Kirk_2004abstr

Copyright © 2004 by Alex Kirk. Published by The Mars Society with permission.

 

SPACE-RELATED PUBLIC OPINION POLLS:

A SURVEY, 1988-2004

 

Alex Kirk

alex@schnarff.com

 

This paper concerns public opinion on the subject of space exploration, and whether that opinion has been misrepresented through manipulative or leading questions in those polls. The range of polls covered here includes everything from humans to Mars down to UFOs (which, in my opinion, are getting an alarming amount of attention from pollsters). Along the way, I'll be discussing the relevance of my findings on these topics to national space policy -- particularly in terms of how trends seen in these polls can create opportunities for exploration advocates to influence the national dialogue on space exploration. Finally, I will tying in an informal survey I conducted over the Internet, in terms of its relevance to poll manipulation.