Survey #:_________ Date: ___________
The University of California-Riverside (UCR) Research
Working Group on Transnational Social Movements, in collaboration with the US Social Forum’s National Planning
Committee, is conducting this survey of participants in the 2010
I. Political Participation:
(1a) How did you find out about the 2010
o Radio or television
o Newspaper(s) (print or online)
o Alternative online media
o Advertisement, flyers, and/or posters
o Family member and/or partner
o Friends and/or
acquaintances
o People at your school or work
o (Fellow) members of an organization or association
o Online social
networks (e.g. Facebook, Twitter)
(1b)Which
of the above information channels was the most important? (Please circle
the box of the most important information source in item 1a above)
(2) Indicate the
number of each kind of social forum meetings that you have attended in the
past:
___Local; ___Regional;
___Thematic; ___2007 USSF; ___Other
National Forum;
___Polycentric; ___
World (Global) o This is my first Social Forum meeting
(3) What are your
reasons for attending the
o Organize, plan actions, or carry out joint initiatives
o Network, meet people, or join a group
o Recruit new
members
o Learn about the issues and share
information
o Learn about other cultures or enjoy the cultural
performances
o Document it or cover the story
o Work o Research o Help with interpreting
o Get inspiration o Fun or leisure o Other, please specify_____________
(4) In
the list of the organizations below, please indicate whether you are a member, paid staff, leader,
and/or representing your group at the
USSF. Check all that apply.
I am a…member paid staff
leader representative at the
USSF
Labor
union(s)/organization(s) o o o o
Non-governmental organization(s) o o o o
Government
agency(ies)
o o o o
Cultural group(s) o o o o
Professional
association(s) o o o o
Political party(ies) o o o o
Media
organization(s)
o o o o
Social or recreational group(s) o o o o
Religious
institution(s)/movement(s) o o o o
Social movement/political organization o o o o
Other,
please specify________________ o o o o
(5a) How often do
you contact someone outside of the
o Very frequently o Frequently oSometimes o Rarely o Never
(5b)
From what country or countries are the contacts referred to in (5a)
___________________________________________________________________________
(6) What forms of online technologies and tools do you use
for activist/political purposes? Check all that apply.
o Collaboration
technologies (e.g., Wikis, Google Apps)
o Communication
technologies (e.g., Email, Blogs, Twitter, Discussion boards)
o Multimedia sharing
technologies (e.g., Flickr, YouTube)
o Social networking
technologies (e.g., Facebook, LinkedIn)
o Other, please
specify_______________________
o None
(7) Please list the top three political/activist groups in
which you’re involved.
Name of group one:
_____________________________________________________________
Name of group two:
_____________________________________________________________
Name of group three:
____________________________________________________________
(8) In the last 12 months, about how many hours per week on
average did you spend on your political activities?
(total number)_________
(9a) In the last 12 months, how many public
protests or demonstrations did you participate in?
(total number) _____
(9b) In your
lifetime, about how many public protests or demonstrations did you participate
in?
o None o 1-5 o 6-10 o 11-20 o 21 or more
(10)
There are many things people can do to prevent or promote change. Have you, in
the past 12 months…?
Yes No
…contacted
a politician, government, or local government official? o o
…signed a petition/public letter? o o
…donated
money to a political organization or group? o o
…boycotted certain products? o o
…deliberately
bought products for political, ethical or environmental reasons?
o o
…worn or displayed a campaign badge/sticker? o o
…joined
a strike?
o o
…taken part in direct action (such as blockade, occupation,
civil disobedience)? o o
…used
violent forms of action (against property or people)? o o
(11) How has the
economic crisis affected the work of your political organization(s)? Check all
that apply.
o We lost material resources (funding, office space, paid
staff time, etc.)
o We gained material resources (funding, office space, paid staff
time, etc.)
o We spend more time or resources on providing for the
material needs of our members
o Our political goals or priorities shifted towards issues
related to the crisis
o We shifted how we talk about the issues we work on to link
them to the economic crisis
o Membership participation has increased (via membership
gains and/or increased participation by existing members)
o Membership participation has declined (via membership
losses and/or less participation by existing members)
o We cooperate more closely with other organizations or
shifted the kinds of organizations we work with
o Don’t know
o Other, please specify
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
II. Political Opinions
(12) How proud are
you to be from your country of residence?
o Not
proud at all o Not very proud o Quite
proud o Very
proud
o Don’t
know o No
answer
(13) How much do you
trust people from other countries? Could
you tell us whether you trust people from other nations completely, somewhat,
not very much, or not at all?
o Not trust at all o Not trust very much o Trust a little o Trust completely
o Don’t know o No answer
(14) Many people have
said the potential for significant, positive social change is now greater,
during the administration of Barack Obama, than it has been in the past. When
you think about the potential for significant, positive social change now, as
compared to two years ago, do you think that that the potential for this change
is now:
o Much
less o Less o The same o Greater
o Much
greater
(15) In general, how satisfied or dissatisfied
are you with the functioning of democracy in your country?
Very
dissatisfied Very
satisfied Don’t know
o 1 o 2 o 3 o 4 o 5 o 6 o 7
o 8 o 9 o 10 o
(16) Which of the following best describes
your political views?
Far left Center Far right
o 1
o 2 o 3 o 4 o 5 o 6 o 7
(17a) With which
party do you most closely identify right now?
