider advised them to (33.3%: 13/39). Student-athletes most commonly reported that they would feel "very unsafe" driving a car immediately following injury (38.4%, 84/219). When asked whether driving restrictions would influence your decision to report the injury to a health care provider, 7.9% reported that it "definitely would" (17/214), 26.6% "probably would" (57/214), 17.8% "neutral" (38/214), 24.8% "probably would not" (53/214), and 22.9% "definitely would not" (49/214). Despite generally believing that driving immediately following a concussion is unsafe, a majority of student-athletes did not refrain from driving at any point following their previous concussions. Post-concussion driving restrictions may have some influence on student-athletes' decisions to report the injury to a health care provider. Health care providers play a critical role in post-concussion driving restriction, but lack standardized recommendations to guide their care.

  3. Exploring Digital Health Use and Opinions of University Students: Field Survey Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Montagni, Ilaria; Cariou, Tanguy; Feuillet, Tiphaine; Langlois, Emmanuel; Tzourio, Christophe

    2018-03-15

    During university, students face some potentially serious health risks, and their lifestyle can have a direct effect on health and health behaviors later in life. Concurrently, university students are digital natives having easy access to the internet and new technologies. Digital health interventions offer promising new opportunities for health promotion, disease prevention, and care in this specific population. The description of the current use of and opinions on digital health among university students can inform future digital health strategies and interventions within university settings. The aim of this exploratory study was to report on university students' use and opinions regarding information and communication technologies for health and well-being, taking into account sociodemographic and self-rated general and mental health correlates. This field survey was conducted from March to April 2017. An informed consent form and a paper questionnaire were given to students aged 18 to 24 years in 4 university campuses in Bordeaux, France. The survey was formulated in 3 sections: (1) sociodemographic characteristics and self-rated general and mental health, (2) information about the use of digital health, and (3) opinions about digital health. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and tests of independence. A total of 59.8% (303/507 females) students completed the questionnaire. Concerning digital health use, 34.9% (174/498) had at least 1 health app mostly for physical activity (49.4%, 86/174) and general health monitoring (41.4%, 72/174,), but only 3.9% (20/507) of students had a wearable device. Almost all (94.8%, 450/476) had searched for Web-based health-related information at least once in the last 12 months. The most sought health-related topics were nutrition (68.1%, 324/476); pain and illnesses (64.5%, 307/476); and stress, anxiety, or depression (51.1%, 243/476). Although Wikipedia (79.7%, 357/448) and general health websites (349/448, 77

  4. Exploring Digital Health Use and Opinions of University Students: Field Survey Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cariou, Tanguy; Feuillet, Tiphaine; Langlois, Emmanuel; Tzourio, Christophe

    2018-01-01

    Background During university, students face some potentially serious health risks, and their lifestyle can have a direct effect on health and health behaviors later in life. Concurrently, university students are digital natives having easy access to the internet and new technologies. Digital health interventions offer promising new opportunities for health promotion, disease prevention, and care in this specific population. The description of the current use of and opinions on digital health among university students can inform future digital health strategies and interventions within university settings. Objective The aim of this exploratory study was to report on university students’ use and opinions regarding information and communication technologies for health and well-being, taking into account sociodemographic and self-rated general and mental health correlates. Methods This field survey was conducted from March to April 2017. An informed consent form and a paper questionnaire were given to students aged 18 to 24 years in 4 university campuses in Bordeaux, France. The survey was formulated in 3 sections: (1) sociodemographic characteristics and self-rated general and mental health, (2) information about the use of digital health, and (3) opinions about digital health. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and tests of independence. Results A total of 59.8% (303/507 females) students completed the questionnaire. Concerning digital health use, 34.9% (174/498) had at least 1 health app mostly for physical activity (49.4%, 86/174) and general health monitoring (41.4%, 72/174,), but only 3.9% (20/507) of students had a wearable device. Almost all (94.8%, 450/476) had searched for Web-based health-related information at least once in the last 12 months. The most sought health-related topics were nutrition (68.1%, 324/476); pain and illnesses (64.5%, 307/476); and stress, anxiety, or depression (51.1%, 243/476). Although Wikipedia (79.7%, 357/448) and

  5. Report of the survey on current opinions and practice of German Society for Gynecologic Endoscopy (AGE) members regarding the laparoscopic treatment of ovarian malignancies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Radosa, Julia Caroline; Radosa, Marc Philipp; Schweitzer, Pascal Albert; Juhasz-Boess, Ingolf; Rimbach, Stefan; Solomayer, Erich-Franz

    2018-05-01

    The purpose of this survey was to assess the opinions of members of the German Society of Gynecologic Endoscopy (AGE) regarding the laparoscopic treatment of ovarian malignancies and current practice at their institutions. Between February and October 2015, the AGE sent an anonymous online survey via mail to its members. The questionnaire solicited participants' opinions about the laparoscopic treatment of ovarian cancers according to T stage and borderline tumors, and information about current practice at their institutions. Participants were also asked their opinions on currently available data on this issue. Of 228 AGE members who completed the survey, 132 (58%) were fellows or attending physicians and 156 (68%) worked at university hospitals or tertiary referral centers. Most [212 (93%)] respondents stated that < 10% of all ovarian cancer cases were currently treated laparoscopically at their institutions. Most participants indicated that T1 (a, b, c) tumors [145 (64%)] and ovarian borderline tumors [206 (90%)], but not T2 [48 (21%)] or T3/4 [9 (4%) ovarian tumors] should or could be treated laparoscopically. One hundred seventy-two (75%) participants considered currently available data on this topic to be insufficient and 152 (66%) stated that they would take part in a clinical trial assessing a laparoscopic approach to T1/2 ovarian cancer. According to this survey, to the opinion of the majority of AGE members, laparoscopy might be a considerable option for the treatment of early ovarian malignancies and borderline tumors and should be evaluated further in future studies.

  6. Public Land Survey filled

    Data.gov (United States)

    California Natural Resource Agency — The 'PLSFILL' layer is a polygon coverage depicting the township, range and sections contained in the Public Land Survey System grid for the State of California....

  7. Opinions of patients with type 2 diabetes about responsibility, setting targets and willingness to take medication: a cross-sectional survey.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gorter, K.J.; Tuytel, G.J.; Leeuw, R.R. de; Bensing, J.M.; Rutten, G.E.H.M.

    2011-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: To assess opinions and their determinants of patients with type 2 diabetes about responsibility for managing their diabetes, setting treatment targets and willingness taking medication. METHODS: Questionnaire survey carried out in general practices and outpatient clinics across the

  8. A survey of consumer’ opinion about consumption and health benefits of fermented plant beverages in Thailand

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chaiyavat CHAIYASUT

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Fermented beverages are widely used all over the country. Fermented plant beverages (FPB are prevalent in Thailand and FPBs are believed to cure and prevent many health oriented problems. The people of Thailand produce many varieties of FPBs in small scale or large scale and consume them in their daily lives. This study is a survey conducted among the representative consumers of FPBs in Thailand to know the consumer's opinion on FPBs, effects and benefits of FPBs, and real status of consumer satisfaction in Thailand. This study revealed that the rationale for the consumption of respective FPBs was to treat their health issues and for the betterment of their health. Most of the consumers of FPBs benefited in case of improving their physical and mental health. The current survey revealed the opinion of the FPBs consumers in Thailand. This study concluded that FPBs are health promoting drink that is affordable in the daily life of Thai people. The FPBs prepared in Thailand did not report any massive adverse effects in Thailand. Till now the preparation and consumption of FPBs are followed in Thailand and not influenced by adverse effects; FPBs are considered safe for human consumption.

  9. survey of opinions in a paediatric department

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    1991-05-04

    May 4, 1991 ... Doctors working at 3 teaching hospitals of the University of the Witwatersrand were .... study. It can therefore be assumed that the opinions put forth were largely .... and will, it is hoped, provide some food for thought for other departments. ... Puhlic Health 'Service guidelioes for counselliog and antibody ...

  10. Opinion evolution in different social acquaintance networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Xi; Zhang, Xiao; Wu, Zhan; Wang, Hongwei; Wang, Guohua; Li, Wei

    2017-11-01

    Social acquaintance networks influenced by social culture and social policy have a great impact on public opinion evolution in daily life. Based on the differences between socio-culture and social policy, three different social acquaintance networks (kinship-priority acquaintance network, independence-priority acquaintance network, and hybrid acquaintance network) incorporating heredity proportion ph and variation proportion pv are proposed in this paper. Numerical experiments are conducted to investigate network topology and different phenomena during opinion evolution, using the Deffuant model. We found that in kinship-priority acquaintance networks, similar to the Chinese traditional acquaintance networks, opinions always achieve fragmentation, resulting in the formation of multiple large clusters and many small clusters due to the fact that individuals believe more in their relatives and live in a relatively closed environment. In independence-priority acquaintance networks, similar to Western acquaintance networks, the results are similar to those in the kinship-priority acquaintance network. In hybrid acquaintance networks, similar to the Chinese modern acquaintance networks, only a few clusters are formed indicating that in modern China, opinions are more likely to reach consensus on a large scale. These results are similar to the opinion evolution phenomena in modern society, proving the rationality and applicability of network models combined with social culture and policy. We also found a threshold curve pv+2 ph=2.05 in the results for the final opinion clusters and evolution time. Above the threshold curve, opinions could easily reach consensus. Based on the above experimental results, a culture-policy-driven mechanism for the opinion dynamic is worth promoting in this paper, that is, opinion dynamics can be driven by different social cultures and policies through the influence of heredity and variation in interpersonal relationship networks. This

  11. Opinion of stakeholders on existing curriculum for postgraduate (MD) course in Pharmacology: A survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Badyal, Dinesh K; Daniel, Sujit R

    2016-10-01

    To survey the opinion about various curricular components of Doctor of Medicine (MD) pharmacology curriculum in India by stakeholders, including faculty and students. An online survey was done to evaluate the various curricular components of MD pharmacology curriculum being used in India. A total of 393 respondents including faculty, MD students, and other stakeholders completed the survey. The survey was developed using SurveyMonkey platform and link to survey was E-mailed to stakeholders. The results were expressed as percentages. There was a balanced representation of respondents from various designations, teaching experience, regions, and age groups. Most of the respondents (83%) were aware of the MD pharmacology curriculum. However, they reported that it is more inclined to knowledge domain. About half of respondents (53%) said that animal experiments are being used. The most common teaching methods mentioned are seminars (98.5%), journal clubs (95%), and practical exercises by postgraduates (73%), but there is less use of newer methods (25%) in theory and less of clinical pharmacology exercise (39%) in practical classes. The log books are maintained but not assessed regularly. Internal assessment is sparingly used. The MD pharmacology curriculum needs to be made uniform at the national level and updated to include the newer methods in teaching-learning and assessment. There should be sharing of newer methods at a common platform implemented at the national level.

  12. Identifying research priorities for public health research to address health inequalities: use of Delphi-like survey methods.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turner, S; Ollerhead, E; Cook, A

    2017-10-09

    In the funding of health research and public health research it is vital that research questions posed are important and that funded research meets a research need or a gap in evidence. Many methods are used in the identification of research priorities, however, these can be resource intensive, costly and logistically challenging. Identifying such research priorities can be particularly challenging for complex public health problems as there is a need to consult a number of experts across disciplines and with a range of expertise. This study investigated the use of Delphi-like survey methods in identifying important research priorities relating to health inequalities and framing tractable research questions for topic areas identified. The study was conducted in two phases, both using Delphi-like survey methods. Firstly, public health professionals with an interest in health inequalities were asked to identify research priorities. Secondly academic researchers were asked to frame tractable research questions relating to the priorities identified. These research priorities identified using Delphi-like survey methods were subsequently compared to those identified using different methods. A total of 52 public health professionals and 21 academics across the United Kingdom agreed to take part. The response rates were high, from public health professionals across three survey rounds (69%, 50% and 40%) and from academics across one round (52%), indicating that participants were receptive to the method and motivated to respond. The themes identified as encompassing the most important research priorities were mental health, healthy environment and health behaviours. Within these themes, the topic areas that emerged most strongly included community interventions for prevention of mental health problems and the food and alcohol environment. Some responses received from academic researchers were (as requested) in the form of tractable research questions, whereas others

  13. Democracy, the media stage and opinions evaluation. The particular case of nuclear

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ansel, Ph.; Pages, J.P.

    1997-01-01

    The intention is pointed at the public opinion. The public debate, linked to the political system, is described in the frame where the opinions are expressed in interaction with the media. This debate has a fundamental role in the opinions structuration. Then it is shown how it is possible to introduce it in the way of measuring the opinions. Then, we arrive to the structures of public opinion. The analysis of facts registered during twenty years on nuclear energy allows to illustrate the interest of this global approach: considered from a controversy point of view, it is also a technical object and then it can be considered as a differentiation theme among others ones. (N.C.)

  14. This kind of 'Asparagus' is quite well liked - Wind energy opinion poll

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gutknecht, B.

    2002-01-01

    This article discusses the results of a survey made on the public acceptance of wind energy projects in Switzerland and examines the situation in Switzerland with respect to the use of wind power and its promotion. The results of an internet-based survey made within the framework of a dissertation presented at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology are presented. This work included 3-D visualisations of proposed wind energy installations at various locations. The results of the survey, which showed a high level of acceptance for the installations, are commented on. The author discusses the ecological considerations relevant to the planning of wind turbines and is of the opinion that there is no danger of wind power installations 'shooting up like asparagus' in the Swiss landscape

  15. Radioecological Investigations in the Russian Far-East and Public Opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nicolaevich Soyfer, V.

    1992-01-01

    At the first stage of this investigation a report based on the data collected by departmental radiation monitoring services radioecological investigations fulfilled by RECH has beer prepared. The report gives an assessment of radiation conditions of the Russian Far-East region and adjacent seas as well as of the activities of the above-said services. Among the radiator monitoring survives subject to inspection were NPP, Hydrometsosurvics, Civil defence offices, Sanitary epidemiological survive and also plants and bases for exploitation and repairs of nuclear power submarines. In the course of the inspection of these objects it was inevitable to face a wide spectrum of public opinion of different orientation and organizational forms concerning nuclear problems. The report analyzes the relationships between the population on the one hand and the administrations and the staff of the territories and object on the other, in connection with the radiation situation in the ares

  16. Sifting Through Chaos: Extracting Information from Unstructured Legal Opinions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oliveira, Bruno Miguel; Guimarães, Rui Vasconcellos; Antunes, Luís; Rodrigues, Pedro Pereira

    2018-01-01

    Abiding to the law is, in some cases, a delicate balance between the rights of different players. Re-using health records is such a case. While the law grants reuse rights to public administration documents, in which health records produced in public health institutions are included, it also grants privacy to personal records. To safeguard a correct usage of data, public hospitals in Portugal employ jurists that are responsible for allowing or withholding access rights to health records. To help decision making, these jurists can consult the legal opinions issued by the national committee on public administration documents usage. While these legal opinions are of undeniable value, due to their doctrine contribution, they are only available in a format best suited from printing, forcing individual consultation of each document, with no option, whatsoever of clustered search, filtering or indexing, which are standard operations nowadays in a document management system. When having to decide on tens of data requests a day, it becomes unfeasible to consult the hundreds of legal opinions already available. With the objective to create a modern document management system, we devised an open, platform agnostic system that extracts and compiles the legal opinions, ex-tracts its contents and produces metadata, allowing for a fast searching and filtering of said legal opinions.

