Gallup Poll Analyses - Public to Bennett: Gambling's = OK

From: Subject: Gallup Poll Analyses - Public to Bennett: Gambling's OK Date: Wed, 14 May 2003 00:59:56 -0400 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/related; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0000_01C319B4.229BA820"; type="text/html" X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2800.1106 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0000_01C319B4.229BA820 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: http://www.gallup.com/poll/releases/pr030514.asp?Version=p Gallup Poll Analyses - Public to Bennett: Gambling's = OK

T H E G A L L U P O R G A N I Z A T I O N

SOURCE: http://www.gallup.comCONTACT INFORMATION: Customer=20 Service
301 South 68th Street Place
Lincoln, NE = 68510

1-888-274-5447

POLL ANALYSES

May 14, 2003

Public to Bennett: Gambling's = OK

Divorce, death penalty, gambling = among most=20 morally acceptable behaviors

by David W. = Moore

GALLUP NEWS SERVICE=20

PRINCETON, NJ -- Amid news about really important issues, = such as=20 the economy and wars (on terrorism, in Iraq), comes a = morality tale=20 involving former education secretary and drug czar William = J.=20 Bennett, also the author of numerous books on virtue and a = vigorous=20 campaigner for "family values." It appears that Bennett's=20 best-selling books and five-figure sermons exhorting adults, = children, and political leaders to lead virtuous lives have = helped=20 finance a multi-million dollar gambling habit, which he = recently=20 renounced as "not the example I want to set."

The news media have had a field day with this story, = pointing of=20 course to the apparent contradiction between Bennett's = behavior and=20 words. But Gallup's annual survey on America's values and = beliefs=20 suggests that most Americans may not view Bennett's behavior = as=20 inconsistent with his emphasis on moral living. The survey,=20 conducted May 5-7, shortly after Bennett's gambling was = first=20 reported in the news, finds 63% of Americans saying gambling = is=20 morally acceptable, while just 34% say it is morally = wrong.

While Bennett may take comfort in the public's approval = of this=20 activity, he is less likely to be pleased that majorities of = Americans also find morally acceptable several behaviors of = which he=20 disapproves, such as divorce (66%), "sex between an = unmarried man=20 and woman" (58%), and "having a baby outside of marriage" = (51%).=20

2003 May 5-7
(sorted by "morally=20 acceptable")

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

%

%

Divorce

66

27

The death penalty

64

31

Medical testing on animals

63

33

Gambling

63

34

Buying and wearing clothing made of animal = fur

60

36

Sex between an unmarried man and woman

58

41

Medical research using stem cells obtained from = human=20 embryos

54

38

Having a baby outside of marriage

51

46

Doctor assisted suicide

45

49

Homosexual behavior

44

52

Abortion

37

53

Cloning animals

29

68

Suicide

14

81

Cloning humans

8

90

Polygamy, when one husband has more than one wife = at the=20 same time

7

92

Married men and women having an affair

6

93

As shown in the table, most Americans do not find medical = testing=20 of animals or wearing animal fur to be immoral, though = cloning=20 animals is another story. Just 29% say animal cloning is = morally=20 acceptable.

Cloning humans is even worse. Only 8% say it is morally=20 acceptable, about on par with polygamy and extra-marital = affairs.=20 But Americans give a majority thumbs up (54% to 38%) to = medical=20 research using stem cells obtained from human embryos.

Changes in Moral Compass

The poll shows little change from last year in the = public's=20 evaluation of most of the items. The largest changes:

Having a baby outside of marriage -- considered = morally wrong=20 by a slight edge last year (45% acceptable to 50% wrong), = it now=20 receives a slight majority nod (51% to 46%, respectively). =
Doctor-assisted suicide -- a six-point margin in favor = of=20 moral acceptability last year (50% to 44%) is now a = four-point=20 margin on being morally wrong (45% to 49%).=20
Homosexual behavior -- last year people found it = morally wrong=20 by 17 points (38% acceptable to 55% wrong), but that = margin has=20 narrowed to eight points this year (44% acceptable, 52%=20 wrong).

Morally vs. Legally Acceptable

On several items, the poll finds differences between what = people=20 say should be legal and what they say is morally acceptable. = For=20 example, 74% of Americans say they favor the death penalty = for a=20 person convicted of murder, while just 64% say it is morally = acceptable. A comparison of the attitudes shows that 8% of = people=20 who favor the death penalty also say it is morally wrong. =

The apparent contradiction virtually disappears, however, = when=20 people are asked a follow-up question -- whether the = punishment for=20 murder should be life imprisonment without the possibility = of=20 parole, or still the death penalty. Of those who continue to = insist=20 on the death penalty, just 2% say it is morally wrong.

A similar pattern is found on homosexual behavior. The = poll finds=20 60% of Americans saying homosexual relations between adults = should=20 be legal, 54% who say homosexuality should be considered "an = acceptable alternative lifestyle," but just 44% who say = homosexual=20 behavior is "morally" acceptable.

Some comparisons of attitudes on this issue show the=20 following:

Of those who feel homosexual relations between = consenting=20 adults should be "legal," 29% still say homosexual = behavior is=20 "morally wrong."=20
Of those who say that homosexuality should be = considered an=20 "acceptable alternative lifestyle," 22% still say that = homosexual=20 behavior is "morally wrong."=20
Finally, of those who support "a law that would allow=20 homosexual couples to legally form civil unions, giving = them some=20 of the legal rights of married couples," 21% then say = homosexual=20 behavior is "morally wrong."

