M- 3 4 4 4 4 5 4
Some of the questions were a little ambiguous but overall a pretty good survey.
Umbriel: Unfortunately, considering my main sample group (students in my high school), and my main method for administering the test (flagging theses students down as they run off to class, to lunch, to get high, etc.) I couldn’t create questions that covered all the complexities and nuisances that you so admirably pointed out. Many kids were pissed off that we surveyed them with a test even as short and concise as this.
By information, I meant all forms of spoken, printed and electronic data, whether it was issued by the government or obtained by civilians. For the most authoritarian answers, this information can be anything the government doesn’t like for any reasons, even if it’s culture that they just find immoral or unpleasant (an authoritarian would trust the government to use such powers for the benefit). On the other end of the scale, and in practicality, the focus would be on national security issues, and military and political secrets.
Only the government’s actions are concerned. Civilians can alert the government about questionable information, but whether they personally have any legal recourse in cases of slander, libel, defamation, IP theft, and stuff they don’t like directed against them is not in the scope of the query.
I wanted to try a different way of phrasing this question on my quiz, because I usually see it elsewhere as ‘do you support freedom of speech?’ and the response is always an overwhelming ‘yes’. I don’t think some people realize that there are instances where the government controlling information could arguably be a positive thing. I wanted people to consider the security aspect of the issue.
Concerning capital punishment, I admit that I let my own bias slip into the creation of some of the questions. I’m strongly libertarian (my score was the example I posted) and I, perhaps unfairly, put emphasis on the damage the government can do when it has power. However, I think the test is still usable. If you’d like the government to have the power to torture, etc. then it could conceivably be applied arbitrarily to innocents, or it could fairly be used to rid a society of crime. Do you trust the government with this power, and do you think it would be used responsibly, effectively and for the benefit of society?
chm: Yes, I agree. Severe was a bad word to use. Do you think I should have gave a tax rate (50% income) and then examples of services provided for with that money (public schools for all, socialized health care)?
DrLizardo: The swings in data are telling, but they don’t necessarily mean it’s a flaw of the test. I’m a staunch libertarian, and I scored a ‘M - 4, 4, 5, 4, 5, 4, 5’, which I think is very accurate. Also, I also thought the scores of my close family and friends were also very accurate in relation to each other and their stated stances.
I think the swings just show that most people aren’t strict libertarians or authoritarians, and have extremely varied opinions on different issues. Someone might want the government to never put its hands on the citizens, except to prevent abortions. That’s going to rightly soften their score as a libertarian. If you trust the government with whatever power it wants, except the power to draft, then that is going to rightly soften your score as an authoritarian.
If I messed up in this regard, I think it’s because I may not have made the answers progress down equal steps of the scale, as Umbriel thinks with the conscription question.
I hope I’ve addressed all of your concerns.
And now, a few (pointless) observations I’ve made thus far:
Far too many high school kids don’t know what the word ‘conscription’ means.
Women weren’t as interested in being tested as men.
Several people mentioned ‘Osama Bin Laden’ as the reason why they supported torture.
My teachers seemed much more moderate than the students.
As previously mentioned, so far, the average score difference between genders is negligible (I haven’t compiled this data yet).
My spell checker tries to change ‘Umbriel’ to ‘Embroil’.
Some men state they were against abortion even if the mother had been raped or risked dying in pregnancy. No woman seemed to share this opinion (or openly stated it at least. I haven’t checked the data.)
A lot more people were against drug legalization than I thought would be. Hippies we ain’t.
M, 5, 5, 4, 5, blank, 3
I have a couple reservations about some questions. Regarding Information-- recognize that info is not free speech. I think some dorks have lost their right to free speech (namely Ernst Zundel), and since he propagates falsehoods, he deserves to be censored and ignored.
Your taxation question is very leading. If you asked instead what services goverment should provide, I’d have an answer around 2. But your phrasing tilts me towards 4.
Also-- what is ‘severe’? 20% 40% more?
And with criminals-- I think all attempts should be made to rehabilitate all prisoners.
Barbarian: I threw your data out, because I’m not sure what your answers were for some of the questions. I also don’t see any reason why speech doesn’t fall under the category of information.
