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Terri Schiavo Case: Most U.S. Adults Approve of How
Both Her Husband and Her Parents Behaved
But Most People Disapprove of How President Bush,
Governor Bush, and the Congress Handled the Issue
By Tucker Sutherland, editor
April 16, 2005 - Senior citizens may have taken a
higher interest than most in the Terri Schiavo case, because many
seniors are parents, who understood the agony of her parents, and most
have given serious consideration to how they want to be cared for in
such a situation. So, it is probably not surprising to older Americans
that most people felt favorably about the actions of Terri's parents and
her husband.
As the dust from the Terri Schiavo case settles,
the public's verdict is in. As reported yesterday by a Harris Poll, most
people approve of how both Michael Schiavo, Terri's husband, and the
Schindlers, Terri's parents, behaved. Even though those involved
disagreed, many people clearly felt sympathy for both sides in the
debate about withdrawing water and feeding tubes from Terri.
A 55 to 39 percent majority of the public approves
of Michael Schiavo's behavior but a similar 53 to 41 percent majority
also approves of the behavior of Robert and Mary Schindler.
These are some of the results of a Harris Poll of
1,010 U.S. adults surveyed by telephone by Harris Interactive(R) between
April 5 and 10, 2005.
While both sides in the battle over the feeding
tubes are viewed sympathetically by most people, the politicians who got
involved are not:
* A 58 to 35 percent majority disapproves of how
the U.S. Congress handled the issue.
* By 54 to 41 percent, most people disapprove of
how President Bush handled it.
* By 51 to 41 percent, most also disapprove of
how Florida Governor Jeb Bush handled it.
Fully 68 percent of all adults followed the Schiavo
case closely (and their attitudes toward those involved are almost
identical to those of all adults). However, the replies suggest that the
public was better informed about what some players did than about
others. For example, the public is more or less equally divided in its
approval and disapproval of the Federal and Supreme Courts -- even
though the refusal of these courts to hear the case would seem to be in
line with majority opinion. Similarly, the public is divided in its
opinion on the Florida courts which supported Michael Schiavo's position
that the feeding tube be removed.
The public (by 57% to 33%) is also critical of the
Florida legislature which initially gave Governor Bush the power to
intervene, but then declined to do so itself.
TABLE 1
How Closely People Followed the Schiavo Case
"How closely did you follow the Terri Schiavo case,
the Florida case involving life support"
Base: All Adults
|
|
|
% |
|
|
Very closely |
23 |
|
|
Closely |
45 |
|
|
Not very closely |
23 |
|
|
Not at all closely |
8 |
|
|
Not sure / refused |
* |
Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to
rounding
TABLE 2
Approve/Disapprove of those Publicly
Involved with Schiavo Case
"Do you approve or disapprove of the way each of
the following handled the case involving Terri Schiavo?"
|
Percent |
Approve |
Disapprove |
Not
Sure/Refused |
|
Terri
Schiavo's husband,Michael Schiavo |
55 |
39 |
7 |
|
Terri
Schiavo's parents, Robert and Mary Schindler |
53 |
41 |
6 |
|
The Federal
and Supreme Courts |
49 |
46 |
4 |
|
The Florida
Courts |
46 |
48 |
6 |
|
Florida
Governor Jeb Bush |
41 |
51 |
8 |
|
President
George W. Bush |
41 |
54 |
5 |
|
U.S.
Congress |
35 |
58 |
6 |
|
The Florida
Legislature |
33 |
57 |
9 |
Note 1: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to
rounding
Note 2: The replies even by the 68% who said they
had followed the Schiavo case closely were virtually identical to those
above (for all adults). The biggest differences were three percentage
points and most differences were smaller.
Methodology
The Harris Poll(R) was conducted by telephone
within the United States between April 5 and 10, 2005 among a nationwide
cross section of 1,010 adults (aged 18 and over), of whom 716 followed
the Terri Schiavo case closely. Figures for age, sex, race, education,
region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them
into line with their actual proportions in the population.
In theory, with probability samples of this size,
one could say with 95 percent certainty that the results for the overall
sample have a sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Sampling error for the results of adults who followed the Terri Schiavo
case closely is plus or minus 4 percentage points. Unfortunately, there
are several other possible sources of error in all polls or surveys that
are probably more serious than theoretical calculations of sampling
error. They include refusals to be interviewed (nonresponse), question
wording and question order, and weighting. It is impossible to quantify
the errors that may result from these factors.
These statements conform to the principles of
disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.
About Harris Interactive(R)
Harris Interactive Inc. (http://www.harrisinteractive.com/),
the 15th largest and fastest-growing market research firm in the world,
is a Rochester, N.Y.-based global research company that blends premier
strategic consulting with innovative and efficient methods of
investigation, analysis and application. Known for The Harris Poll(R)
and for pioneering Internet-based research methods, Harris Interactive
conducts proprietary and public research to help its clients achieve
clear, material and enduring results.
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