On the issue of abortion, people also make a distinction = between=20 moral and legal imperatives. Overall, 80% of Americans = believe=20 abortion should be legal in at least "some circumstances," = but just=20 37% say abortion is morally acceptable. Some comparisons of=20 opinions:

About a quarter of all Americans (23%) say abortion = should be=20 legal "under any circumstances," but of this group, 15% = say=20 abortion is morally wrong.=20
Another 15% of Americans believe abortion should be = legal=20 under "most" circumstances, and again 15% of this group = says=20 abortion is morally wrong.=20
As one might expect, of the 19% who say abortion = should be=20 illegal in all circumstances, virtually all (94%) say it = is=20 morally wrong.

Survey Methods

Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,005 = national=20 adults, aged 18+, conducted May 5-7, 2003. For results based = on the=20 total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% = confidence=20 that the maximum margin of sampling error is =B13 percentage = points.=20 In addition to sampling error, question wording and = practical=20 difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or = bias into=20 the findings of public opinion polls.

Next, I'm going to read you a list of issues. = Regardless of=20 whether or not you think it should be legal, for each one, = please=20 tell me whether you personally believe that in general it is = morally=20 acceptable or morally wrong. How about =85 [RANDOM ORDER]? =

A. Abortion

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

37%

53

9

*

1

2002 May 6-9

38%

53

8

*

1

2001 May 10-14

42%

45

11

1

1

B. The death penalty

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

64%

31

4

--

1

2002 May 6-9

65%

28

5

*

2

2001 May 10-14

63%

27

7

1

2

C. Doctor assisted suicide

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

45%

49

5

--

1

2002 May 6-9

50%

44

4

*

2

2001 May 10-14

49%

40

8

*

3

Medical testing on animals

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

63%

33

3

*

1

2002 May 6-9

63%

30

3

1

3

2001 May 10-14

65%

26

5

1

3

E. Buying and wearing clothing made of animal fur =

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

60%

36

2

1

1

2002 May 6-9

59%

35

2

2

2

2001 May 10-14

60%

32

2

3

3

F. Homosexual behavior

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

44%

52

2

*

2

2002 May 6-9

38%

55

2

1

4

2001 May 10-14

40%

53

3

1

3

G. Sex between an unmarried man and woman

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

58%

41

1

*

*

2002 May 6-9

53%

42

2

*

3

2001 May 10-14

53%

42

3

1

1

H. Married men and women having an affair

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

6%

93

*

*

1

2002 May 6-9

9%

87

1

1

2

2001 May 10-14

7%

89

3

*

1

I. Divorce

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

66%

27

6

*

1

2002 May 6-9

63%

28

8

*

1

2001 May 10-14

59%

28

12

*

1

J. Cloning animals

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

29%

68

1

*

2

2002 May 6-9

29%

66

3

1

1

2001 May 10-14

31%

63

2

1

3

K. Cloning humans

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

8%

90

1

*

1

2002 May 6-9

7%

90

2

*

1

2001 May 10-14

7%

88

1

1

3

L. Suicide

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

14%

81

2

1

2

2002 May 6-9

12%

83

3

*

2

2001 May 10-14

13%

78

6

1

2

M. Medical research using stem cells obtained from = human=20 embryos

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

54%

38

3

--

5

2002 May 6-9

52%

39

2

1

6

N. Having a baby outside of marriage

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

51%

46

2

*

1

2002 May 6-9

45%

50

3

1

1

O. Gambling

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

63%

34

2

*

1

P. Polygamy, when one husband has more than one wife = at the=20 same time

Morally acceptable

Morally
wrong

DEPENDS ON SITUATION = (vol.)

NOT A
MORAL ISSUE =
(vol.)

No
opinion

2003 May 5-7

7%

92

1

--

*

SUMMARY TABLE: MORAL ACCEPTABILITY OF ISSUES

(vol.) =96 volunteered response

* -- less than 0.5% =

Copyright =A9 2003 The Gallup = Organization, Princeton,=20 NJ. All rights reserved. Gallup^=AE, A8^TM, Business Impact Analysis^TM, CE11^TM, Drop Club^TM, Emotional Economy^TM, Employee Engagement Index^TM, Employee Outlook = Index^TM, Follow This = Path^TM, Gallup = Brain^TM, Gallup Management=20 Journal^=AE, = GMJ^=AE, Gallup Tuesday = Briefing^=AE, = HumanSigma^TM, I10^TM, L3^TM, Q12^=AE, SE25^TM, SF34^TM, SRI^=AE, Strengths Spotlight^TM, Strengths-Based Selling^TM, = StrengthsCoach^TM, = StrengthsInsight^TM, = StrengthsQuest^TM, = TeacherInsight^TM, The Gallup = Path^TM, The Gallup = Poll^=AE, = VantagePoint^TM, = StrengthsFinder^=AE and the 34 = StrengthsFinder theme=20 names are trademarks of The Gallup Organization. All other = trademarks are=20 the property of their respective owners. These materials are = provided for=20 noncommercial, personal use only. Reproduction prohibited without = the=20 express permission of The Gallup Organization.

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