  17. Climate of opinion and information behaviour in the context of nuclear energy and the ENSI

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bonfadelli, H.; Kristiansen, S.

    2012-11-01

    This interim report issued by the University of Zurich for the Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (ENSI) was elaborated as a result of the nuclear accident in Fukushima, Japan. The report discusses the questions raised concerning the independence of certain members of the inspectorate and discusses the results of an initial survey on the profile and reputation of the inspectorate. The development of public opinion concerning various aspects of nuclear energy over several years and for various categories of the population is noted in tables. Also, large changes in opinion after the Fukushima accident are noted. Risk assessments, confidence in the regulatory instances as well as opinions on how nuclear energy should be regulated are examined. Also, information and media use in connection with nuclear energy are looked at. Finally, the most important conclusions of the study are presented and discussed

  18. Institutional research on public opinion and participative devices. From polls to public debate

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mañas, Beatriz

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Considering that the methods and techniques implemented in social research entail a certain definition of the concepts studied, it seems relevant to reflect on the possibilities of devices other than polls when studying “public opinion” as a sociological concept. Two arguments for such approach can be highlighted: the qualitative and discursive nature of public opinion, and polls’ difficulties for being collectively perceived as a reliable and interesting way to express points of view about public matters. The French CNDP (Commission Nationale du Débat Public is conceived for encouraging national, regional or local debates about political decisions which involve an important governmental investment. Taking into account that deliberative polling has probably been the most systematized among numerous research devices which have tried to implement the premises of deliberative/participative democracy, we will explore the possibilities of a different and wider representation of “public opinion” from the analysis of the dynamics generated by the institutional device of Public Debate.

    Sosteniendo la hipótesis de que los métodos y técnicas utilizadas para el estudio de los conceptos de interés sociológico tienen cierta influencia en la definición de los mismos, este artículo plantea una reflexión sobre las posibilidades e implicaciones de dispositivos diferentes a las encuestas para la investigación de la opinión pública. La aproximación a este enfoque se realizará desde dos argumentaciones: por un lado, sosteniendo la naturaleza cualitativa y discursiva de la opinión pública y, por otro, mostrando la dificultad de los sondeos para ser percibidos colectivamente como un medio confiable e interesante para expresar y registrar puntos de vista sobre los asuntos públicos. La CNDP (Comisión Nacional de Debate Público es una institución pública francesa creada para animar debates nacionales, regionales o locales

  19. Do Others’ Opinion Matter?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Liu, Fei; Xiao, Bo Sophia; Lim, Eric T. K.

    2016-01-01

    when experiencing dissonance in e-WOM, male consumers value opinionated review over numerical rating and vice versa for their female counterparts. The results of our field survey on a custom developed website with 115 college students empirically validated our hypothesized relationships and also...

  20. Principals' Opinions of Organisational Justice in Elementary Schools in Turkey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aydin, Inayet; Karaman-Kepenekci, Yasemin

    2008-01-01

    Purpose--This study aims to present the opinions of public elementary school principals in Turkey about the current organisational justice practices among teachers from the distributive, procedural, interactional, and rectificatory dimensions. Design/methodology/approach--The opinions of 11 public elementary school principals in Ankara about…

  1. Measuring risk/benefit perceptions of emerging technologies and their potential impact on communication of public opinion toward science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Binder, Andrew R; Cacciatore, Michael A; Scheufele, Dietram A; Shaw, Bret R; Corley, Elizabeth A

    2012-10-01

    This study presents a systematic comparison of two alternative measures of citizens' perceptions of risks and benefits of emerging technologies. By focusing on two specific issues (nanotechnology and biofuels), we derive several insights for the measurement of public views of science. Most importantly, our analyses reveal that relying on global, single-item measures may lead to invalid inferences regarding external influences on public perceptions, particularly those related to cognitive schema and media use. Beyond these methodological implications, this analysis suggests several reasons why researchers in the area of public attitudes toward science must revisit notions of measurement in order to accurately inform the general public, policymakers, scientists, and journalists about trends in public opinion toward emerging technologies.

  2. Knowledge and opinions about banking supervision : Evidence from a survey of Dutch households

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van der Cruijsen, C.; Jansen, D.J.; de Haan, J.; Mosch, R.H.J.

    What does the general public know about banking supervision? What objectives does the public think bank supervisors should pursue? We investigate these issues using a survey among Dutch households. First, we find that the public's knowledge about banking supervision is far from perfect. We also find

  3. Public opinion and communicative action around renewable energy projects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fast, Stewart

    This thesis investigates how rural communities negotiate the development of renewable energy projects. Public and local community acceptance of these new technologies in rural areas around the world is uncertain and spatially uneven and represents an area of emerging public policy interest and one where scholarly theory is rapidly developing. This thesis uses Habermasian concepts of public sphere, communicative action and deliberative democracy, as well as the concept of "wicked problems" from the planning studies literature combined with geographical concepts of place and scale to advance theoretical and empirical understanding of how public opinion on renewable energy technologies is formed in place. It documents energy use patterns, attitudes and socio-political relations at a time when considerable state and business efforts are directed at the construction of solar, wind, biomass and small-hydro technologies in rural regions. These concepts and theories are applied in a case study of rural communities in the Eastern Ontario Highlands, an impoverished area undergoing rapid restructuring driven by centralization of services and amenity migration but with abundant natural resources in form of forests, numerous waterways and open space which have attracted a broad range of new energy developments. Overall high levels of support for alternative energy development particularly for solar power were found, albeit for reasons of local energy security and not for reasons of preventing climate change. There was some evidence that seasonal residents are less supportive of hydro and biomass projects than permanent residents possibly reflecting broader trends in rural economies away from productive uses of land to consumptive appreciation of rural landscapes. The thesis suggests that collective action to advance energy projects in the case study area require agreement along three world-claims (truth, rightness and truthfulness) and that communication leading to discourse

  4. Public Attitudes toward Stuttering in Turkey: Probability versus Convenience Sampling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ozdemir, R. Sertan; St. Louis, Kenneth O.; Topbas, Seyhun

    2011-01-01

    Purpose: A Turkish translation of the "Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes-Stuttering" ("POSHA-S") was used to compare probability versus convenience sampling to measure public attitudes toward stuttering. Method: A convenience sample of adults in Eskisehir, Turkey was compared with two replicates of a school-based,…

  5. Satisfied, Sceptical or Simply Indifferent? Current Public Opinion toward the Fall of Communism in the Czech Republic

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Lyons, Pat; Bernardyová, Alžběta

    2011-01-01

    Roč. 63, č. 9 (2011), s. 1719-1744 ISSN 0966-8136 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA407/08/1515 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z70280505 Keywords : public opinion * Velvet Revolution * Czech Republic Subject RIV: AO - Sociology, Demography Impact factor: 0.578, year: 2011 http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09668136.2011.611655

  6. [State school children's opinions regarding violence in the media].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piedrahita S, Laura E

    2009-01-01

    To describe the opinion of schoolage children, from a public school, regarding the violence they perceive in the media. Descriptive-exploratory research with a sample, selected according to the child's age in a public school. Quantitative data were collected. There were found common issues related to the child's opinion about the violence present in the media such as frequent exposure to the media violence and lack of parental supervision. Social context and constant exposure to the media violence affect the children's opinion about the violence phenomenon and their predisposition to it.

  7. Tropospheric ozone. Formation, properties, effects. Expert opinion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Elstner, E.F.

    1996-01-01

    The formation and dispersion of tropospheric ozone are discussed only marginally in this expert opinion; the key interest is in the effects of ground level ozone on plants, animals, and humans. The expert opinion is based on an analysis of the available scientific publications. (orig./MG) [de

  8. An empirical analysis of the public's attitudes toward advertising hospital services: a comparative cross-sectional study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moser, H Ronald; Freeman, Gordon L

    2014-01-01

    This study investigates current opinions about hospital advertising and compares them to the attitudes expressed 25 years ago. It replicates a survey done in 1985, using the same questionnaire and population to compare responses longitudinally. The study indicates some changes in the public's opinions of hospital advertising. Although the image of hospitals remains positive, most of the 2010 respondents' opinions were rather mixed regarding whether it is proper for hospitals to advertise. The study also confirmed that the quality of service and reputation of hospitals remain more important to the public than price.

  9. Turning the tide of public opinion on nuclear power

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cohen, B.L.

    1997-01-01

    Until the early 1970s, the tide of public opinion in the United States was strongly in favor of nuclear power. New power plants were coming on line frequently, and in 1973-74, there were close to 40 new orders per year for new reactors in the United States. Official government projections estimated 1000 operating reactors by the year 2000. Fuel reprocessing, plutonium recycle, and breeder reactor development were also proceeding smoothly and rapidly. But, in the mid-1970s, the tide suddenly turned against the nuclear industry. How did this come about? In the late 1960s, energetic and idealistic young people who had never experienced economic insecurity or World Wars came of age. Environmentalism was an attractive outlet for their activity in most of the Western world. In the United States, opposition to the Vietnam War, in which these young people had a personal stake, was even more popular at first, but by the early 1970s, Vietnam was winding down, and they turned also to Environmentalism. Numerous environmental groups started up, aided heavily by the favorable connotation of the very word open-quotes environmentalistclose quotes in the public mind. Their organizational experience, political savvy, and media connections gained from their antiwar protests were powerful assets. But the groups needed specific targets to attack, and they soon found that nuclear power was well-suited for that purpose. Here was a new technology, coming on at a very rapid pace. To the public, radiation was highly mysterious, and people were well aware that it could be dangerous. And, the word danger had taken on a new meaning. Previous generations were well acquainted with death and were much less averse to risk-taking than the generation of the 1970s

  10. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS AND OPINION SURVEY UPON DICTATORSHIP AS A PEDAGOGICAL STRATEGY OF THE TEACHING OF HISTORY.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vitória A. da Fonseca

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a practice of teaching, whose purpose was to make students of high school capable of understanding the issues upon the dictatorship as a theme in the teaching of history. Considering the importance of practice as a tool which makes up a learning path, the activity has involved debate, survey and statistical analysis. It is worth highlighting the engagement of students in this activity and mapping of their opinions about the dictatorship.

  11. Implementing Global Fund programs: a survey of opinions and experiences of the Principal Recipients across 69 countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wafula, Francis; Marwa, Charles; McCoy, David

    2014-03-24

    Principal Recipients (PRs) receive money from the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) to manage and implement programs. However, little research has gone into understanding their opinions and experiences. This survey set out to describe these, thereby providing a baseline against which changes in PR opinions and experiences can be assessed as the recently introduced new funding model is rolled out. An internet based questionnaire was administered to 315 PRs. A total of 115 responded from 69 countries in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America. The study was conducted between September and December 2012. Three quarters of PRs thought the progress update and disbursement request (PU/DR) system was a useful method of reporting grant progress. However, most felt that the grant negotiation processes were complicated, and that the grant rating system did not reflect performance.While nearly all PRs were happy with the work being done by sub-Recipients (92%) and Fund Portfolio Managers (86%), fewer were happy with the Office of the Inspector General (OIG). Non-government PRs were generally less happy with the OIG's work compared to government PRs.Most PRs thought the Global Fund's Voluntary Pooled Procurement system made procurement easier. However, only 29% said the system should be made compulsory.When asked which aspects of the Global Fund's operations needed improvement, most PRs said that the Fund should re-define and clarify the roles of different actors, minimize staff turnover at its Secretariat, and shorten the grant application and approval processes. All these are currently being addressed, either directly or indirectly, under a new funding model. Vigorous assessments should nonetheless follow the roll-out of the new model to ensure the areas that are most likely to affect PR performance realize sustained improvement. Opinions and experiences with the Global Fund were varied, with PRs having good communication with Fund

  12. Surveyed opinion of American trauma, orthopedic, and thoracic surgeons on rib and sternal fracture repair.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mayberry, John C; Ham, L Bruce; Schipper, Paul H; Ellis, Thomas J; Mullins, Richard J

    2009-03-01

    Rib and sternal fracture repair are controversial. The opinion of surgeons regarding those patients who would benefit from repair is unknown. Members of the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, the Orthopedic Trauma Association, and thoracic surgeons (THS) affiliated with teaching hospitals in the United States were recruited to complete an electronic survey regarding rib and sternal fracture repair. Two hundred thirty-eight trauma surgeons (TRS), 97 orthopedic trauma surgeons (OTS), and 70 THS completed the survey. Eighty-two percent of TRS, 66% of OTS, and 71% of THS thought that rib fracture repair was indicated in selected patients. A greater proportion of surgeons thought that sternal fracture repair was indicated in selected patients (89% of TRS, 85% of OTS, and 95% of THS). Chest wall defect/pulmonary hernia (58%) and sternal fracture nonunion (>6 weeks) (68%) were the only two indications accepted by a majority of respondents. Twenty-six percent of surgeons reported that they had performed or assisted on a chest wall fracture repair, whereas 22% of surgeons were familiar with published randomized trials of the surgical repair of flail chest. Of surgeons who thought rib fracture or sternal fracture repair was rarely, if ever, indicated, 91% and 95%, respectively, specified that a randomized trial confirming efficacy would be necessary to change their negative opinion. A majority of surveyed surgeons reported that rib and sternal fracture repair is indicated in selected patients; however, a much smaller proportion indicated that they had performed the procedures. The published literature on surgical repair is sparse and unfamiliar to most surgeons. Barriers to surgical repair of rib and sternal fracture include a lack of expertise among TRS, lack of research of optimal techniques, and a dearth of randomized trials.

  13. June 22, 1941: Evaluation of Public Opinion US and UK

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sergey O. Buranok

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available This article analyzes the U.S. and U.K public opinion about German attack on the USSR 22 June 1941. Considered the views of the American and British statesmen and politicians, the public mood, reflected in the press. Identify the main points of view on the outbreak of war with Germany against the Soviet Union. It is shown that in the presence of a variety of assessments prevailed ideas of solidarity with the Soviet Union and the need to support it. This work will allow for a " reflection" of the image of a belligerent Soviet Union, and to find the key moments falsifying the history of World War II in the U.S. and the UK. The events of the Great Patriotic War , which will be set out on the basis of US and UK archives, and t hen will be presented t o look at fighting in the USSR in the memoranda of public institutions of Great Britain and the United States, as well as their coverage in the Anglo-American media. In this case, due consideration will be given to the mechanisms of information influence that have been implemented in the U.S. Office of War Information and the British Ministry of Information. Selected key battles 1941 year in the USSR: a description of the fighting, then their score by British and U.S. military and political leadership, guidelines an d promotional materials departments of the UK and the U.S., the UK and the U.S. press.

  14. Teacher's opinions about learning continuum based on the student's level of competence and specific pedagogical materials on anatomical aspects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Astuti, Laili Dwi; Subali, Bambang

    2017-08-01

    This research deals with designing learning continuum for developing a curriculum. The objective of this study is to gather the opinion of public junior and high school teachers about Learning Continuum based on Student's Level of Competence and Specific Pedagogical Material on Anatomical Aspects. This is a survey research. The population of the research is natural science teachers at junior high school and biology teacher at senior high school in Yogyakarta Special Region. Data were collected using a questionnaire. Data were analyzed using a descriptive analysis technique. Based on the results of the survey, the teachers opinion are in accordance with the level of the students they teach. Junior high school teachers argued that anatomical aspects were taught in grade VII,VIII, IX and X on the level of C2 (understanding), the high school teacher argued that anatomical aspects were taught in grade VIII, X and XI on the level of C2 (understanding) and C3 (apply). While according to the opinions of primary school teachers about aspects of anatomy resulted from the research of Subali (2016), anatomy is mostly not taught at the elementary school level, only some of the materials that are taught in this school level. Therefore, the results of the survey can be inferred that the opinions of teachers is still based on the existing curriculum.

