Starting in fall 2022, IPOL has been working to enter and analyze data from some recently unearthed Iowa Polls from the 1940s through the 1980s. This academic year we are working with Iowa Poll #229 from 1978. Keep an eye out for our news releases and full report this spring.

The Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab (IPOL) just released its Public Opinion Report on Iowa Poll #249--which was originally conducted by the Des Moines Register in September 1981--after restoring its contents. The report evaluates Iowans' responses on this survey, focusing on sets of questions related to constitutional rights, teaching Iowa history, the Iowa Caucuses, race, and personalities and trends from 1981 that people were most tired of.

Data restored from a 1981 survey indicates that while a near-majority of Iowans supported keeping the Iowa Caucuses in January, nearly one-third preferred to shift them to March or April. These data come from Iowa Poll #249, a random sample survey of 1021 Iowans from October 1981, which has been restored as part of a larger IPOL project to recover lost data from past Iowa Polls.

Four decades ago, Iowans were most unhappy about high interest rates, massage parlors, the neutron bomb, and clothes with alligators, among other items. They were less bothered by a royal wedding, coin operated video games, and Dan Rather. The question asked specifically, “Choose three things you are least thankful for in 1981” and offered a list of twelve items as shown in the figure below. For the first choice, there was a clear front-runner, with 65% saying they’re least thankful for high interest rates. The second and third most frequently cited options were Iran, with 43%, and massage parlors, with 39%. The least frequently given option was Dan Rather, 2% listing him among their three choices.

Recently reconstituted data from 1981 reveal that 44% of Iowans would eliminate at least one of the Ten Commandments. The top three chosen were “thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s goods” with 9%, and “remember the sabbath day to keep it holy” with 9%, and “though shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain” with 8%. These results come from IPOL’s efforts to recover lost data from historical Iowa Polls, starting with Iowa Poll #249, a random sample survey of 1021 Iowans from October 1981.

Recently reconstituted data from 1981 reveal that Iowans had doubts about their own knowledge of Iowa history and were split on which features of Iowa history should be covered in school. These results come from IPOL’s efforts to recover lost data from historical Iowa Polls, starting with Iowa Poll #249, a random sample survey of 1021 Iowans from October 1981.

Recently reconstituted data from 1981 show that Iowans strongly support some items, such as unreasonable search and equality for the sexes, being protected in the United States constitution whereas others, such as the right for life to begin at fertilization, should not. These results come from IPOL’s efforts to recover lost data from historical Iowa Polls, starting with Iowa Poll #249, a random sample survey of 1021 Iowans from October 1981.

Starting in fall 2022, IPOL has been working to enter and analyze data from some recently unearthed Iowa Polls from the 1940s through the 1980s. These were discovered in the archives of Tom Mans, a 1981 UI PhD in Political Science. The Iowa Polls were conducted by the Des Moines Register. In fall 2022 IPOL worked to digitize an entire survey from scans of the printouts. This semester we have begun to analyze the questions, including sets relating to race, constitutional rights, teaching Iowa history, and the Iowa Caucuses. Keep an eye out for our report.

According to a recent Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab Poll, a plurality of Iowans (45.3%) said they would support a proposed pro-gun amendment to the Iowa Constitution while 28.9% of Iowans answered that they would vote against it. The Iowa legislature passed the proposed state constitutional amendment for a second time in 2021, meaning it could appear on the general election ballot in November 2022. Differences in support for the proposed amendment were found based on respondent party identification and urbanicity.

A recent Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab (IPOL) survey conducted by University of Iowa faculty and students found that Iowans trust school officials and parents more than state or local elected officials to make decisions about banning books in public schools. Opinions on who is best situated to make these decisions varied with a respondent's party affiliation and the importance of religion to them.