I’ve compiled the data for this community, but I haven’t done anything with it yet, except figure out the maximum and minimum values, and the means, and modes for all the categories.
Some real interesting stuff here. When I finish up, I’ll post everything in a seperate results thread. The project is due monday, so I’ll have it ready around then.
M 2,4,3,4,4,4,3
F- 2 3 2 3 3 3 3
F - 4 4 4 5 2 1 4
M - 5, 5, 1, 4, 1, 1, 5
M 4, 4, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4
M 3, 3, 2, 2, 3, 3, 2
M - 4,4,4,4,3,3,3
M- 5,4,4,5,4,3,5
Geez, was I really that sided?
I think focusing on what types services should be provided by the government and paid for out of whichever percentage tax revenue makes more sense. With just a rate, you miss the whole realm of progressive tax rates as income increases, deductions for some things, and so on. You’ll get different people agreeing to pay a 10% tax rate if it is only military expenses than if it is only health care or only (insert cause here).
It’s damned hard to make non-leading questions, thank you for at least trying.
This is clearly significant, though I’m not sure how just yet… :dubious:
Actually I think a lot of your other observations are quite significant. Not necessarily with regard to the issues you were trying to survey, but with regard to surveys and assessment in general –
1) The extent to which people take such questions seriously.
2) The extent to which people apply serious thought to formulating opinions on major social issues, as opposed to having a knee-jerk reaction and then supporting whatever political group can articulate a reason for them.
3) The extent to which point two, above, is probably more important to understanding the views of high school kids than any assumptions about their underlying values
4) The extent to which people will gladly endure hardship and trade away rights and protections in order to stick it to one real bastard.
By the way, do your students address you as Mr. DemonSpawn? 
F: 5,2,3,3,3,3,2
M- 3, 2, *, 3, 4, 5, 1.
*No answer existed which fit my mindset regarding the drug issue. As a nation, we’ve failed to realize that we are revisiting the dismal social regulatory experiment known as the 18th Amendment.
It did not work in 1920, and gave organized crime, as well as Joseph Kennedy an opportunity to reap tremendous profit.
There was no choice presented such as: Treat drugs as one would cigarettes and alcoholic beverages, e.g. taxed, and distributed by regulated outlets.
Sorry for the hijack, but that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.
I have all the data up to now compiled, and I’m going to take a much needed break. If I see another number today, my brain is going to dribble out of my ears.
I’ll take results until Sunday, just in case anyone else is interested. Ladies, this is your chance to make you’re not under represented, because the respondents have been overwhelmingly male so far.
Umbriel: I’m flattered that you assume I’m a teacher, but the truth is, I’m nothing more than a lowly, petty pupil. On top of that, I’m not demonic enough to warrant the moniker ‘DemonSpawn’ in any form. Someday, perhaps, someday. Sigh
I agree that the observations are fascinating, and I wish had been paying closer attention so I had more to tell. I can offer this though; the students who take these issues seriously are the small minority. Apathy and ignorance abound. I doubt the other generations were any different when they were young, but it still is disheartening.
danceswithcats: It’s not a hijack. I welcome any and all comments and questions.
I agree with you on drug legislation completely. I’m sorry I wasn’t more clear about that question, but when I wrote, for answer ‘5’, that no drugs should be controlled at all the implication was that since the government would be leaving their hands off of them, drugs would be available on the free market like any other commodity. You would never need perscriptions, but drugs would presumably be taxed (well, depending on what you picked for the taxation question), and regulated just enough so the innocent and unwitting couldn’t get at them.
We probably used different definitions of the word ‘controlled’. For option ‘5’, I didn’t mean to imply that it was legal to get coked up and run around naked, give acid to toddlers, or toke the bong while standing in line at the DMV. By substances not being controlled, I meant the government couldn’t outlaw them.
I tried to make this survey as concise as possible, so, sometimes a bit of estimating and assuming is needed to figure out where you fall. I’d give you a ‘5’ for the drug legislation question.
F - 4 3 3 2 3 4 3
Heh, no one would ever guess I’m pro-life. snickers wildly
M 2, 1, 2, 4, 1, 3, 5