  15. school-based survey of adolescents' opinion on premarital sex in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    PROF. BARTH EKWEME

    Method: A cross sectional descriptive survey design was used. The sample size was 313 senior secondary school students from four public secondary schools in Yakurr Local Government Area of Cross River State. Simple random sampling technique was used to select 313 students from 4 schools in Yakurr Local ...

  16. Survey of state funding for public transportation 2010

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    The AASHTO Standing Committee on Public Transportation is pleased to release the Survey of State : Funding for Public Transportation. The survey results reflect Fiscal Year 2008 data. This annual report : provides a snapshot of state-by-state investm...

  17. Public Understanding of Sustainable Development: Some Implications for Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scott, William

    2015-01-01

    A number of recent surveys of public opinion claim that there is now widespread acceptance of the need for sustainable development, and that the general public, through its social and consumer activity is already successfully engaged. However, in all this, the focus has primarily been on individual and family behaviours such as recycling and…

  18. Printings, Political Parties and Public Opinion at the Province of Popayán, 1832-1853

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Willian Alfredo Chapman Quevedo

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available This article analyzes the incidences caused by printings and written texts during the public’s opinion creation between 1832 and 1853 at Popayan province. Thus, the public opinion was linked to the newspaper’s circulation, rags, scandal sheets and printed images. Likewise, it evidences that these printings and images were not exclusively design for a qualified audience but, the intention also was to reach the common people who were illiterate most of them. But, through orality and images, these people constructed an idea about the politic reality at that time. Hence, we conclude that writing and printed images, along with orality, were essential items to the intention of building a different reality. This last idea does not suggest that this experience was not mediated by comments but, it did influence the society of Popayan, and also interceding on the individual’s perception, a politic party and even the State.

  19. Nuclear power and the Canadian public

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Greer-Wootten, B; Mitson, L

    1976-06-01

    The purpose of the study was to ascertain the opinions and attitudes of Canadians to the use of nuclear power for generating electricity, as an initial step in developing information programs attuned to the demonstrated needs of the public. This report presents the findings from the survey of the Canadian public aged 18 years and over. Over 2100 persons responded to our interviewers, generating about 200,000 answers to the questions.

  20. IRSN 2017 opinion survey. The perception of risks and safety by French people. Global results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El Jammal, Marie-Helene; Charron, Sylvie; Mur, Emmanuelle; Schuler, Matthieu; Tchernia, Jean-francois

    2017-07-01

    Like every year, this report presents and comments the results of an opinion survey on risks, and more particularly on risks related to nuclear and radiological activities. The first part addresses the current concerns of French people (main concerns in the present society, with respect to the environment, and risks related to industrial installations). The second part addresses the opinion on expertise (the role and image of experts, diffusion and sharing of scientific expertise, and the perception of pluralistic structures). The third part examines the reaction of people in front of 34 different hazardous situations (risks to which people feel being exposed, confidence people have in authorities to protect them, confidence in information on hazards, hierarchy of the 34 situations according to three different aspects, and relationship with installation acceptability). The fourth part addresses the nuclear domain: expectations related to the control of the nuclear risk, benefits and drawbacks of nuclear energy, fear of a severe accident, attention given by French people to nuclear energy, expertise and credibility of interveners in the nuclear sector

  1. IRSN 2016 opinion survey. The perception of risks and safety by French people. Global results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El Jammal, Marie-Helene; Charron, Sylvie; Mur, Emmanuelle; Schuler, Matthieu; Tchernia, Jean-francois

    2016-07-01

    Like every year, this report presents and comments the results of an opinion survey on risks, and more particularly on risks related to nuclear and radiological activities. The first part addresses the current concerns of French people (main concerns in the present society, with respect to the environment, and risks related to industrial installations). The second part addresses the opinion on expertise (the role and image of experts, diffusion and sharing of scientific expertise, and the perception of pluralistic structures). The third part examines the reaction of people in front of 34 different hazardous situations (risks to which people feel being exposed, confidence people have in authorities to protect them, confidence in information on hazards, hierarchy of the 34 situations according to three different aspects, and relationship with installation acceptability). The fourth part addresses the nuclear domain: expectations related to the control of the nuclear risk, fear of a severe accident, benefits and drawbacks of nuclear energy, expertise and credibility of interveners in the nuclear sector, fear of serious nuclear accidents, perception of the two main nuclear accidents: Chernobyl (1986) and Fukushima (2011)

  2. French and european opinions about energy questions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1992-03-01

    This paper presents a statistical study of french and european opinions in 1989 about energy questions. The main subjects studied are: qualities of different energy sources (coal, petroleum, natural gas, nuclear energy, renewable energies); perception in public opinion of nuclear industry; energy and environmental effects. 6 figs., 1 tab., 4 appendices

  3. [The residents of mental health services in 1994. Population characteristics and its opinions about graduation].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agrest, M

    1995-09-01

    Departing from two surveys that took place during a Mental Health Meeting of the Health Residents from Buenos Aires, the main features and their opinions upon their education and work are analyzed. The results are discriminated by profession. Two problems are highlighted: one of them refers to the general insatisfaction of this group with their theoretical learning; the other, shows the exit of prepared human resources from public hospitals. The data suggest that, despite sharing most of their activities, psychologists and psychiatrists have significant different opinions about the clinic education they think are getting. Further research is suggested in order to have a deeper comprehension of what is going on in these training programs.

  4. Opinion evolution in different social acquaintance networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Xi; Zhang, Xiao; Wu, Zhan; Wang, Hongwei; Wang, Guohua; Li, Wei

    2017-11-01

    Social acquaintance networks influenced by social culture and social policy have a great impact on public opinion evolution in daily life. Based on the differences between socio-culture and social policy, three different social acquaintance networks (kinship-priority acquaintance network, independence-priority acquaintance network, and hybrid acquaintance network) incorporating heredity proportion p h and variation proportion p v are proposed in this paper. Numerical experiments are conducted to investigate network topology and different phenomena during opinion evolution, using the Deffuant model. We found that in kinship-priority acquaintance networks, similar to the Chinese traditional acquaintance networks, opinions always achieve fragmentation, resulting in the formation of multiple large clusters and many small clusters due to the fact that individuals believe more in their relatives and live in a relatively closed environment. In independence-priority acquaintance networks, similar to Western acquaintance networks, the results are similar to those in the kinship-priority acquaintance network. In hybrid acquaintance networks, similar to the Chinese modern acquaintance networks, only a few clusters are formed indicating that in modern China, opinions are more likely to reach consensus on a large scale. These results are similar to the opinion evolution phenomena in modern society, proving the rationality and applicability of network models combined with social culture and policy. We also found a threshold curve p v +2p h =2.05 in the results for the final opinion clusters and evolution time. Above the threshold curve, opinions could easily reach consensus. Based on the above experimental results, a culture-policy-driven mechanism for the opinion dynamic is worth promoting in this paper, that is, opinion dynamics can be driven by different social cultures and policies through the influence of heredity and variation in interpersonal relationship networks. This

  5. An audit of skeletal surveys for suspected non-accidental injury following publication of the British Society of Paediatric Radiology guidelines

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Swinson, S.; Tapp, M.; Brindley, R.; Chapman, S.; Offiah, A.; Johnson, K.

    2008-01-01

    Aim: To audit change in the content and standard of skeletal surveys in the UK following the publication of the British Society of Paediatric Radiology (BSPR) guidelines for skeletal surveys in suspected non-accidental injury. Materials and methods: One hundred skeletal surveys, which were performed throughout England and Wales between February 2004 and September 2006 and received for a second opinion at a single children's hospital, were reviewed. The views obtained were compared with the defined reference standard 20 views as recommended by the BSPR. Additionally, each view was assessed for technical quality out of a maximum score of 11. The results were compared with an earlier study published prior to the definitive guideline. Additional information included whether images were film or digital and whether a computed tomography examination of the head was documented. Results: A mean of 16.5 (range 5-20) of the 20 recommended views were covered per survey and 15% of surveys included all 20 recommended views (previously 0%). The mean technical score per film was 9.7/11 (88%). Sixty-two percent of the skeletal surveys were digitally acquired and 59% included a CT examination of the head. Conclusion: There is still considerable variation in skeletal surveys performed in the UK, but progress has been observed in all areas in the light of the BSPR guidelines. There remains room for improvement, and further publicity of the guidelines is recommended

  6. An audit of skeletal surveys for suspected non-accidental injury following publication of the British Society of Paediatric Radiology guidelines

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Swinson, S. [Birmingham Children' s Hospital, Birmingham (United Kingdom)], E-mail: sophieswinson@doctors.org.uk; Tapp, M.; Brindley, R.; Chapman, S. [Birmingham Children' s Hospital, Birmingham (United Kingdom); Offiah, A. [Great Ormond Street Hospital, London (United Kingdom); Johnson, K. [Birmingham Children' s Hospital, Birmingham (United Kingdom)

    2008-06-15

    Aim: To audit change in the content and standard of skeletal surveys in the UK following the publication of the British Society of Paediatric Radiology (BSPR) guidelines for skeletal surveys in suspected non-accidental injury. Materials and methods: One hundred skeletal surveys, which were performed throughout England and Wales between February 2004 and September 2006 and received for a second opinion at a single children's hospital, were reviewed. The views obtained were compared with the defined reference standard 20 views as recommended by the BSPR. Additionally, each view was assessed for technical quality out of a maximum score of 11. The results were compared with an earlier study published prior to the definitive guideline. Additional information included whether images were film or digital and whether a computed tomography examination of the head was documented. Results: A mean of 16.5 (range 5-20) of the 20 recommended views were covered per survey and 15% of surveys included all 20 recommended views (previously 0%). The mean technical score per film was 9.7/11 (88%). Sixty-two percent of the skeletal surveys were digitally acquired and 59% included a CT examination of the head. Conclusion: There is still considerable variation in skeletal surveys performed in the UK, but progress has been observed in all areas in the light of the BSPR guidelines. There remains room for improvement, and further publicity of the guidelines is recommended.

  7. Understanding Sample Surveys: Selective Learning about Social Science Research Methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Currin-Percival, Mary; Johnson, Martin

    2010-01-01

    We investigate differences in what students learn about survey methodology in a class on public opinion presented in two critically different ways: with the inclusion or exclusion of an original research project using a random-digit-dial telephone survey. Using a quasi-experimental design and data obtained from pretests and posttests in two public…

  8. Medical records confidentiality and public health research: two values at stake? An italian survey focus on individual preferences

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Virgilia Toccaceli

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available In a time when Europe is preparing to introduce new regulations on privacy protection, we conducted a survey among 1700 twins enrolled in the Italian Twin Register about the access and use of their medical records for public health research without explicit informed consent. A great majority of respondents would refuse or are doubtful about the access and use of hospital discharge records or clinical data without their explicit consent. Young and female individuals represent the modal profile of these careful people. As information retrieved from medical records is crucial for progressing knowledge, it is important to promote a better understanding of the value of public health research activities among the general population. Furthermore, public opinions are relevant to policy making, and concerns and preferences about privacy and confidentiality in research can contribute to the design of procedures to exploit medical records effectively and customize the protection of individuals’ medical data.

  9. Public opinion and the politics of the killer robots debate

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael C Horowitz

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available The possibility that today’s drones could become tomorrow’s killer robots has attracted the attention of people around the world. Scientists and business leaders, from Stephen Hawking to Elon Musk, recently signed a letter urging the world to ban autonomous weapons. Part of the argument against these systems is that they violate the public conscience provision of the Martens Clause due to public opposition, making them illegal under international law. What, however, does the US public think of these systems? Existing research suggests widespread US public opposition, but focused on support for autonomous weapons in a vacuum. This paper uses two survey experiments to test the conditions in which public opposition rises and falls. The results demonstrate that public opposition to autonomous weapons is contextual. Fear of other countries or non-state actors developing these weapons makes the public significantly more supportive of developing them. The public also becomes much more willing to actually use autonomous weapons when their use would protect US forces. Beyond contributing to ongoing academic debates about casualty aversion, the microfoundations of foreign policy, and weapon systems, these results suggest the need for modesty when making claims about how the public views new, unknown technologies such as autonomous weapons.

  10. Opinions about euthanasia and advanced dementia: a qualitative study among Dutch physicians and members of the general public.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kouwenhoven, Pauline S C; Raijmakers, Natasja J H; van Delden, Johannes J M; Rietjens, Judith A C; van Tol, Donald G; van de Vathorst, Suzanne; de Graeff, Nienke; Weyers, Heleen A M; van der Heide, Agnes; van Thiel, Ghislaine J M W

    2015-01-28

    The Dutch law states that a physician may perform euthanasia according to a written advance euthanasia directive (AED) when a patient is incompetent as long as all legal criteria of due care are met. This may also hold for patients with advanced dementia. We investigated the differing opinions of physicians and members of the general public on the acceptability of euthanasia in patients with advanced dementia. In this qualitative study, 16 medical specialists, 19 general practitioners, 16 elderly physicians and 16 members of the general public were interviewed and asked for their opinions about a vignette on euthanasia based on an AED in a patient with advanced dementia. Members of the general public perceived advanced dementia as a debilitating and degrading disease. Physicians emphasized the need for direct communication with the patient when making decisions about euthanasia. Respondent from both groups acknowledged difficulties in the assessment of patients' autonomous wishes and the unbearableness of their suffering. Legally, an AED may replace direct communication with patients about their request for euthanasia. In practice, physicians are reluctant to forego adequate verbal communication with the patient because they wish to verify the voluntariness of patients' request and the unbearableness of suffering. For this reason, the applicability of AEDs in advanced dementia seems limited.

  11. Structural models of public risk perception of radioactive substances in food. An analysis of the data from internet survey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kito, Yayoi; Niiyama, Yoko

    2012-01-01

    In risk communication of food contamination by radioactive substances derived from the accident at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, it is required that experts, government and the public exchange information and opinions and establish a mutual understanding. To meet these requirements, it is necessary to investigate public risk perception and the structure of perception. We conducted a series of internet surveys in 2011-2012, two times in Kanto- and Kansai-area on men and women aged from 30 to 49 who have children, and once in all parts of Japan on women aged from 20 to 59. From the data analysis, we identified the feature of risk perception of radioactive substances and buying behavior, and moreover, we analyzed the relationship among the perceived risks and other factors using Structural Equation Modeling. (author)

  12. Nuclear energy communications in France: gaining public confidence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chaussade, J.-P.

