25-01-2013, 10:10 AM
American Public Opinion on Global Warming in the American States: An In-Depth Study of Florida, Maine and Massachusetts
ABSTRACT
This research was supported by the Woods Institute for the Environment. This document reports the results of three surveys conducted in Florida, Massachusetts, and Maine from July 9 through 18, 2010, to measure attitudes and beliefs on climate change and compares the results of those surveys data collected in those states between 2006 and 2010 and with a national survey conducted in June, 2010. The survey included an experiment to assess the impact of hearing a candidate running for U.S. Senate make a statement about global warming endorsing the existence of the problem and the need to implement solutions. The principal findings are the three states resemble one another and the nation, in that large majorities of all believe that global warming has been happening, is human caused, will be problematic and should be addressed by government.
An experiment suggests that if a candidate running for U.S. Senate campaigns endorsed the views held on this issue by the majorities of the States’ residents, the proportion of citizens voting for the candidate could increase by 24 percentage points in Florida, 7 percentage points in Main, and 9 percentage points in Massachusetts. The impact of the statement about global warming on vote intentions was greatest among Democrats, less among Independents, and non-existent among Republicans.