The Survey of the General Public

A total of 1,200 telephone interviews with adult members of the general public were conducted between June 11 and June 24, 1999. The interviews averaged approximately 28 minutes in length. The interviews were conducted using a random sample of households and a standard, random-digit-dialing technology whereby every household in the region covered had an equal chance of being contacted, including those with unlisted numbers. The margin of error for the 1,200 members of the general public is +/- 3 percentage points; the margin of error is higher in comparisons of percentages across subgroups.

In addition to the national random sample interviews, oversample interviews were conducted with 208 parents of children in school grades K-12 living in areas with school vouchers or a concentration of charter schools. This oversample was drawn from the city of Cleveland, the city of Milwaukee, and metropolitan areas in Arizona and Michigan with the highest concentration of charter schools. These interviews were conducted between June 17 and June 22, and averaged 30 minutes in length. These areas were targeted after extensive research and consultation with experts in the field.

The Survey of Leaders

A questionnaire, comparable to the telephone survey of the public, was mailed on June 24, 1999 to 4,100 leaders — political, civic, and business — at the local level. A reminder postcard was sent out on July 8, followed by a second mailing of the questionnaire to nonrespondents on July 15. July 30 was the final day to accept data. The process netted 833 completed questionnaires, for an overall response rate of 20%. Of those, 334 are CEO's or presidents of businesses employing more than 50 employees. The remaining 499 respondents are broken down as follows: 206 are leaders from the political sector (including mayors; county clerks or supervisors; state representatives); 293 are civic leaders (including presidents of colleges or universities; ministers, priests, rabbis; heads of nonprofit organizations that employ 5 to 25 employees; editorial writers). Survey results are weighted, with each of the three sectors accorded an equal weight.

Leadership samples were supplied by Dun and Bradstreet, the United States Conference of Mayors, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and the National Conference of Editorial Writers.

The Questionnaires

The questionnaires were designed by Public Agenda, and all interpretation of the data reflected in this report was done by Public Agenda. As in all surveys, question order effects and other non-sampling sources of error can sometimes affect results. Steps were taken to minimize these, including extensively pre-testing the survey instruments and randomizing the order in which some questions were asked.

Both the general public and the leadership surveys were fielded by Robinson and Muenster Associates, Inc., of Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The Focus Groups

Focus groups allow for an in-depth, qualitative exploration of the dynamics underlying the public's attitudes toward complex issues. Insights from these groups were important to the survey design, and quotes were drawn from them to give voice to attitudes captured statistically through the survey interviews. Additional follow-up interviews were conducted with those who responded to the telephone survey.

A total of five focus groups were conducted in April and May 1999 in five cities: Elmsford, New York; Dayton, Ohio; Phoenix, Arizona; Redwood City, California; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Sponsors

Funding for this project was provided by The Charles A. Dana Foundation, a private, philanthropic, nonprofit organization with particular interests in health and education.