    1990-01-01

    Nuclear power plants today are an accepted part of the French landscape; a total of 54 units have been constructed on some 20 different sites. They have been relatively well accepted by the general public and, in particular, by those people living in the vicinity of plants. This favourable situation, however, did not come about automatically - it required a great deal of effort in terms of public information, starting during the 1970s. This effort must be maintained, especially since public confidence in nuclear energy was severely shaken by the Chernobyl accident. Our success in pursuing France's planned construction programme depends on our ability to build on this confidence. Indeed, since 1987, we have had to rethink our communications strategy. However, Electricite de France (EDF) is not alone in this; public authorities, the SCSIN (an Industry Department equivalent to the NRC), CEA (French atomic energy commission), in its capacity as a research organisation, together with plant constructor Framatome and nuclear fuel company Cogema, all have a role to play in this communications drive. The key to our communications campaign lies in listening to public opinion. Opinion polls and qualitative surveys allow us to judge public awareness and pinpoint expectations and concerns. This article summarises the main surveys we have carried out. (3 figures) (Author)

  13. Elite Repudiation of the R-Word and Public Opinion About Intellectual Disability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lyle, Monique L; Simplican, Stacy Clifford

    2015-06-01

    Part of the motivation for encouraging elite stakeholders—like governments, professionals, and advocacy groups—to replace the language of "mental retardation" with "intellectual disability" (ID) is the belief that elite endorsement could undermine negative attitudes and influence the public to follow suit. We examine the veracity of this expectation empirically with an experiment that exposed individuals to information about endorsements of the terminology change made by the federal government, Special Olympics, or professional psychologists. We subsequently measured attitudes about persons with ID and the language used to describe ID. Results indicate that exposure to information about elite endorsement of the terminological shift either exacerbated negative attitudes or had no effect, suggesting that other factors may have primacy over "expert" opinion.

  14. Sticker Shock: How Information Affects Citizen Support for Public School Funding.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schueler, Beth E; West, Martin R

    2016-01-01

    This study examines the role of information in shaping public opinion in the context of support for education spending. While there is broad public support for increasing government funding for public schools, Americans tend to underestimate what is currently spent. We embed a series of experiments in a nationally representative survey administered in 2012 ( n = 2,993) to examine whether informing citizens about current levels of education spending alters public opinion about whether funding should increase. Providing information on per-pupil spending in a respondent's local school district reduces the probability that he or she will express support for increasing spending by 22 percentage points on average. Informing respondents about state-average teacher salaries similarly depresses support for salary increases. These effects are larger among respondents who underestimate per-pupil spending and teacher salaries by a greater amount, consistent with the idea that the observed changes in opinion are driven, at least in part, by informational effects, as opposed to priming alone.

  15. Public, private and personal: qualitative research on policymakers' opinions on smokefree interventions to protect children in 'private' spaces.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rouch, Gareth; Thomson, George; Wilson, Nick; Hudson, Sheena; Edwards, Richard; Gifford, Heather; Lanumata, Tolotea

    2010-12-31

    Governments use law to constrain aspects of private activities for purposes of protecting health and social wellbeing. Policymakers have a range of perceptions and beliefs about what is public or private. An understanding of the possible drivers of policymaker decisions about where government can or should intervene for health is important, as one way to better guide appropriate policy formation. Our aim was to identify obstacles to, and opportunities for, government smokefree regulation of private and public spaces to protect children. In particular, to seek policymaker opinions on the regulation of smoking in homes, cars and public parks and playgrounds in a country with incomplete smokefree laws (New Zealand). Case study, using structured interviews to ask policymakers (62 politicians and senior officials) about their opinions on new smokefree legislation for public and private places. Supplementary data was obtained from the Factiva media database, on the views of New Zealand local authority councillors about policies for smokefree outdoor public places. Overall, interviewees thought that government regulation of smoking in private places was impractical and unwise. However, there were some differences on what was defined as 'private', particularly for cars. Even in public parks, smoking was seen by some as a 'personal' decision, and unlikely to be amenable to regulation. Most participants believed that educative, supportive and community-based measures were better and more practical means of reducing smoking in private places, compared to regulation. The constrained view of the role of regulation of smoking in public and private domains may be in keeping with current political discourse in New Zealand and similar Anglo-American countries. Policy and advocacy options to promote additional smokefree measures include providing a better voice for childrens' views, increasing information to policymakers about the harms to children from secondhand smoke and the

  16. IRSN opinion survey - The perception of risks and security by the French population. Global results June 2013

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2013-06-01

    After having commented the most remarkable results (importance of the economic crisis as a major concern for French people before environmental concerns, an improved perception of industrial risks, the Fukushima accident is fading away but specific traces remain, expectations regarding nuclear energy), this report, illustrated by several graphs, presents and discusses the results of an annual opinion survey on the present concerns of French people (in the present society, for the environment, and as far as science is concerned), the opinion of French people on expertise (about who must control a risky installation, about the role and image of scientific experts, about the diffusion and sharing of scientific expertise, and about the perception of pluralistic structures), on the attitude of French people in front of 33 risk situations (risks to which French people feel exposed to, confidence of French people in authorities to protect them, the truth of information on hazards, the hierarchy of 33 situations according to three aspects and their relationship with installation acceptability). The fourth part addresses more particularly the nuclear sector: nuclear risk, ability and credibility of interveners, debate on energy transition. A last part addresses the perception of the Fukushima accident. Graphs notably present the evolution of opinions with respect to last year or over the past years

  17. Public Communication Strategy Development: Focused on the Public Opinion Poll and Lessons Learned from the Survey on Nuclear Safety

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hah, Yeon Hee; Chung, Yun Hyung; Lee, Gey Hwi; Choi, Yong Seog

    2006-01-01

    The fundamental objective of nuclear regulatory organization is to ensure that nuclear activities are conducted at all times in an acceptably safe manner. When we are talking about 'acceptable' safety, it means that we have to try to achieve the safety level as 'acceptable' as perceived by the public, not the one conceptualized by the technology itself. In meeting this objective, the regulatory organization continues to ensure that its activities are transparent, technically sound, credible, and independent. More importantly, it should strive to ensure that the public are well informed about such activities and are confident upon regulatory organization. Public communication is one of the key approaches to attain such a goal. The availability of on-line communications based on the development of information technology has made a major impact on the public's better awareness of nuclear safety issues. Nuclear regulatory organization and operators are increasingly under pressure to communicate more actively with the public to satisfy their demand for knowing about the safety of nuclear facility. In coping with such challenges, KINS has developed a public information and communication policy to make public confident in their information and thus to earn the public trust and confidence toward nuclear safety. It is widely acknowledged that public communication for ensuring nuclear safety has been an integral part of the operators' activity. However, the roles and activities by the regulator in the area of public communication are increasingly required as the public become more interested in and concerned about safety issues. Taking this into account, KINS has carried out several activities to be well-informed about how the public perceive nuclear safety and how much they are satisfied with the regulator's activities, etc

  18. The Gaia-ESO Public Spectroscopic Survey

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gilmore, G.; Randich, S.; Asplund, M.

    2012-01-01

    The Gaia-ESO Public Spectroscopic Survey has begun and will obtain high quality spectroscopy of some 100000 Milky Way stars, in the field and in open clusters, down to magnitude 19, systematically covering all the major components of the Milky Way. This survey will provide the first homogeneous o...

  19. 42 CFR 411.382 - CMS's right to rescind advisory opinions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false CMS's right to rescind advisory opinions. 411.382... Relationships Between Physicians and Entities Furnishing Designated Health Services § 411.382 CMS's right to rescind advisory opinions. Any advice CMS gives in an opinion does not prejudice its right to reconsider...

  20. Primary school teachers’ opinions and attitudes towards stuttering in two South African urban education districts

    OpenAIRE

    Kristen Abrahams; Michal Harty; Kenneth O. St. Louis; Lehana Thabane; Harsha Kathard

    2016-01-01

    Background: As teachers form an important part of the intervention process with childrenwho stutter in primary school, the primary aim was to describe primary school teachers’attitudes in South Africa. The secondary aim was to compare teachers’ attitudes towardsstuttering in South Africa with those from a pooled group of respondents in the Public OpinionSurvey of Human Attributes–Stuttering (POSHA-S) database from different countries collectedin 2009–2014. Method: A quantitative, cross-sec...

  1. A survey of South African provincial netball coaches\\' opinions ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    South African Journal for Research in Sport, Physical Education and Recreation ... coaches\\' opinions, abilities and limitations regarding mental skills training ... competitions (according to their coaches), with the rest (44.44%) showing average

  2. IRSN 2015 opinion survey. The perception of risks and safety by French people. Global results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El Jammal, Marie-Helene; Mur, Emmanuelle; Rollinger, Francois; Schuler, Matthieu; Tchernia, Jean-Francois

    2015-07-01

    Like every year, this report presents and comments the results of an opinion survey on risks, and more particularly on risks related to nuclear and radiological activities. The first part addresses the current concerns of French people (main concerns in the present society, with respect to the environment, and risks related to industrial installations). The second part addresses the opinion on expertise (the role and image of experts, diffusion and sharing of scientific expertise, and who should control a hazardous installation). The third part examines the reaction of people in front of 34 different hazardous situations (risks to which people feel being exposed, confidence people have in authorities to protect them, confidence in information on hazards, hierarchy of the 34 situations according to three different aspects, and relationship with installation acceptability). The fourth part addresses the nuclear domain: expectations related to the control of the nuclear risk, fear of a severe accident, benefits and drawbacks of nuclear energy, expertise and credibility of interveners in the nuclear sector. The fifth part addresses the presence of radon in dwellings (awareness of the risk, measures related to the control of radon in dwellings)

  3. The relevance of security analyst opinions for investment decisions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gerritsen, D.F.

    2014-01-01

    Security analysts analyze information regarding publicly traded companies after which they publish their opinion regarding these companies’ stocks. In this dissertation the published opinions of two different types of analysts are analyzed. Technical analysts derive a recommendation to buy, hold, or

  4. Rising Mercury, Rising Hostility: How Heat Affects Survey Response

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Alexander H.; Krueger, James S.

    2016-01-01

    Recent social scientific research has examined connections between public opinion and weather conditions. This article contributes to this literature by analyzing the relationship between high temperature and survey response. Because hot temperatures are associated with aggression, irritation, and negativity, such conditions should lead to the…

  5. Functioning of primary health care in opinion of managers of primary health care units.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bojar, I; Wdowiak, L; Kwiatosz-Muc, M

    2006-01-01

    The aim of the research is to get to know opinions of primary health care managers concerning working of primary health care and concerning quality of medical services offered by family doctors out-patient clinics. The research among managers of primary health care units took place in all out-patient clinics in Lublin province. Research instrument was survey questionnaire of authors own construction. Results were statistically analyzed. From 460 surveys sent, 108 questionnaires were accepted to analysis. Majority of managers of out-patient clinics of primary health care is satisfied with the way and the quality of work of employed staff. In opinion of 71.3% of managers access to family doctor services is very good. Availability of primary health care services is better estimated by managers of not public units. The occupied local provide comfortable work for the staff in opinion of 78.5% of surveyed managers of out-patient clinics. Managers estimate the level of their services as very good (37.96%) and good (37.96%) comparing to other such a subjects present in the market. Internal program of improving quality is run in 22% of out-patient clinics, which were investigated. Managers of primary health care units assess the quality of their services as good and very good. They estimate positively the comfort and politeness in serving patients as well as technical status of equipment and the lodging. They assess availability of their services as very good. Large group of managers of family doctors practices recognizes neighborhood practices as a competitors.

  6. Polish society attitudes towards nuclear power, ionizing radiation applications and radioactive waste management (Report on public opinion polls)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Latek, Stanislaw

    1999-01-01

    In Poland, during parliamentary debate on Foundations for the 'Polish energy policies up to 2010', the importance of public attitudes toward nuclear power has been recalled repeatedly in the context of the future development of nuclear power in Poland. In the governmental document, accepted by Polish Parliament on 1 January 1996, it has been stated that nuclear power plant construction is not foreseen up to the year 2010; nevertheless it has been assumed that the appraisals of the economic feasibility and of the public acceptance level for such investments will be conducted. Thus, the need for such assessments of public opinions and attitudes toward nuclear power has been recognized and accepted by the highest legislative power organ in Poland

  7. Images and symbols in the Argentinean public opinion on the nuclear energy and the environment: 'The necessity of a new communicational strategy'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chahab, M.

    2006-01-01

    The present work expresses some ideas on certain characteristics of the public opinion in Argentina with regard to the perception that one has of the use of the nuclear energy and the care of the environment. The work tried to explain the reasons that although Argentina has a long tradition and a considerable international prestige in the generation, investigation and controls of the nuclear energy, at the same time, the argentinean public opinion has not shown in favor of the development of the same one, perceiving that the use of this energy would bring problems for the environment. In the work it was to explain some of the reasons of this opinion state that takes it as a psychological state of people, and that would have elements, symbols and negative interior images in people that work as strongly ingrained beliefs so that the fellows ponder to the nuclear option as the one that less it is wanted for the development of the country. The idea was also developed that these images and negative symbols toward the development of the nuclear energy could have origin in information of the massive media of communication, among other sources that could be persuading to the public opinion through the repetition and to study in depth of these messages toward psychological states contrary to the development of the nuclear energy. The present work tried to explore and to describe this internal universe of the argentinean public opinion with the objective of outlining mechanisms, strategies or action plans from the institutions linked to the nuclear energy that try to open the internal space of people toward an approach more positive with the perception of the development of the nuclear energy in its links with the environment. On this objective, the present work outlined the idea that the opening of the perceptive mark in people would have that to generate it 'not in opposition to the existent beliefs' but trying to win alternative mental spaces in the people. In this space

  8. What the public think about hypnosis and hypnotherapy: A narrative review of literature covering opinions and attitudes of the general public 1996-2016.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krouwel, Matthew; Jolly, Kate; Greenfield, Sheila

    2017-06-01

    To describe the public's understanding of hypnosis and openness to hypnotherapy. A comprehensive search of English language peer reviewed journal articles from 1st January 1996-11th March 2016 was performed over 9 databases (Medline, PubMed, PsycARTICLES, CINAHL, Embase (excerpta medica), PsychInfo, Cochrane, Science citation index-expanded, Conference citation index) and a title-only search of Google scholar. 39 keyword combinations were employed: hypnosis, hypnotherapy, hypnotic, perception, beliefs, knowledge, view, opinion and understanding, in singular and plural where appropriate. A search of the bibliographies of eligible articles was undertaken. Inclusion criteria - Articles containing original data regarding the general public's attitudes towards hypnotherapy or hypnosis. Exclusion criteria - Non-therapy hypnosis (forensic, entertainment) materials and those concerned with groups likely to possess prior or professional knowledge of hypnosis, (hypnotists, clinicians and psychologists). Analysis was conducted in line with the questions. 31 articles were identified, covering diverse populations. Most people believe that: hypnosis is an altered state which requires collaboration to enter; once hypnotized perception changes; hypnotherapy is beneficial for psychological issues and is supportive of medical interventions; hypnosis can also enhance abilities especially memory. People are open to hypnotherapy subject to validation from the psychological or medical establishment. Similarity of opinion is more apparent than difference. Most people are positive towards hypnotherapy, and would consider its use under the right circumstances. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  9. Public opinion on abortion in eight Mexican states amid opposition to legalization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valencia Rodríguez, Jorge; Wilson, Kate S; Díaz Olavarrieta, Claudia; García, Sandra G; Sánchez Fuentes, Maria Luisa

    2011-09-01

    In opposition to Mexico City's legalization of first-trimester abortion, 17 Mexican states (53 percent) have introduced initiatives or reforms to ban abortion entirely, and other states have similar legislation pending. We conducted an opinion survey in eight states--four where constitutional amendments have already been approved and four with pending amendments. Using logistic regression analyses, we found that higher education, political party affiliation, and awareness of reforms/initiatives were significantly associated with support for the Mexico City law. Legal abortion was supported by a large proportion of respondents in cases of rape (45-70 percent), risk to a woman's life (55-71 percent), and risk to a woman's health (48-68 percent). A larger percentage of respondents favored the Mexico City law, which limits elective legal abortion to the first 12 weeks of gestation (32-54 percent), than elective abortion without regard to gestational limit (14-31 percent).

