Contraceptives in schools poll

**Cyclonepride** · 11-01-2007, 05:04 PM

Here is the headline:

Most OK with birth control at school, poll finds - Kids & Parenting - MSNBC.com

Here are the results of their online poll:

Do you support public schools supplying contraceptives to students? * 11894 responses
Yes. Providing birth control can reduce the number of teen pregnancies.
35%

No. This is not an appropriate role for schools.
50%

Only if a parent gives consent.
15%

Not a scientific survey. Click to learn more. Results may not total 100% due to rounding.

Hmmm, something seems misleading about their headline.

**herbiedoobie** · 11-02-2007, 02:48 AM

Misleading? Ya think?

Note to self: The purpose behind "polls" is to "mislead". Must remember to make that assumption, next time.

**brianhos** · 11-02-2007, 12:15 PM

50/50 is most anymore?

**iceclone** · 11-02-2007, 01:15 PM

I think you are looking at the on-line reader poll. The headline and the article quotes the AP poll, which breaks down as follows:

"The 67 percent in the AP poll who favor providing birth control to students include 37 percent who would limit it to those whose parents have consented, and 30 percent to all who ask."

**CloneAggie** · 11-02-2007, 01:22 PM

Originally Posted by iceclone

I think you are looking at the on-line reader poll. The headline and the article quotes the AP poll, which breaks down as follows:

"The 67 percent in the AP poll who favor providing birth control to students include 37 percent who would limit it to those whose parents have consented, and 30 percent to all who ask."

Agreed. Not sure what the point of them including the online poll at the end is. Comparing the two is like comparing

and

.

**Cyclonepride** · 11-02-2007, 01:50 PM

Polling is notoriously subjective, depending on the way that questions are asked, and the targeted participants. Even the size of the poll matters a great deal. The headline could easily be stated this way, and be just as correct........"Most feel that contraceptives are a parental decision"

**CloneAggie** · 11-02-2007, 02:24 PM

Yes, polls can be subjective, but based on this poll's results, the headline wasn't misleading. The size of this poll was fine, and there is no indication they were targeting anyone in particular as they most likely used random digit dialing, which is widely regarded as a very representative way to sample from the general population.

**jumbopackage** · 11-02-2007, 02:50 PM

Originally Posted by iceclone

I think you are looking at the on-line reader poll. The headline and the article quotes the AP poll, which breaks down as follows:

"The 67 percent in the AP poll who favor providing birth control to students include 37 percent who would limit it to those whose parents have consented, and 30 percent to all who ask."

This. The poll the article is talking about breaks it down like this:

37% favor it with parental consent
30% favor it to anyone that asks
30% don't want it at all.

Almost a bell curve. 30% on either side, and 37% in the middle.

I don't think the article title is misleading at all.

**herbiedoobie** · 11-03-2007, 02:33 AM

You're assuming the 37% with consent and the 30% for anyone who asks would automatically answer "yes" to the question in the headline. That is, "Would you be in favor of birth control in school?"

And since that question is not apparently asked, the article title is misleading. Anyone ever heard that thing about ASSU-ME?