D0178: Australian Gallup Poll, October 28, 1958
POLLING ORGANISATION Roy Morgan Research Centre SURVEY METHOD Each weekend, 110 trained interviewers were sent to different but randomly- selected "cluster points" spread in proportion to population over cities and country areas throughout Australia excluding the ACT and the Northern Territory. Interviewers were instructed to commence interviewing at the dwelling adjacent to, and at the right of, the random start and to interview one individual there and, moving in a clockwise fashion around the block, in each adjacent dwelling until a cluster of 10 individuals was interviewed. Interviews were conducted during daylight hours, on Saturdays and Sundays when most people were at home. Each weekend, an Australia-wide cross-section of about 2,200 different adults aged 21 years and over from 110 districts were therefore interviewed. This poll is based on 1,759 interviews conducted in October 1958. BACKGROUND VARIABLES age / sex / economic classification / occupation / religion / location / vote at last Federal election / voting intention / car ownership / telephone subscriber / political complexion / sex of interviewer / respondent status / WEIGHTING The responses are unweighted. A weighting variable (WEIGHT) is included in the data file to indicate the interviewer workloads selected for duplication. THEMES - NAMES AND RESPONSES 1a. The first question is about going to the pictures. About how many times have you been to the pictures in the last month? Category label Code Count Percent NONE IN PAST MONTH 0 1070 60.8 1 274 15.6 2 165 9.4 3 54 3.1 4 126 7.2 5 16 .9 6 22 1.3 7 3 .2 8 19 1.1 9 10 .6 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 1b. Are you now going more often, less often, about the same as you did? Category label Code Count Percent SAME 0 825 46.9 LESS OFTEN 11 773 43.9 MORE OFTEN 12 95 5.4 MISSING 13 66 3.8 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 1c. Do you usually go to ordinary picture theatres, or to drive-in theatres? Category label Code Count Percent ORDINARY 1 1157 65.8 DRIVE IN 2 196 11.1 BOTH EQUAL 3 132 7.5 CANT SAY 4 65 3.7 MISSING 5 209 11.9 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 2a. Did you read or hear about the 6 months gaol sentence on Albert Namatjira for giving liquor to another aboriginal? Category label Code Count Percent YES 5 1679 95.5 NO 6 74 4.2 MISSING 7 6 .3 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 2b. ASK EVERYONE: Namatjira was given CITIZENSHIP two years ago, and there's a penalty of at least six months' gaol for a citizen who supplies liquor to an aboriginal. Do you think that law should, or should not, apply to Namatjira? Category label Code Count Percent YES APPLY 7 869 49.4 NO 8 628 35.7 UNDECIDED 9 262 14.9 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 3. And now a question about immigration. Over the last eight years our population has increased by two millions, including a million immigrants. Do you think the number of people who come here each year should be increased - OR - reduced - OR remain the same? Category label Code Count Percent SAME 0 595 33.8 NO OPINION 1 115 6.5 REDUCE 11 573 32.6 INCREASE 12 476 27.1 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 4a. And now a question about housing. Judging by what you see and hear would you say the housing shortage is ending, or not ending? Category label Code Count Percent ENDING 4 515 29.3 NOT ENDING 5 1098 62.4 CANT SAY 6 146 8.3 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 4c. ASK EVERYONE: Would you mind telling me whether you own or rent your home? Category label Code Count Percent OWN 7 1267 72.0 RENT 8 354 20.1 BOARD 9 96 5.5 MISSING 10 42 2.4 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 5. And now a question about the Senate. In your opinion, should Federal Parliament continue to have two Houses - the House of Representatives and the Senate OR - should the Senate be abolished? Category label Code Count Percent TWO HOUSES 7 603 34.3 ABOLISH SENATE 8 617 35.1 NO OPINION 9 539 30.6 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 6a. The next question is about political parties. Whether you vote Labor or not, which group in the Labor Party do you think is right - the Evatt group or the new group called the Democratic Labor Party? Category label Code Count Percent EVATT 7 741 42.1 DLP 8 459 26.1 NO OPINION 9 559 31.8 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 6b. And now to see how accurately we can forecast the coming Federal election. Judging by how you feel now, which Party do you think you would probably vote for - Liberal, Country, Australian Labor, Democratic Labor, Communist, or Independent? Category label Code Count Percent LIBERAL CP 4 796 45.3 ALP 5 682 38.8 DEM LABOR 6 119 6.8 INDEPENDENT 8 12 .7 UNDECIDED 9 144 8.2 MISSING 10 6 .3 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 6c. Do you think there's any chance you'll change your mind and vote for another Party? Category label Code Count Percent YES 4 119 6.8 NO 5 1489 84.7 MISSING 6 151 8.6 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 6d. If 'YES': Which Party might you change to? Category label Code Count Percent LIBERAL CP 6 28 1.6 ALP 7 34 1.9 DEM LABOR 8 27 1.5 COMMUNISTS 9 1 .1 NOT ASKED 10 1640 93.2 MISSING 11 29 1.6 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 7. The next question is about changes in the basic wage. In your opinion, which is better ... to change the basic wage automatically, either up or down, with the cost of living - OR - the Court to decide ALL changes in the basic wage? In 5 forms, cross out from 'better' and read: - '..the Court to decide ALL changes in the basic wage - OR - to change the basic wage automatically, either up or down, with the cost of living?') Category label Code Count Percent UNDECIDED 0 181 10.3 COURT DECIDE 11 749 42.6 AUTO WITH COL 12 829 47.1 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 8a. And now a question about the hire-purchase department of the Commonwealth Bank, which finances the hire-purchase of ONLY industrial and farm equipment. Do you think the Commonwealth Bank should, or should not, also finance the hire-purchase of household needs, such as radios and refrigerators? Category label Code Count Percent YES SHOULD 1 1050 59.7 NO SHOULDNT 2 522 29.7 UNDECIDED 3 187 10.6 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 8b. (Whether you, yourself, buy on HP or not) do you think people buying on hire-purchase should give more thought to the amount of the deposit, or more thought to the weekly payments? Category label Code Count Percent DEPOSIT 4 504 28.7 WEEKLY 5 776 44.1 BOTH EQUAL 6 325 18.5 NO OPINION 7 154 8.8 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 9a. And now a different kind of question - about pain and death. If a person is dying and in great pain, do you think the doctor is, or is not, entitled to give pain-relieving drugs which may also hasten death? Category label Code Count Percent UNDECIDED 0 145 8.2 NO 11 352 20.0 YES ENTITLED 12 1262 71.7 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 9b. If 'YES': Should the doctor first have the consent of the dying person, or should he use his own judgment? Category label Code Count Percent CONSENT OF PERSON 1 368 20.9 DOCTORS JUDGEMENT 2 819 46.6 UNDECIDED 3 75 4.3 NOT ASKED 4 497 28.3 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 9c. ASK EVERYONE: To help classify answers to this question, would you mind telling me your religion? Category label Code Count Percent ROMAN CATHOLIC 1 367 20.9 CHURCH ENGLAND 2 716 40.7 PRESBYTERIAN 3 257 14.6 METHODIST 4 254 14.4 BAPTIST 5 25 1.4 PROTESTANT 6 7 .4 OTHER CHRISTIAN 7 58 3.3 NON-CHRISTIAN 8 10 .6 NO RELIGION 9 16 .9 MISSING 10 49 2.8 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 10a. And now about the United Nations. Do you think the United Nations has been reasonably successful, or not? Category label Code Count Percent SUCCESSFUL 4 1130 64.2 UNSUCCESSFUL 5 341 19.4 UNDECIDED 6 288 16.4 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0 10b. It's been suggested the United Nations should now be made into a WORLD Government, to control the armed forces of ALL nations, including our own. If you had to vote on that, would you vote for a World Government, or against it? Category label Code Count Percent FOR 7 929 52.8 AGAINST 8 496 28.2 NO OPINION 9 334 19.0 ------- ----- Total responses 1759 100.0
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