  10. 42 CFR 1008.31 - OIG fees for the cost of advisory opinions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false OIG fees for the cost of advisory opinions. 1008.31... SERVICES OIG AUTHORITIES ADVISORY OPINIONS BY THE OIG Advisory Opinion Fees § 1008.31 OIG fees for the cost of advisory opinions. (a) Responsibility for fees. The requestor is responsible for paying a fee...

  11. Opinions and environmental practices of French people in 2014

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pautard, Eric

    2015-04-01

    This publication presents and comments the results of an annual survey on environmental concerns of French people in 2014. It comments the evolution since 2010 of the main concerns (global warming, air pollution, natural catastrophes, water pollution, increase of household wastes, extinctions of some vegetal and animal species, noise), of main concerns at the level of their neighbourhood (noise, lack of public transport, air pollution, degraded environment, natural risks, risks related to the presence of dangerous installations). Another part of the survey addressed dwellings and energy: perception by the dwellers of a possible lack of insulation, perception of a necessity to undertake works for energy saving, trend to reduce their heating or air conditioning to reduce their energy consumption, trend to turn of the standby mode of some devices. The third part deals with transports: transport mode used to go to work or to go shopping, evolution of alternative modes for these both practices, perspective of doing without car for daily transports in the future, factors that would encourage not using an individual motorized transport mean. The last part of the survey addressed daily behaviours and responsible consumption: opinion about what means responsible consumption, factors that would incite the buying products more friendly to environment, practice of purchasing of bio-products or labelled products, attention paid to the quantity of wastes associated with a product when buying it

  12. Nuclear power and the Canadian public. A national and regional assessment of public attitudes and perceptions of the use of nuclear power for the production of electricity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Greer-Wootten, B; Mitson, L [York Univ., Toronto, Ontario (Canada)

    1976-06-01

    Over 2,100 persons from the Canadian public aged 18 years and over were interviewed to ascertain the opinions and attitudes of Canadians toward the use of nuclear power for generating electricity. The results of this survey are presented.

  13. Explaining Foreign Direct Investments in Gujarat: A Study based on an Opinion Survey of Persons Involved in the Foreign Direct Investment Process

    OpenAIRE

    Morris, Sebastian

    2005-01-01

    Gujarat has attracted more foreign direct investment (FDI) than what its GDP size alone would suggest. But relative to its peer states (especially Tamilnadu, Delhi, Maharashtra and Karnataka, and possibly Andhra Pradesh) it has fallen short significantly. The above findings which we made in an earlier study are further confirmed through a survey of opinions and views of CEOs and others intimately concerned with the foreign investment decision process. The survey also brought out the crucial i...

  14. Opinion Mining in Latvian Text Using Semantic Polarity Analysis and Machine Learning Approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gatis Špats

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we demonstrate approaches for opinion mining in Latvian text. Authors have applied, combined and extended results of several previous studies and public resources to perform opinion mining in Latvian text using two approaches, namely, semantic polarity analysis and machine learning. One of the most significant constraints that make application of opinion mining for written content classification in Latvian text challenging is the limited publicly available text corpora for classifier training. We have joined several sources and created a publically available extended lexicon. Our results are comparable to or outperform current achievements in opinion mining in Latvian. Experiments show that lexicon-based methods provide more accurate opinion mining than the application of Naive Bayes machine learning classifier on Latvian tweets. Methods used during this study could be further extended using human annotators, unsupervised machine learning and bootstrapping to create larger corpora of classified text.

  15. Choir of believers? Longitudinal evidence on public service motivation and survey participation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jacobsen, Christian Bøtcher; De Lorent Gad, Mette; Kjeldsen, Anne Mette

    The most widely used method to study individuals’ public service motivation is surveys. The validity and inferential power of such studies may, however, be harmed by survey participation bias, if highly public service motivated individuals are overrepresented among respondents. This paper examines...... the methodological critique of survey participation bias raised against the public service motivation literature and examines whether public service motivation increases the propensity to respond to surveys. By tracking more than 3,000 public service providers’ participation in a three-wave panel survey, our...... analysis shows that public service motivation does have a positive effect on survey participation. This suggests that future studies should pay attention to the characteristics of respondents/non-respondents and consider weighting the sample....

  16. Attitudes toward clinical autopsy in unexpected patient deaths in Japan: a nation-wide survey of the general public and physicians.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kamishiraki, Etsuko; Maeda, Shoichi; Starkey, Jay; Ikeda, Noriaki

    2012-12-01

    Autopsy is a useful tool for understanding the cause and manner of unexpected patient death. However, the attitudes of the general public and physicians in Japan about clinical autopsy are limited. To describe the beliefs of the general public about whether autopsy should be performed and ascertain if they would actually request one given specific clinical situations where patient death occurred with the additional variable of medical error. To compare these attitudes with previously obtained attitudes of physicians practising at Japanese teaching hospitals. We conducted a cross-sectional study of the general public. We sent standardised questionnaires in 2010 to a randomly selected non-physician adult population using a survey company for participant selection. Respondents gave their opinions about the necessity of autopsy and how they might act given various clinical scenarios of patient death. We compared these results with those of a previous survey of Japanese physicians conducted in 2009. Of the 2300 eligible general adult population, 1575 (68.5%) responded. The majority of the general public indicated they believed an autopsy was necessary. However, in cases of unclear medical error or unclear cause and effect relationship of medical care and patient death, the general public were much less likely to indicate they would actually request an autopsy than were physicians (pcase of error related to death is underway. The results from this study will be important in informing related decisions.

  17. 42 CFR 411.380 - When CMS issues a formal advisory opinion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false When CMS issues a formal advisory opinion. 411.380... Relationships Between Physicians and Entities Furnishing Designated Health Services § 411.380 When CMS issues a formal advisory opinion. (a) CMS considers an advisory opinion to be issued once it has received payment...

  18. Surveys of Online Information Service in Large Public Libraries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woy, James B.

    1983-01-01

    Reports results of 1983 survey of 25 public libraries and 1981 survey of 11 public libraries, both of which focused on facets of online information services--user fees, databases, documentation, equipment, miscellaneous services, and subject areas searched. The 1983 questionnaire and seven sources are appended. (EJS)

  19. The Extended Space of Public Opinion in the Context of Multi-Platform Journalism: From Speakers to Discursive Actors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kati Eliana Caetano

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper has as its starting point the traditional condition of public opinion, especially its existence in the society of mass communication when assuming the role of legitimizing discourses of political protagonists – the government and media. This text aims to show it as an object built around the set of discursive conventions, and show the modifications it goes through in the context of current journalism; a multitude of voices being heard in the circulation of information spaces. The qualitative analysis focuses on opinions on the Israel / Palestine conflict taken from reader comments and Internet search applications based on tags between the period of June and September 2014. Among these changes are the needs to restructure its concept, to understand the challenge it represents to news organizations and to review the formal elaborations that sustain journalistic discourse.

  20. Organisational Rules in Schools: Teachers' Opinions about Functions of Rules, Rule-Following and Breaking Behaviours in Relation to Their Locus of Control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Demirkasimoglu, Nihan; Aydin, Inayet; Erdogan, Cetin; Akin, Ugur

    2012-01-01

    The main aim of this research is to examine teachers' opinions about functions of school rules, reasons for rule-breaking and results of rule-breaking in relation to their locus of control, gender, age, seniority and branch. 350 public elementary school teachers in Ankara are included in the correlational survey model study. According to the…

  1. Variation of public opinion regarding nuclear energy with the change of nuclear information by the media

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohnishi, Teruaki

    1998-01-01

    The behavior of the secular variation of public opinion with respect to nuclear energy since 1973 was simulated by using an already developed mathematical model with the assumption that the public opinion, regardless of the local resident or of the average Japanese, has been subject almost solely to the quality and quantity of information by the newsmedia. The quality and quantity of nuclear information was assumed here to be measurable by the amount of information with positive or negative contents regarding the promotion of nuclear generation, which is released by the press, television and magazines. From the comparison of the quality and quantity of information by several newspapers, a major difference was found to exist between the information made by the press in the located region of nuclear station and the information by the national press, such that the former has released everyday information of both positive and negative contents for local residents with the amount several times higher than the latter. Model calculation showed that the attitude of local residents to nuclear energy is quite stable in time as compared to that of average Japanese. Such an essential difference of nuclear attitude between the local resident and the average Japanese became clear to originate from the above-cited difference of the characteristics of information between the local and national media. With the use of such model calculation as this, useful knowledge concerning the method of disclosure of nuclear information is expected to obtain. (author)

  2. Criteria for Centralized Warehousing Procedures in Public School Districts. Summary Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forsythe, Ralph A.; Thomson, Leland A.

    This survey of opinions of architects, certified public accountants, and educators (who have written concerning, shown leadership in, or have specialized knowledge about warehousing) covers the planning, organizing, material handling, and paper processing of presently operated school district central warehouses. All recommendations concerning…

  3. Online and Social Media Data As an Imperfect Continuous Panel Survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diaz, Fernando; Gamon, Michael; Hofman, Jake M; Kıcıman, Emre; Rothschild, David

    2016-01-01

    There is a large body of research on utilizing online activity as a survey of political opinion to predict real world election outcomes. There is considerably less work, however, on using this data to understand topic-specific interest and opinion amongst the general population and specific demographic subgroups, as currently measured by relatively expensive surveys. Here we investigate this possibility by studying a full census of all Twitter activity during the 2012 election cycle along with the comprehensive search history of a large panel of Internet users during the same period, highlighting the challenges in interpreting online and social media activity as the results of a survey. As noted in existing work, the online population is a non-representative sample of the offline world (e.g., the U.S. voting population). We extend this work to show how demographic skew and user participation is non-stationary and difficult to predict over time. In addition, the nature of user contributions varies substantially around important events. Furthermore, we note subtle problems in mapping what people are sharing or consuming online to specific sentiment or opinion measures around a particular topic. We provide a framework, built around considering this data as an imperfect continuous panel survey, for addressing these issues so that meaningful insight about public interest and opinion can be reliably extracted from online and social media data.

  4. Section Level Public Land Survey - polygons

    Data.gov (United States)

    Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — Public Land Survey line delineations to the section level. Data are derived primarily from Section corner locations captured from paper USGS seven and one-half...

  5. Section Level Public Land Survey - lines

    Data.gov (United States)

    Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — Public Land Survey line delineations to the section level. Developed from manually digitized section corners captured from paper USGS seven and one-half map sources.

  6. The role of direct-to-consumer advertising in shaping public opinion surrounding prescription drug use to treat depression or anxiety in youth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martinez, Lourdes S; Lewis, Nehama

    2009-01-01

    This study investigated the impact of exposure to prescription drug advertisements for antidepressants and antianxiety medications on public opinion regarding preferred treatment options for youth suffering from depression or anxiety. The study randomly recruited a nationally representative adult sample (N = 402) through the 2007 Annenberg National Health Communication Survey. The study examined the distribution of public support for the use of antidepressant drugs to treat depression and anxiety disorders in youth. The analysis adjusted for the effects of demographic characteristics, prior knowledge about prescription drugs, and personal and familial drug history. Attitude toward direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA, for all products) moderated the effect of exposure to ads for these drug treatments on support for their use among youth as a preferred treatment. Among respondents with negative attitude toward direct-to-consumer advertising (for all products), with increased exposure to ads for antidepressants and antianxiety medications, support for the use of these drugs to treat youth decreased. Among this group, with high levels of exposure to advertisements, the predicted probability of support decreased from 0.68 (95% CI: 0.61 to 0.76) to 0.46 (95% CI: 0.38 to 0.56). No effect was found among respondents with positive attitudes toward DTCA (for all products). The implications of the findings are discussed.

  7. 76 FR 67405 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Federal Statistical System Public Opinion Survey

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-11-01

    ... mail-back participation rate of 74%, despite increased vacancy rates due to the economic downturn... asking U.S. adults about various political, economic, and well- being topics. The survey includes sample...

  8. Measuring Public Acceptance of Nuclear Technology with Big data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Roh, Seugkook [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2015-05-15

    Surveys can be conducted only on people in specific region and time interval, and it may be misleading to generalize the results to represent the attitude of the public. For example, opinions of a person living in metropolitan area, far from the dangers of nuclear reactors and enjoying cheap electricity produced by the reactors, and a person living in proximity of nuclear power plants, subject to tremendous damage should nuclear meltdown occur, certainly differs for the topic of nuclear generation. To conclude, big data is a useful tool to measure the public acceptance of nuclear technology efficiently (i.e., saves cost, time, and effort of measurement and analysis) and this research was able to provide a case for using big data to analyze public acceptance of nuclear technology. Finally, the analysis identified opinion leaders, which allows target-marketing when policy is executed.

  9. Measuring Public Acceptance of Nuclear Technology with Big data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Roh, Seugkook

    2015-01-01

    Surveys can be conducted only on people in specific region and time interval, and it may be misleading to generalize the results to represent the attitude of the public. For example, opinions of a person living in metropolitan area, far from the dangers of nuclear reactors and enjoying cheap electricity produced by the reactors, and a person living in proximity of nuclear power plants, subject to tremendous damage should nuclear meltdown occur, certainly differs for the topic of nuclear generation. To conclude, big data is a useful tool to measure the public acceptance of nuclear technology efficiently (i.e., saves cost, time, and effort of measurement and analysis) and this research was able to provide a case for using big data to analyze public acceptance of nuclear technology. Finally, the analysis identified opinion leaders, which allows target-marketing when policy is executed

  10. The role of opinion research in communications programmes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Curtin, Tom

    1995-01-01

    Nirex is a company financed by the UK nuclear industry to dispose of intermediate and some long-lived low-level radioactive waste. The company has no responsibility for high-level radioactive waste. Most low-level waste is disposed of at a shallow site owned by BNFL, one of Nirex's shareholders. At Nirex, we use opinion research in a number of ways: as a map to guide communications programmes; to set baselines and targets to isolate issues of concern to our publics. The Company carries out market research covering three key audiences: the general public, politicians, and journalists. For Nirex, opinion research is a map. It guides our communication programmes in dealing with our key audiences. Without it, we would be driving blind. Opinion research allows us to isolate key issues for communication. It also allows us to measure performance and to see which initiatives are successful and which are not

  11. 42 CFR 411.386 - CMS's advisory opinions as exclusive.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false CMS's advisory opinions as exclusive. 411.386... Relationships Between Physicians and Entities Furnishing Designated Health Services § 411.386 CMS's advisory... described in § 411.370. CMS has not and does not issue a binding advisory opinion on the subject matter in...

  12. HOW MUCH CAN WE TRUST PUBLIC OPINION POLLS?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vierasu Timotei

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Peoples trust numbers and likes to give them some significance. Every time we open a newspaper, listen to the radio, watch TV or browse the Internet we'll see some numbers and stats. These numbers can give a brief overview of the world surrounding ourselves and are often used by people or organizations to strengthen their message. Can we trust public opinion poll? Can these polls be manipulated? What method of manipulation can be used to alter the results of these polls? I designed two experiments to see how a person can misinterpret some data and how can a person manipulate a poll to obtain the desired numbers. Experiments are a qualitative market research tool designed to give us an empirical knowledge about the subject we are studying. The objective of this study was to determine whether we can influence subject’s voting choices by manipulating their perceptions and their questioners. “Yes Sir” experiment was based on a misleading questioner with a lot of questions that leads the respondent to the desired answer and with formulating the question in such a manner that the respondent feels compelled to give the desired answer. “Fake Poll” experiment is designed to see if previous polls have any influence on voter’s intentions and behaviour and is bases on bandwagon effect. The results of these experiments show us that this ways of manipulation works very well and we can influence the way people will vote with a percentage from 3% to 6%.

