November 1, 2002
Report & Analysis · Data · Other Poll Releases
Georgians are unified in their opinion that drug abuse is a primary cause of poverty, according to results from a recent Peach State Poll. Ninety-three percent of those surveyed said that drug abuse was either a major cause (75 percent) or minor cause (18 percent) of poverty. Among ten possible causes of poverty, drug abuse was the most frequently cited cause. This was consistent across the board -- at least 85 percent of respondents from all political parties, age groups, racial backgrounds, and income levels said that drug abuse was a cause of poverty. Georgian's assessments of the factors contributing to poverty differ very little from a national survey conducted by the Harvard Opinion Research Program for the Kaiser Family Foundation and National Public Radio (February 2001).
The Peach State Poll is a statewide quarterly survey of public opinion conducted by the University of Georgia's Carl Vinson Institute of Government.
Other Peach State Poll results:
* Georgians overwhelmingly agree that poverty is a problem in society today. Eighty-six percent of those surveyed said that poverty was either a big problem (51 percent or somewhat a problem (35 percent). The opinion was consistent across the board - at least 80 percent of respondents from all political parties, age groups, racial backgrounds, and income levels said that poverty was a problem.
* Conservatives and older residents believe a decline in moral values is also to blame for poverty. Ninety-two percent of conservatives said that the decline in moral values is a major (70 percent) or minor (22 percent) cause, compared with only 85 percent of moderates and 74 percent of liberals. Eighty-nine percent of Georgians from 56-65 years old and 82 percent of those over age 65 said that moral decline caused poverty, compared with only 77 percent of those under age 25.
* Liberals and low-income residents feel that employment problems contribute more to poverty. Ninety-one percent of respondents with an annual income of less than $20,000 said that a shortage of jobs was a major (68 percent) or minor (23 percent) cause of poverty, compared with only 70 percent of respondents with annual incomes over $100,000. Sixty-eight percent of Democrats said that the job shortage was a major cause of poverty, but only 44 percent of Republicans agreed.
* In an open-ended question asking what comes to mind when the respondent thinks of poverty, most people (39 percent) referred to a lack of basic needs. Twelve percent of respondents cited images of extremely poor children, and another 12 percent thought of geographic areas, such as Ethiopia, Angola, Appalachia, and rural Georgia.
* Although closely divided on the question, Georgians are slightly more likely to say that people not doing enough to help themselves is a greater cause of poverty than circumstances beyond their control (48 percent compared with 42 percent). However, an overwhelming majority (70 percent) believe that spending money to reduce poverty is in the interest of everyone, not just the immediate recipients of aid.
These data are taken from a Peach State Poll conducted between September 18 and September 24, 2002. The poll included 800 telephone interviews of randomly selected adults in Georgia. For a sample of this size, the margin of error at the 95 percent confidence level is +/- 3.5 percent.
