Showing 1 – 2 of 2 results.
Curated
ABC News/Washington Post Race Relations Poll, May 1992 (ICPSR 9940)
Released/updated on: 2008-10-31
Geographic coverage: United States
Time period: 1992-05-08--1992-05-11
In addition to identifying the most important problems facing the country, evaluating the Bush presidency, and providing a snapshot of current voter preference for George Bush, Bill Clinton, and Ross Perot during the 1992 presidential campaign, this special topic poll focused on the issue of race relations. Respondents were asked if they had read or heard anything about the verdict in the Rodney King case in Los Angeles in which a group of white officers were accused of beating a Black man, whether the police officers should have been found guilty of a crime, and whether they approved of Bush's handling of the situation following the King verdict in Los Angeles. Those surveyed were asked if they thought the assistance programs for poor people begun in the 1960s and 1970s had helped or hurt poor people, whether government assistance programs had been the right way to help the poor, and whether the problems in America's inner cities were getting better. Respondents were also asked to identify the real causes of problems in the inner cities from a list of potential causes including the failure of President Bush and former President Ronald Reagan to deal with the problems of the inner cities, and the failure of social assistance programs to help inner-city residents. In addition, respondents were asked to identify what might be done to avoid racial violence and riots in America's cities from a list including more police, more activities for inner-city teenagers and young adults, and better schools and public education. Those surveyed were ultimately asked if the problems of the inner cities were so great that they would never be solved. Background information on respondents includes political alignment, voter registration status, education, age, Hispanic origin, household income, and sex.
Curated
Firearms, Violence, and Youth in California, Illinois, Louisiana, and New Jersey, 1991 (ICPSR 6484)
Released/updated on: 2005-11-04
Geographic coverage: United States, Illinois, Louisiana, California, New Jersey
Time period: 1991-01-01--1991-04-01
Violence committed by and against juveniles was the focus of this study. Two groups were examined: incarcerated (criminally active) juveniles and students in inner-city high schools, since these youths are popularly considered to engage in and experience violence (especially gun-related violence), to belong to urban street gangs, and to participate in the drug trafficking thought to lead to excessive gun violence. Self-administered questionnaires were completed by 835 male inmates in six correctional facilities and 1,663 male and female students from ten inner-city high schools in California, Illinois, Louisiana, and New Jersey. Data collection took place during January through April of 1991. To maximize response rates, inducements of five dollars were offered to the inmates, Spanish-language versions of the questionnaire were provided to inmates who preferred them, and personal interviews were conducted with inmates whose reading skills were less than sufficient to complete the questionnaire on their own. In four schools, principals permitted the inducements to be offered to students to participate in the study. As with the inmate survey, a Spanish-language version of the questionnaire was provided to students who preferred it. The questionnaires covered roughly the same core topics for both inmates and students. Items included questions on sociodemographic characteristics, school experiences, gun ownership, gun use for several types of firearms, gun acquisition patterns, gun-carrying habits, use of other weapons, gang membership and gang activities, self-reported criminal histories, victimization patterns, drug use, alcohol use, and attitudes concerning guns, crime, and violence. In both questionnaires, the majority of the items covered firearms knowledge, acquisition, and use. The remaining items in the inmate survey primarily covered criminal behavior and, secondarily, victimization histories. In the student survey, these priorities were reversed.