  13. Informing decision making in agricultural greenhouse gas mitigation policy: A Best–Worst Scaling survey of expert and farmer opinion in the sheep industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jones, A.K.; Jones, D.L.; Edwards-Jones, G.; Cross, P.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► Effectiveness and practicality of greenhouse gas mitigation measures are assessed. ► Best–Worst Scaling surveys are used to elicit expert and sheep farmer opinion. ► Effective and practical measures are priority candidates for policy inclusion. ► Support mechanisms may be needed to deliver effective, low practicality measures. ► Variation in farmers’ perceptions of practicality holds implications for policy delivery. -- Abstract: Policy decision making for agricultural greenhouse gas mitigation is hindered by scientific uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of mitigation measures. Successful on-farm adoption of measures is contingent upon farmer perception of the relative practicality of implementing the measure and associated incentives and advice. In the absence of a comprehensive evidence base we utilised Best–Worst Scaling, a discrete choice survey method, to elicit expert and farmer opinion on the relative effectiveness and practicality of mitigation measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from sheep production systems. The method enabled individual mitigation measures to be ranked on a ratio scale of effectiveness (expert opinion) and practicality (farmer opinion). Six measures were identified as possessing the combined qualities of effectiveness and practicality and are considered priority candidates for policy promotion. The overall preferred measure was the use of legumes in pasture reseed mixes. Estimation and analysis of the distribution of individual respondent scores revealed heterogeneity in farmers’ perceptions of practicality, suggesting that flexible policies are required to enable farmers to select mitigation measures most suited to their farm type and locality. Practical measures with below average effectiveness may be widely adopted with limited regulation, incentivisation or advice, whilst some highly effective measures with lower practicality are likely to present greater obstacles to adoption

  14. Radiographers' opinions on radiography research in Norway – A national survey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vikestad, K.G.; Hafskjold, L.; Kjelle, E.; Sebuødegård, S.; Hofvind, S.

    2017-01-01

    Objective: The objective of the Norwegian Radiography Research Group is to establish a strategy for radiography research in Norway. A survey investigating radiographers' opinions on research was conducted to establish a basis for this strategy. Methods: A questionnaire was sent to all members of the Norwegian Society of Radiographers using the society's e-mail list from May 2014 (n = 2273). The respondents, 31% (n = 697), were divided into six groups; general radiographers (n = 392), specialised radiographers (n = 124), managers (n = 74), radiation therapists (n = 59), professors (n = 13), and others (n = 35). The questionnaire included four parts: introduction, participation in research, research performed at the respondent's work place, and opinions on radiography research. The first parts consisted of close-ended questions, while the fourth part also included a Likert scale. Results: Among all respondents, 63% respondents agreed that there is a need for radiography research and 50% agreed that general radiographers/radiation therapists should be the principal investigators of such research. However, only 19% reported participation in a research project during the last five years, and of those, 50% knew how the results of their research had been communicated. Conclusion: The majority of radiographers agreed that there was a need for radiography research and that radiographers/radiation therapists should take a leading role in such work. The results indicate that radiographers/radiation therapists would benefit from training in informal and formal research skills. - Highlights: • Two in ten radiographers took part in research activity in Norway. • Six in ten agreed that there is a need for radiographic related research in Norway. • Evidence-based practice, informal and formal research training represent the main aim to reach in the first strategy for radiography research in Norway.

  15. Opinions regarding neonatal resuscitation training for the obstetric physician: a survey of neonatal and obstetric training program directors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruno, C J; Johnston, L; Lee, C; Bernstein, P S; Goffman, D

    2018-04-01

    Our goal was to garner opinions regarding neonatal resuscitation training for obstetric physicians. We sought to evaluate obstacles to neonatal resuscitation training for obstetric physicians and possible solutions for implementation challenges. We distributed a national survey via email to all neonatal-perinatal medicine fellowship directors and obstetrics & gynecology residency program directors in the United States. This survey was designed by a consensus method. Ninety-eight (53%) obstetric and fifty-seven (51%) neonatal program directors responded to our surveys. Eighty-eight percent of neonatologists surveyed believe that obstetricians should be neonatal resuscitation program (NRP) certified. The majority of surveyed obstetricians (>89%) believe that obstetricians should have some neonatal resuscitation training. Eighty-six percent of obstetric residents have completed training in NRP, but only 19% of obstetric attendings are NRP certified. Major barriers to NRP training that were identified include time, lack of national requirement, lack of belief it is helpful, and cost. Most obstetric attendings are not NRP certified, but the majority of respondents believe that obstetric providers should have some neonatal resuscitation training. Our study demonstrates that most respondents support a modified neonatal resuscitation course for obstetric physicians.

  16. Does corruption undermine trust in health care? Results from public opinion polls in Croatia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Radin, Dagmar

    2013-12-01

    Health and health care provision are one of the most important topics in public policy, and often a highly debated topic in the political arena. The importance of considering trust in the health care sector is highlighted by studies showing that trust is associated, among others, with poor self-related health, and poorer health outcomes. Similarly, corruption has shown to create economic costs and inefficiencies in the health care sector. This is particularly important for a newly democratized country such as Croatia, where a policy responsive government indicates a high level of quality of democracy (Roberts, 2009) and where a legacy of corruption in the health care sector has been carried over from the previous regime. In this study, I assess the relationship between health care corruption and trust in public health care and hypothesize that experience with health care corruption as well as perception of corruption has a negative effect on trust in public care facilities. Data were collected in two surveys, administered in 2007 and 2009 in Croatia. Experience with corruption and salience with corruption has a negative effect on trust in public health care in the 2007 survey, but not in the 2009 survey. While the results are mixed, they point to the importance of further studying this relationship. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. The process of growing in opinion for radioactive waste disposal. Focusing on science communication and education

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Amemiya, Kiyoshi; Murakami, Yoichiro

    2004-01-01

    The choice of geological disposal of high level radioactive waste is based on science. So, public understanding of science (PUS) becomes important issue in public acceptance (PA). Considering PUS, there are two problems. One is the literacy to understand scientific information and the other is the paradigm of the public on which the knowledge formed in the public depends heavily. In this research, survey of awareness and attitude to geological disposal on the postgraduate students was conducted. They have been studying civil and rock engineering, so they belong to 'the group' that acquires high education, culture and faculty. The results of questionnaires show that the awareness of danger is affected strongly by given information even in this groups, but they become thoughtful and prudent in their opinion and decision-making as increasing information. (author)

  18. Quantifying discrepancies in opinion spectra from online and offline networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Deokjae; Hahn, Kyu S; Yook, Soon-Hyung; Park, Juyong

    2015-01-01

    Online social media such as Twitter are widely used for mining public opinions and sentiments on various issues and topics. The sheer volume of the data generated and the eager adoption by the online-savvy public are helping to raise the profile of online media as a convenient source of news and public opinions on social and political issues as well. Due to the uncontrollable biases in the population who heavily use the media, however, it is often difficult to measure how accurately the online sphere reflects the offline world at large, undermining the usefulness of online media. One way of identifying and overcoming the online-offline discrepancies is to apply a common analytical and modeling framework to comparable data sets from online and offline sources and cross-analyzing the patterns found therein. In this paper we study the political spectra constructed from Twitter and from legislators' voting records as an example to demonstrate the potential limits of online media as the source for accurate public opinion mining, and how to overcome the limits by using offline data simultaneously.

  19. Quantifying discrepancies in opinion spectra from online and offline networks.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Deokjae Lee

    Full Text Available Online social media such as Twitter are widely used for mining public opinions and sentiments on various issues and topics. The sheer volume of the data generated and the eager adoption by the online-savvy public are helping to raise the profile of online media as a convenient source of news and public opinions on social and political issues as well. Due to the uncontrollable biases in the population who heavily use the media, however, it is often difficult to measure how accurately the online sphere reflects the offline world at large, undermining the usefulness of online media. One way of identifying and overcoming the online-offline discrepancies is to apply a common analytical and modeling framework to comparable data sets from online and offline sources and cross-analyzing the patterns found therein. In this paper we study the political spectra constructed from Twitter and from legislators' voting records as an example to demonstrate the potential limits of online media as the source for accurate public opinion mining, and how to overcome the limits by using offline data simultaneously.

  20. The Opinions of GP's Patients About Suicide, Assisted Suicide, Euthanasia, and Suicide Prevention: An Italian Survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poma, Stefano Zanone; Vicentini, Silvia; Siviero, Francesca; Grossi, Antonello; Toniolo, Emanuele; Baldo, Vincenzo; De Leo, Diego

    2015-08-01

    A survey about opinions on end-of-life issues of a population represented by 1,171 people in the waiting room of general practitioners' surgeries was conducted in a province of northern Italy. Most subjects did not consider suicide as a reasonable option even in cases of a serious and incurable disease. Moreover, subjects did not consider euthanasia as a possible option either; however, they did express an opposite attitude when considering euthanasia in a third-person perspective. People with a personal history of suicidal behavior appear to present as a different population, overall expressing more open attitudes. © 2014 The American Association of Suicidology.

  1. What drives people's opinions of electricity infrastructure? Empirical evidence from Ireland

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bertsch, Valentin; Hyland, Marie; Mahony, Michael

    2017-01-01

    Across the EU, significant infrastructure investment is needed in both generation from renewable energy sources (RES) and the electricity grid to meet the European targets on emission reduction and RES expansion. Experiences show, however, that citizens may object to new energy infrastructure in their localities which may cause delays in achieving the targets. To avoid delays, it is crucial to understand what drives people's opinions. To explore people's opinions of different electricity generation and transmission technologies in Ireland, we conducted a nationally-representative survey. Concerning the drivers, we distinguish between socio-demographics, technology-specific perceptions, and energy policy preferences. Our results show that people generally have positive views of RES technologies. While this indicates that Irish citizens agree to move towards cleaner electricity sources, we find reluctance amongst people to have these technologies located close to their places of residence. We find that, across most technologies, the tradeoff people make between economic and environmental policy objectives drives their opinions of, and their tendencies to oppose, technology developments. The significance of most socio-demographic variables, however, is largely technology-dependent. This highlights that policy makers need to understand how people make tradeoffs between policy objectives and how these tradeoffs relate to their opinions of different technologies. - Highlights: • Conducted a survey to understand drivers of opinions of electricity infrastructure. • Considered socio-demographic, policy-related and technology-specific drivers. • Irish citizens generally have positive opinions of renewable technologies. • Positive opinions don't rule out local opposition. • Tradeoffs on policy objectives shape opinions most consistently across technologies.

  2. Testing measurement equivalence of experienced holiday quality: Evidence on built-in bias in the Flash Eurobarometer survey data

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gelissen, J.P.T.M.

    2018-01-01

    In this contribution, we evaluate the degree of measurement equivalence between countries and over time for a measure of experienced holiday quality that has repeatedly been included in a public opinion survey series of high policy relevance: the Flash Eurobarometer survey series (2014–2016). The

  3. The public and nuclear energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Agrafiotis, D.; Morlat, G.; Pages, J.P.

    1977-01-01

    To explain why an individual or public opinion is for or against the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, one should not consider only the dimension of the risk involved, as experts on radiation protection and safety will often do. Many other dimensions should be considered, all the more as the nuclear problem is gaining importance on a national level, becoming the topic of the day in the press and other media and the subject of definite standpoints on the part of political parties and social groups. An investigation carried out by the Protection Division of the French Atomic Energy Commission has made it possible to specify the socio-cultural dimensions at the origin of the attitudes taken on the nuclear problem in France. The nuclear topic was therefore compared with other current topics of interest to public opinion; this comparison was made possible by means of an attitude survey covering various social groups. A model of social perception was thus developed. (author)

  4. Social aspects of the nuclear energy. Public acceptance. Rev. 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1993-03-01

    This report approaches the social aspects of the nuclear energy an public acceptance. It presents the following main topics: the societal participation; information and opinion research surveys; historical of the public opposition to the nuclear energy; emergency planning; legislation related to the popular participation; best strategies to acceptance; insurance of nuclear risks; protection of the population and the environment in the licensing; and organization of the licensing system

  5. College Students Opinions on Gun Violence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lewis, Rhonda K; LoCurto, Jamie; Brown, Kyrah; Stowell, David; Maryman, J'Vonnah; Dean, Amber; McNair, Thoi; Ojeda, Debbie; Siwierka, Julia

    2016-06-01

    Gun violence and control issues have become serious public health problems. This study gathered the opinions from 419 college students from a Midwestern University. Participants were asked about beliefs about purchasing assault weapons, beliefs about bringing handguns to college campuses and beliefs about contributing factors that lead to gun violence. Participants completed surveys online. The findings showed that overall 54 % of respondents believed that military assault weapons should be banned and 53 % agree that teachers should be allowed to carry a registered handgun on campus. There were statistically significant differences between males and females on these issues. For instance, females believed military assault weapons and high capacity magazines should be banned more than 1.9 times (p = .004) p gun violence were decline in parenting and family values (17 %), gang involvement (14 %), bullying (13.8 %) and guns being easy to obtain (13.8 %). Limitations and implications for policy work are discussed.

  6. Comparison of public and private school teachers and school principals’ opinions in Abuja, Nigeria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Deniz Ozcan

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This study aims to examine public and private school teachers’ opinions on different aspects of their professional associations and provisions and also asks principals about teachers’ conduct and their views on the Nigerian curriculum. To conduct this study, qualitative and quantitative research models were used to investigate differences between the two organizations. Quantitative data was collected by distributing questionnaires to 118 teachers in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC, Nigeria. To conduct the qualitative analysis, 15 teachers from two schools were selected (a total of 30 teachers to answer 5 discussion questions concerning their views on the Nigerian educational system. The findings revealed that private school teachers are at an advantage when it comes to provision of resources and technology, professional development and to some degree salaries. Both public and private school teachers felt being a teacher did not bring them respect in their community. Government policy makers need to study private schools and how they operate to see how they can make changes to produce the revolutionary reform needed in education. 30 principals’ interviews revealed that public school teachers are not easily held accountable for misconduct due to the structure of leadership, while private school teachers are held accountable and any form of unprofessionalism easily leads to termination of employment.

  7. Renewable energy policy design and framing influence public support in the United States

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stokes, Leah C.; Warshaw, Christopher

    2017-08-01

    The United States has often led the world in supporting renewable energy technologies at both the state and federal level. However, since 2011 several states have weakened their renewable energy policies. Public opinion will probably be crucial for determining whether states expand or contract their renewable energy policies in the future. Here we show that a majority of the public in most states supports renewable portfolio standards, which require a portion of the electricity mix to come from renewables. However, policy design and framing can strongly influence public support. Using a survey experiment, we show that effects of renewable portfolio standards bills on residential electricity costs, jobs and pollution, as well as bipartisan elite support, are all important drivers of public support. In many states, these bills' design and framing can push public opinion above or below majority support.

