Background Memo
The most recent poll by Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind was conducted by telephone from Jan. 9 through Jan. 18 using a statewide, randomly selected sample of adults in New Jersey aged 18 and over who participate in their household's financial decisions. The sampling error for 800 adults is +/- 3.5 percentage points at the 95 percent level of confidence. Survey results are also subject to non-sampling error. This kind of error, which cannot be measured, arises from a number of factors including, but not limited to, non-response (eligible individuals refusing to be interviewed), question wording, the order in which questions are asked, and variations among interviewers. All PublicMind interviews are conducted by TMR, Inc. of Cedar Knolls, NJ. Professionally trained interviewers use a CATI (Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing) system. Random selection >is achieved through computerized random-digit dialing. This technique gives every person with a phone number (including those with unlisted numbers) an equal chance of being selected.
The wording of the questions included in this release are as follows:
B1. Turning to a different topic… How much have you heard or read recently about Mad Cow Disease affecting the United States…?
- Nothing at all
- Only a little
- Some
- A great deal
- DK/ref. (don't read)
B2. How worried are you that you or someone in your family might be affected by Mad Cow disease: very worried, somewhat worried, not too worried, or not worried at all?
- Very
- Somewhat
- Not too
- Not at all
- Don't know [DON'T READ]
- Ref [DON'T READ]
B3. Have you changed your buying or eating habits recently, for example, by… ROTATE….?
-
B3a. buying less beef at the market
-
Yes/no/DK
-
B3b. ordering beef less frequently in a restaurant
-
Yes/No/DK
B4. How much confidence do you have in the government's ability to deal with this problem and protect your food supply:…?
- A great deal
- Some
- A Little
- None
see also:
Survey Analysis
Tabular Results