  8. Communicating with external publics: managing public opinion and behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ristino, Robert J

    2007-01-01

    In health care organizational settings public relations plays an important role in managing relationships with a variety of external publics as well as with society in general. Managing these relationships involves both reactive and proactive communication activities. Reactively, public relations responds to public issues, crises and concerns, as well as inquiries from the media and other social institutions. Proactively, public relations engages in deliberately planned campaigns and programs to inform, influence or change behaviors of targeted publics for a wide range of strategic purposes. These purposes include managing the organization's image and identity; influencing public policies; supporting health promotion and education; promoting fund raising and volunteerism; and managing organizational change and crises.

  9. Rise of an alternative majority against opinion leaders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tucci, K.; González-Avella, J. C.; Cosenza, M. G.

    2016-03-01

    We investigate the role of opinion leaders or influentials in the collective behavior of a social system. Opinion leaders are characterized by their unidirectional influence on other agents. We employ a model based on Axelrod's dynamics for cultural interaction among social agents that allows for non-interacting states. We find three collective phases in the space of parameters of the system, given by the fraction of opinion leaders and a quantity representing the number of available states: one ordered phase having the state imposed by the leaders; another nontrivial ordered phase consisting of a majority group in a state orthogonal or alternative to that of the opinion leaders, and a disordered phase, where many small groups coexist. We show that the spontaneous rise of an alternative group in the presence of opinion leaders depends on the existence of a minimum number of long-range connections in the underlying network. This phenomenon challenges the common idea that influentials are fundamental to propagation processes in society, such as the formation of public opinion.

  10. Public opinion on nuclear energy in the U. S. A. and worldwide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bisconti, Ann S.

    1991-01-01

    The experience in some other countries shows that concerns may be reduced by trust established through good community relations. Above all, the acceptability of plants appears to be influenced by the extent to which perceptions of need and benefits outweigh concerns. There is some risk in all forms of energy production. There is some risk in all our life activities. No risk is acceptable without some benefit. Therefore, to understand the attitudes of your public when concerns are raised, I urge you not to ignore these concerns but to look beyond them to other significant feelings and opinions. It is equally important to assess the positive ideas people have, their level of realistic acceptance of nuclear energy, their awareness of need and benefits, and their receptivity to positive information. I look forward to following the progress of your nuclear energy program and sharing lessons learned from out national experiences in carrying out our strategic plans in the years ahead

  11. Opinion Analysis on Rohingya using Twitter Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rochmawati, N.; Wibawa, S. C.

    2018-04-01

    Rohingya is an ethnicity in Myanmar. Recently there was a conflict in the area between the Rakhine population and the Myanmar army. Many opinions are pro and contra in addressing this issue. There is a critic, there is a support and there is a neutral. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the world public opinion about the case of Rohingya. The opinion data to be processed is taken from twitter. the reason for using twitter is because twitter has become one of the popular social media and includes the most frequently visited social media. Therefore, it would be a lot of data that can be taken from twitter to be processed in the process of sentiment analysis. The grouping of opinions will be divided into 3 parts of positive, negative and neutral. the method used in grouping is the naïve Bayes method.

  12. Climate Change and Infectious Disease Risk in Western Europe: A Survey of Dutch Expert Opinion on Adaptation Responses and Actors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akin, Su-Mia; Martens, Pim; Huynen, Maud M T E

    2015-08-18

    There is growing evidence of climate change affecting infectious disease risk in Western Europe. The call for effective adaptation to this challenge becomes increasingly stronger. This paper presents the results of a survey exploring Dutch expert perspectives on adaptation responses to climate change impacts on infectious disease risk in Western Europe. Additionally, the survey explores the expert sample's prioritization of mitigation and adaptation, and expert views on the willingness and capacity of relevant actors to respond to climate change. An integrated view on the causation of infectious disease risk is employed, including multiple (climatic and non-climatic) factors. The results show that the experts consider some adaptation responses as relatively more cost-effective, like fostering interagency and community partnerships, or beneficial to health, such as outbreak investigation and response. Expert opinions converge and diverge for different adaptation responses. Regarding the prioritization of mitigation and adaptation responses expert perspectives converge towards a 50/50 budgetary allocation. The experts consider the national government/health authority as the most capable actor to respond to climate change-induced infectious disease risk. Divergence and consensus among expert opinions can influence adaptation policy processes. Further research is necessary to uncover prevailing expert perspectives and their roots, and compare these.

  13. Uniforms in the Middle School: Student Opinions, Discipline Data, and School Police Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sanchez, Jafeth E.; Yoxsimer, Andrew; Hill, George C.

    2012-01-01

    This study investigated public middle school students' opinions on the benefits of wearing a school uniform. A review of related literature is provided along with results of the opinions obtained from 604 seventh- and eighth-grade middle school students attending a public school in Nevada that had recently initiated a school uniform policy.…

  14. 'Vote system' and 'SMS premium rate', their characteristics and application possibilities for scientific research of public opinion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Šuvaković Uroš

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Both techniques are based on the use of telephone as an instrument of interpersonal communication and any of mass media, mostly electronic (television, radio. They have not appeared with purpose of researching public opinion, but firstly for commercial purposes. A discussion in studio the show as a whole represents a 'verbal provocation' regarding the audience from which examinees emanate, where the role of a journalist is to create atmosphere, influence the course, etc. Regardless their specifics over-combination of events and mostly non-scientific motives, they are closer to a written questionnaire than interview regarding their characteristics. A fault is that it is impossible to make a questionnaire with more than one question, 2-3 at the most, and to avoid total confusion. It is clear that the questions giving at least basic data on examinee (gender, age, education etc will be omitted, and that is the reason why we do not know whom we have questioned. Stratification of obtained results by 'Vote System' technique is possible if only fixed telephony have been used, while it is impossible with OESMS Premium Rate' technique. The fact that examinee pays for answering the question eliminates or at least considerably reduces participation of poorer layers of citizens. On the other hand, organizers motivated firstly by earnings do not limit number of calls from the same telephone number although technical possibilities exist, which interested parties misuse (e.g. political parties in order to directly influence in favor of wanted option through systematic and organized calling of numbers. OESMS Premium Rate' technique also has the problem that the use of mobile telephones drops with increase of age of citizens in Serbia, and regarding that short messages (SMS in our country is possible to send only through mobile telephony and considering that Serbia is in the second place in the world regarding age of inhabitants, this reduces representation of

  15. Eliciting expert opinion for economic models: an applied example.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leal, José; Wordsworth, Sarah; Legood, Rosa; Blair, Edward

    2007-01-01

    Expert opinion is considered as a legitimate source of information for decision-analytic modeling where required data are unavailable. Our objective was to develop a practical computer-based tool for eliciting expert opinion about the shape of the uncertainty distribution around individual model parameters. We first developed a prepilot survey with departmental colleagues to test a number of alternative approaches to eliciting opinions on the shape of the uncertainty distribution around individual parameters. This information was used to develop a survey instrument for an applied clinical example. This involved eliciting opinions from experts to inform a number of parameters involving Bernoulli processes in an economic model evaluating DNA testing for families with a genetic disease, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The experts were cardiologists, clinical geneticists, and laboratory scientists working with cardiomyopathy patient populations and DNA testing. Our initial prepilot work suggested that the more complex elicitation techniques advocated in the literature were difficult to use in practice. In contrast, our approach achieved a reasonable response rate (50%), provided logical answers, and was generally rated as easy to use by respondents. The computer software user interface permitted graphical feedback throughout the elicitation process. The distributions obtained were incorporated into the model, enabling the use of probabilistic sensitivity analysis. There is clearly a gap in the literature between theoretical elicitation techniques and tools that can be used in applied decision-analytic models. The results of this methodological study are potentially valuable for other decision analysts deriving expert opinion.

  16. Public opinion on food-related obesity prevention policy initiatives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morley, Belinda; Martin, Jane; Niven, Philippa; Wakefield, Melanie

    2012-08-01

    The study was designed to determine public acceptability of various forms of regulation to support a healthy eating environment. Telephone interviews were undertaken in June-July 2010 with a random sample of adults in Australia who were the main grocery buyer for their household. Data were analysed for 1,511 adults. A clear majority of participants (80% or more) were in favour of traffic light and kilojoule menu labelling, reformulation to reduce the fat, salt and sugar content of processed foods, and regulation of broadcast and non-broadcast avenues used to market unhealthy food and drinks to children. Relatively less support (two-thirds or more), particularly among lower socioeconomic status participants, was shown for taxation policies and controls on food company sponsorship of sports and education programs. Despite the survey's focus on food marketing avenues and methods directed at children, for the most part non-parents were just as likely as parents to support restrictions. Overall, these findings indicate that there is strong public support for the introduction of policy initiatives aimed at creating a healthier food environment.

  17. Results of the 2008/2009 Knowledge and Opinions Surveys Conducted for the U.S. Department of Energy Hydrogen Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schmoyer, Richard L [ORNL; Truett, Lorena Faith [ORNL; Cooper, Christy [U.S. Department of Energy; Chew, Andrea [U.S. Department of Energy

    2010-04-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Fuel Cell Technologies Program (FCT) conducts comprehensive efforts to enable the widespread commercialization of fuel cells in diverse sectors of the economy - with emphasis on applications that will most effectively strengthen our nation's energy security and improve our stewardship of the environment. Expanding the use of fuel cells requires a sustained education effort to lay the foundation for future commercial market introduction. The FCT education subprogram seeks to facilitate fuel cell demonstrations and support future commercialization by providing technically accurate and objective information to key target audiences both directly and indirectly involved in the use of fuel cells today. These key target audiences include a public that is familiar and comfortable with using a new fuel, state and local government officials who understand the near-term realities and long-term potential of the technology, an educated business and industry component, and trained safety and codes officials. With this in mind, the DOE FCT program established an education key activity to address the training and informational needs of target audiences that have a role in the near-term transition and the long-term development of a hydrogen economy. Whether or not changes can be attributed to the program, designing and maintaining an effective education program entails measuring baseline awareness and periodically measuring what has been learned. The purpose of this report is to document the data and results of statistical surveys undertaken in 2008 and 2009 to measure and establish changes in understanding and awareness about hydrogen and fuel cell technologies since a baseline survey was conducted in 2004. This report is essentially a data book, a digest of the survey data and an exposition of changes in knowledge of and opinions about hydrogen and fuel cell technology since 2004. Many conclusions can be made from the survey data. However

  18. The popularization of the nuclear sciences and its impact in the public opinion. Strategies of institutional communication

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ortega E, J.M.

    2007-01-01

    A continuous concern that is presented among those responsible for the exercise of the science and the technology in the Westerner entire world is to give to know the chore of their institutions and individuals. As in the case of several Mexican institutions, and particularly of the National Institute of Nuclear Research (ININ), one of their rector axes are to diffuse their achievements among the different social actors. A suitable vehicle to impact positively to the public opinion on the advances and tendencies of the nuclear energy it is the popularization of the science. The purpose of the popularization is to place accessible information in hands of the public and, by this, it requires of the use of talkative techniques derived of the journalism and of the public relationships, mainly, besides a basic knowledge of the scientific activity. In simple terms, it is not possible to achieve a positive image of the incomprehensible thing. By this cause, the correct understanding of the current administration of the nuclear energy represents the success or the failure of a strategy of institutional communication. Additionally, it is necessary a deep knowledge of the public opinion, in order to classify it and to have the option of to diversify the messages, of agreement with the characteristics of each segment of the public. Nevertheless their competition, the scientific popularization is centered in the construction of texts and other talkative tools, for that its acting frequently doesn't reach the effective dissemination of the messages. In this context, the use of a strategy of institutional communication represents the multi-functional option: on one hand and derived of the strategic planning, it will establish objectives, the periods of realization of the actions and the form of evaluating their efficiency; and on the other hand, it will allow the incorporation of creative solutions according with the nature of the origin institution, the space-time conditions

  19. Public computing options for individuals with cognitive impairments: survey outcomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fox, Lynn Elizabeth; Sohlberg, McKay Moore; Fickas, Stephen; Lemoncello, Rik; Prideaux, Jason

    2009-09-01

    To examine availability and accessibility of public computing for individuals with cognitive impairment (CI) who reside in the USA. A telephone survey was administered as a semi-structured interview to 145 informants representing seven types of public facilities across three geographically distinct regions using a snowball sampling technique. An Internet search of wireless (Wi-Fi) hotspots supplemented the survey. Survey results showed the availability of public computer terminals and Internet hotspots was greatest in the urban sample, followed by the mid-sized and rural cities. Across seven facility types surveyed, libraries had the highest percentage of access barriers, including complex queue procedures, login and password requirements, and limited technical support. University assistive technology centres and facilities with a restricted user policy, such as brain injury centres, had the lowest incidence of access barriers. Findings suggest optimal outcomes for people with CI will result from a careful match of technology and the user that takes into account potential barriers and opportunities to computing in an individual's preferred public environments. Trends in public computing, including the emergence of widespread Wi-Fi and limited access to terminals that permit auto-launch applications, should guide development of technology designed for use in public computing environments.

  20. Nuclear power and public opinion in Russia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kaurov, G.A.

    1995-01-01

    The attitude of the Russian (Soviet) society towards nuclear power and nuclear technology has changed over the years, depending on political, social and economic processes. Three periods of the relationship between the Russian society and nuclear power can be distinguished. The first period began in the early 1940s and finished in April 1986, when the Chernobyl disaster occurred. It was the period of vigorous development of the nuclear industry in the USSR. During this period the population unconditionally supported the development of this branch of the industry. The second period lasted from 1986 to 1991. The paper analyses the attitude towards nuclear power of the Soviet society as a whole and of separate social groups during the period of 'glasnost' (openness) and during the disintegration period. It is pointed out that the Chernobyl syndrome and the consequent anti-nuclear trends were used in the struggle for power. The third period extends from 1991 to the present. The paper analyses the causes of the positive changes in the public towards nuclear power which have been evident from sociological surveys. (author)

  1. Changing public attitudes towards corporal punishment: the effects of statutory reform in Sweden.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, J V

    2000-08-01

    One justification for a statutory ban on physical punishment is that passage of such legislation changes public attitudes towards the use of this form of parental discipline. The experience in Sweden is often cited as an example of legislation which changed public opinion. The aim of this brief article is to review the public opinion findings in Sweden in order to evaluate in greater detail the impact of changing the law. A search was conducted to generate all published and publicly-available quantitative surveys of the public in Sweden and elsewhere. The results of time-series analysis of the data are clear. The 1979 legal reform in Sweden did not reduce the level of public support for parental use of corporal punishment as a means of disciplining children. Support for physical punishment began declining years before the reform was passed and the decline was in no way accelerated by the law reform. Changes in public opinion may have generated the legal reform, but the reverse is not true. Data from other jurisdictions also support the view that there is no relationship between the status of the law and the nature of public views with regard to corporal punishment. This result is consistent with analyses of the effects of legal reforms in other areas. The Swedish ban on corporal punishment did not affect public attitudes. Changing public views requires other initiatives.

  2. Why Americans support nuclear energy. Development and characteristics of public opinion in the U.S

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bisconti, A.S.

    2003-01-01

    A convergence of factors in the past few years has boosted public support for nuclear energy, including good performance, energy/electricity supply concerns in 2001, more outspoken support by leaders in government and industry, and media attention to a Nuclear Renaissance. In the latest national poll, May 2-4, 2003, two-thirds of the public said they favoured the use of nuclear energy. The gap between those who favor (64%) and oppose (31%) nuclear energy is much greater now than it was 20 years ago. There is near consensus support among Americans for license renewal for nuclear power plants that continue to meet federal safety standards (80%). A solid majority (65%) also agrees that we should keep the option to build more nuclear power plants. But the public is divided on the question of whether we should definitely build them - 50% of the public agreed with this proposition, 44% disagreed, and 6% were unsure. The percentages agreeing that we should definitely build more nuclear power plants in the future peaked in 2001, when electricity shortages in California and elsewhere were widely reported. There is a good possibility of maintaining the positive public opinion climate and even increasing perceptions of the need to build more plants. The industry can maintain this momentum through performance, communications, and projecting a positive attitude. Research indicates that communicating about the clean air benefits of nuclear energy significantly increases favorable attitudes toward nuclear energy. (orig.)

  3. Opinion polls and the U.S. civil space program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kraemer, Sylvia K.

    1993-11-01

    The conclusions that can be drawn from public opinion polls depend a great deal on what usually does not appear on the newspaper page or television screen. Subtle biases can result from the population interviewed, the time of day individuals were called, how a particular question was asked, or how the answer was interpreted. Examples are the 1961 Gallop Poll, the survey done for Rockwell International by the firm of Yankelovich, Skelly and White/Clancy Shulman, and the one done by Jon D. Miller of the International Center for the Advancement of Scientific Literacy. There is more to learn from opinion polls than that a good proportion of adult Americans support the space program. We can learn that social and economic security are not competing goals with space, but interdependent goals. If we want to increase public support for space, we must increase the number of Americans who have the economic freedom to take an interest in something besides getting by, day after day. We can also learn that the majority of those who support the space program can distinguish between the bread and circuses of space travel. They are content to experience extraordinary adventures in the movie theaters; for their tax dollars they want real return in expended scientific knowledge and understanding. Finally, we can learn that we need to increase that return, not just for scientific careers, but for the ordinary people who pay our bills and for their children, our children. Ultimately, the space program is for them, as all investments in the future must be.

  4. Public reaction to the natural radiation survey

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brown, L [National Radiological Protection Board, Harwell (UK)

    1983-11-01

    A natural radiation survey of a cross-section of homes in the UK has been under way for over a year. Members of the public are contacted by post by the NRPB and asked whether they would be willing to have dosemeters in their homes for 12 months. To date the survey has elicited approximately 50% positive response for over a year which is encouragingly high compared to response rates of postal surveys in general. The survey has attracted notable media attention; in the main the tenor of the stories has been accurate and informative and only a handful could be described as sensational.

  5. French hospital nurses' opinion about euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide: a national phone survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bendiane, M K; Bouhnik, A-D; Galinier, A; Favre, R; Obadia, Y; Peretti-Watel, P

    2009-04-01

    Hospital nurses are frequently the first care givers to receive a patient's request for euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide (PAS). In France, there is no consensus over which medical practices should be considered euthanasia, and this lack of consensus blurred the debate about euthanasia and PAS legalisation. This study aimed to investigate French hospital nurses' opinions towards both legalisations, including personal conceptions of euthanasia and working conditions and organisation. A phone survey conducted among a random national sample of 1502 French hospital nurses. We studied factors associated with opinions towards euthanasia and PAS, including contextual factors related to hospital units with random-effects logistic models. Overall, 48% of nurses supported legalisation of euthanasia and 29%, of PAS. Religiosity, training in pallative care/pain management and feeling competent in end-of-life care were negatively correlated with support for legalisation of both euthanasia and PAS, while nurses working at night were more prone to support legalisation of both. The support for legalisation of euthanasia and PAS was also weaker in pain treatment/palliative care and intensive care units, and it was stronger in units not benefiting from interventions of charity/religious workers and in units with more nurses. Many French hospital nurses uphold the legalisation of euthanasia and PAS, but these nurses may be the least likely to perform what proponents of legalisation call "good" euthanasia. Improving professional knowledge of palliative care could improve the management of end-of-life situations and help to clarify the debate over euthanasia.

  6. Potential for comparative public opinion research in public administration

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    G. Bouckaert (Geert); S.G.J. Van de Walle (Steven); J. K. Kampen (Jarl)

    2005-01-01

    textabstractThe public administration and public services have always taken a marginal place in the political scientists’ behavioural research. Public administration students on the other hand tend to focus on political and administrative elites and institutions, and largely ignored citizens in

  7. Identification of potential opinion leaders in child health promotion in Sweden using network analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guldbrandsson, Karin; Nordvik, Monica K; Bremberg, Sven

    2012-08-08

    Opinion leaders are often local individuals with high credibility who can influence other people. Robust effects using opinion leaders in diffusing innovations have been shown in several randomized controlled trials, for example regarding sexually transmitted infections (STI), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention, mammography rates and caesarean birth delivery rates. In a Cochrane review 2010 it was concluded that the use of opinion leaders can successfully promote evidence-based practice. Thus, using opinion leaders within the public health sector might be one means to speed up the dissemination of health promoting and disease preventing innovations. Social network analysis has been used to trace and map networks, with focus on relationships and positions, in widely spread arenas and topics. The purpose of this study was to use social network analysis in order to identify potential opinion leaders at the arena of child health promotion in Sweden. By using snowball technique a short e-mail question was spread in up to five links, starting from seven initially invited persons. This inquiry resulted in a network consisting of 153 individuals. The most often mentioned actors were researchers, public health officials and paediatricians, or a combination of these professions. Four single individuals were mentioned by five to seven other persons in the network. These individuals obviously possess qualities that make other professionals within the public health sector listen to and trust them. Social network analysis seemed to be a useful method to identify influential persons with high credibility, i.e. potential opinion leaders, at the arena of child health promotion in Sweden. If genuine opinion leaders could be identified directed measures can be carried out in order to spread new and relevant knowledge. This may facilitate for public health actors at the local, regional and national level to more rapidly progress innovations into everyday practice. However

  8. Psychiatric Opinion and Homosexuality: A Short Report

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barr, R. F.; And Others

    1975-01-01

    In a survey of opinion among 100 psychiatrists and 93 trainees in Australia, the majority endorsed the view either that "homosexuality is a developmental anomaly not necessarily or commonly associated with neurotic symptoms" or that "homosexuality is a normal variant like left-handedness." (Author)

  9. Assessing the Influence of Political Parties on Public Opinion: The Challenge from Pretreatment Effects

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Slothuus, Rune

    2016-01-01

    Despite generations of research, political scientists have trouble pinpointing the influence of political parties on public opinion. Recently, scholars have made headway in exploring whether parties in fact shape policy preferences by relying on experimental designs. Yet, the evidence from...... this work is mixed. I argue that the typical experiment faces a design problem that likely minimizes the extent to which parties apparently matter. Because parties have policy reputations, experimental participants may already know from real-world exposure to political debate where the parties stand before...... they are told in the experiment—they are “pretreated.” This study investigates how real-world political context interferes with party cue stimulus in experiments. In two experiments I show that two types of “pretreatment” from outside the experiment—exposure-based and reputation-based—dramatically moderate...

  10. [A retrospective study of expert opinions of a psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic university hospital for public and private customers over a period of 12 years].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uhlenbrock, Judith; Hinrichs, Jens; Heuft, Gereon

    2017-09-01

    A retrospective study of expert opinions of a psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic university hospital for public and private customers over a period of 12 years Objectives: Both the public and the legislative have developed an increasingly critical awareness for the fact that expert witnesses need to be independent. In contrast, to date there have been few studies concerning the quantity and the results of psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic expert opinions for public and private clients. In a retrospective study design, 285 expert opinions of a psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic university hospital stemming from consecutive, unselected random sampling over a 12-year time period (1990-2011) were analyzed using a predefined list of criteria. Besides client data, the study also noted the type and the objectives of the expertise, the sociodemographic data of the subjects, the biographic data of the subjects, the size of records, the particular psychopathological findings including conflict and structural diagnostics via the Operationalized Psychodynamic Diagnostics (OPD-2, Research Group 2006), syndromic diagnostics according to ICD-10 (WHO) including the related Impairment Scale Score (ISS, Schepank 1995), and the Global Assessment of Functioning-Scale (GAF, Heuft 2016). 54% of the subjects were men. All subjects were 46 years old at the time of examination; on average symptomatology had existed for 7 years, which made assessment of causality difficult. Most assignments referred to the effects of diseases or accidents in private contexts, followed by pension reports. Among the expert opinions related to possible implications of acts of violence, 95% were women. In 43.2% (n = 123) of the cases, the assessment had occurred in the context of legal action. In 65 cases at least one party had requested a supplemental written report during further procedure. In 17.8% (n = 22) of the cases sought by the courts, the expert witness was requested by at least one party to present the

  11. Public meetings

    CERN Multimedia

    Staff Association

    2013-01-01

    MARS SURVEY 5YR 2015 GENERAL INFORMATION ELECTIONS 2013   COME AND BE INFORMED! Public meetings Tuesday 1st Oct. 10 am Amphi IT, 31-3-004 Meyrin Tuesday 1st Oct. 2 pm Council Chamber, 503-1-001 Meyrin Friday 4 Oct. 10 am Amphi BE, 864-1-D02 Prévessin Monday 7 Oct. 2 pm Council Chamber, 503-1-001 (in English) Meyrin Tuesday 8 Oct. 10 am Amphi Kjell Johnsen, 30-7-018 Meyrin   Overview of the topics to be discussed Recognition of Merit – MARS Outcome of last exercise 2007 to 2013: lessons learned Survey: five-yearly review, give us your opinion General information CVI 2014 Voluntary programmes (PRP, SLS) Elections 2013 Renewal of the Staff Council 2014 - 2015  

  12. Food irradiation: public attitudes at Argentina

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Croci, Clara A.; Curzio, Osvaldo A.

    1999-01-01

    The paper show the research and development activities conducted in the South National University in relation to the consumer attitude about irradiated foodstuff in general, and irradiated onions in particular. Marketing trials were conducted in three opportunities in Bahia Blanca and Buenos Aires cities. Two surveys were carried out with handouts distributed to the public: the first was a general survey intended to find out how much supermarket customers know about food preservation by means of ionizing irradiation, and how much interest the public and in buying onions treated with ionizing radiation; the second survey was carried out with the members of the public who had bought the treated onions. The form asked for the reason for buying irradiated onions, the opinion about the product, and whether the product would be purchase again. The results encourage the transference of irradiation technology with an important economic benefit for the productive sector. Also, these studies may be used as a useful tool to start the introduction of irradiated food in MERCORSUR countries. (author)

  13. Knowledge and Opinion on the Nuclear Freeze: A Test of Three Models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tankard, James W., Jr.

    To explore how knowledge influences opinion in foreign policy, results of a survey on voter familiarity with and attitude toward nuclear policy issues were compared with three theoretical models of the knowledge/opinion relationship: (1) the enlightenment model--as knowledge increases, support for belligerent foreign policy stands decreases; (2)…

  14. Spanish opinion polls 1998

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nufiez Lopez, Maria Pilar

    1999-01-01

    There is widespread conviction among the professionals working in the nuclear sector that the image of nuclear energy held by the general public is poor. In Spain we insist again and again that an overwhelming majority of people consider nuclear energy to be dangerous, contaminating and relating to war. Depending on individual experience, we even go as far as to venture percentages of acceptability. When asked to explain the reasons for this, some claim that the cause of this attitude of rejection is to do with wastes, others that it is fear of radiation, and so on. Most of these claims are 'subjective perceptions' based on our own personal contacts and xperiences. With a view to establishing a reliable analytical basis and thus be able to carry out an objective study of the problem of public perception of nuclear energy in Spain, the Forum of the Spanish Nuclear Industry commissioned a group of external consultants specializing in this type of studies to carry out a survey designed to provide information on the causes underlying the rejection of nuclear energy and its measure. This survey is one of the first performed in this country since the decision was taken to use nuclear power in the nineteen sixties. The survey, performed by way of telephone conversations, included 2,000 people aged between 15 and 60 years. Of the total number of interviewees, 25 percent lived in areas surrounding a nuclear power plant, but had no direct professional or family ties with the plant. In addition to the 2000 telephone interviews, the study included also a qualitative investigation based on open interviews and focus groups. In general, the image detected during the qualitative phase is that in spite of its being technologically advanced and professionally directed and managed, nuclear energy arouses fear and mistrust. The structure of the survey was based on overall issues: the concerns of Spanish society. Twenty-four percent of the interviewees claimed that the environment was

  15. Do All Lives Have the Same Value? Support for International Military Interventions as a Function of Political System and Public Opinion of Target States

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Falomir-Pichastor, J.M.; Pereira, A.; Staerklé, C.; Butera, F.

    2012-01-01

    This research examined the support for international military interventions as a function of the political system and the public opinion of the target country. In two experiments, we informed participants about a possible military intervention by the international community towards a sovereign

  16. Opinions of Physical Education Teachers on the Concept of Sportsmanship

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koç, Yakup; Esentürk, Oguz Kaan

    2018-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to evaluate the opinions of physical education teachers on the concept of sportsmanship. This study, which has been based on the qualitative research paradigm, involves opinions of 13 physical education teachers (9 males and 4 females) which serve in public schools of Turkey and which have been specified through a…

  17. Public Relations Education: 1983 Survey and Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Albert

    1984-01-01

    Provides results of a survey of public relations education at 30 colleges and universities with respect to an examination of 115 syllabi, course requirements and reading lists, and innovative practices. (PD)

  18. Altruistic Surrogacy – Ethical Issues and Demographic Differences in Public Opinion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Krastev R.

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available This is the first study of the attitude of Bulgarian people towards the allowing of altruistic surrogacy which is prohibited in Bulgaria. This study used an online survey which was active during one year (July 2010-June 2011 and which was answered by 951 respondents between 18-65 years of age. The majority of them (87% are young people between 18-43 years. The respondents are men and women with secondary, university and medical university education from the capital and the countryside. They have different marital status. The data were treated with statistical package SPSS 16. The link between the demographic characteristics (gender, age, education, marital status and place of residence and the answers of the respondents was identified. The majority of the respondents (73% think that the altruistic surrogacy must be allowed in Bulgaria and the main supporters are the women and the residents in the countryside – married or living with partner. Only 38% of the respondents mostly divorced middle aged persons accept the access of same sex couples to surrogacy. The majority of the respondents (53% fear that the surrogacy may transform poor women into incubators for babies. This opinion is shared by the men, by the youngest and the oldest respondents and by the unmarried persons.

  19. James Madison's "Public" As Interpreter of the Constitution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dewey, Donald O.

    James Madison's thoughts on various interpretations of the Constitution maintain that public opinion is the ultimate method of legitimizing the document. The Constitution must prevail against mere public opinion, but public opinion may be used to establish the meaning of the Constitution when conflicting interpretations exist. The public good and…

  20. Public perceptions of risk

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mann, J.M.

    1983-01-01

    Public perceptions of risk will probably always be unsatisfying to a scientist. Public perceptions are formed by the actions of institutions which have goals other than formation of an informed public opinion, such as the schools, the media, business and the government. In this environment, it seems unrealistic to expect public opinion to reflect scientific realities. The talk will focus on the media as an opinion-former and will discuss several non-nuclear issues as illustrations: plague in New Mexico, Toxic Shock Syndrome, and Injuries as a Public Health Problem. Ultimately however, we are confronted with two wonderfully complex matters: can risk be adequately expressed or measured in universally comprehensible or broadly acceptable terms; and the mysterious movements of the public and collective mind