_________________________________________________________________
(17b) How closely
do you identify with this party?
o Not very close o Quite close o Very
close
(18) Do you think
we need to reform capitalism or abolish it? Check one.
o Reform it o
Abolish it o Neither
(19)
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements?
|
|
Strongly
disagree |
Disagree |
Agree |
Strongly agree |
|
Government should redistribute income from the better off
to those who are less well off. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
|
Children should be
taught to obey authority. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
|
Even the most important
public services and industries are best left to private enterprise. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
|
People from other
countries should be allowed to
come to my country and live here permanently if they want to. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
(20)
Below is a list of institutions. Please indicate, in general, how much
you trust each of the following (types of) institutions.
Not at all Not very Somewhat Quite a bit Very
much
National
government o o o o o
Political parties o o o o o
Trade unions
o o o o o
Judicial
system o o o o o
European Union o o o o o
Transnational corporations
o o o o o
Banks/financial institutions o o o o o
(21) To what extent do you agree or disagree
with the following statements?
|
|
Strongly
disagree |
Disagree |
Neither |
Agree |
Strongly
agree |
|
Most politicians make a lot of
promises but do not actually do anything. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
o |
|
I don’t
see the use of voting, parties do whatever they want anyway. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
o |
|
My
participation can have an impact on public
policy in this country. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
o |
|
Organized
groups of citizens can have a lot of impact on public
policies in this country. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
o |
|
If citizens from different
countries join forces, they can have a lot of impact on international
politics. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
o |
|
I
consider everybody’s side of an argument before
making a decision. |
o |
o |
o |
o |
o |
(22) Please rank (1 -most important to 4 -least important) the
following levels by importance for solving the majority of contemporary
problems. (Note: Please do not use the same number more than once).
____ Community ____ Sub-national/state-level
____ National ____
International/Global
(23) Do you think
it is a good or bad idea to have a democratic world government? Check one.
o Good idea, and it is possible o Good
idea, but not possible
o Bad idea, and it is possible o Bad
idea, and not possible
(24) In
the long run, what do you think should be done about these existing
global institutions (Check one for each institution):
The IMF (International Monetary Fund): The WTO
(World Trade Organization):
o Reform o Abolish o Reform o Abolish
o Replace o Do Nothing o Replace o Do Nothing
The World Bank: The UN (United Nations):
o Reform o Abolish o Reform o Abolish
o Replace o Do Nothing o Replace o Do Nothing
(25) Do you
support the idea of global citizenship? Check one.
o It is a bad idea. o It is a good idea, but it is not likely to ever
exist.
o It is a good idea, and may exist someday. o I am already a global citizen.
(26) Do you favor reparations for groups of
people adversely affected by slavery, colonialism, and racism in order to
ensure that they will have better opportunities? Check one.
o
No o Yes
o Indifferent
(27) Should
political parties and governments use quotas to ensure that women are better
represented within political institutions? Check one.
o
No
o Yes
o Indifferent
(28) Do you
support a woman’s right to abortion? Check one.
o Yes, under all circumstances o Sometimes (it depends on the circumstances)
o
No/never o Indifferent
III.
Demographics:
(29) What is your
gender? Check one.
o Female o Male o Other, please specify__________________________
(30) What year were you born? 19________
(31a) What is your
race? Check one.
o Black o Middle Eastern o South
Asian
o Indigenous o Latino/Hispanic o East
Asian
o White o
Pacific Islander o Decline to answer
o Multiracial, please specify
______________________________________________
o Other, please
specify___________________________________________________
(31b) What
is your ethnicity? _____________________________
(32)
Which country were you born in? ___________________________
(33)
Where do you currently live? City _____________________Country _________________________
(34) What is your
sexual orientation? Check all that apply.
o Heterosexual
o Homosexual
o
Bisexual o Queer
o Other, please specify________________________________ o Decline to answer
(35) What is your current
marital status? Check all that apply.
o Single o Separated
o Divorced o Widower
o Married o Cohabiting
(36) How many
children under 18 do you have custody of?
_______
(37) On a scale from 1 to 7, how important is
religion and/or church in your life?
Very important Very unimportant
o 1 o 2 o 3 o 4
o 5 o 6 o 7
(38) Which of the following
best describes your religious beliefs? Check one.
o Protestant o Catholic o Other Christian, please specify denomination
_______________
o Non-denominational Christian o Buddhist o Jewish o Hindu o Islamic
o Spiritual (no specific religion) o Agnostic o Atheist
o Other, please specify____________
(39) What is your
current employment status? Check all that apply.
o Employed full-time (at least 35 hours per week) o Employed part-time
o Employed on a temporary basis o Self-employed
o Unemployed o
Retired
o Student
o Dependent on family
income
o Live from investments or savings
o Volunteer
(40) How would you
describe your current situation in terms of social class?
o Upper
class o Upper middle class o Lower middle class
o Working
class o Lower class
(41a)
How many people live in your household?
____________________
(41b)
In which of these groups does your approximate annual income fall? That is, before taxes and other
deductions.
Total Household Personal
None-$14,999 o o
$15,000-$20,000 o o
$21,000-$39,000 o o
$40,000-$51,000 o o
$52,000-$63,000 o o
$64,000-$100,000 o o
Above $100,000 o o
Refused o o
Not applicable o o
(42). Since 2007, have you personally experienced any of the
following? Check all that apply.
o Home Foreclosure o Unemployment o Reduction
in work hours
o Eviction o Pay
cut o Increase in work hours
o Changed
homes to reduce expenses o Reduced or skipped
meals
(43). Since 2007, have any of your family members, including
members of your extended family, personally experienced any of the following?
Check all that apply.
o Home Foreclosure oUnemployment o Reduction
in work hours
o Eviction
o Pay
cut o Increase in work hours
o Changed
homes to reduce expenses o Reduced or skipped
meals
(44) What is the
highest level of schooling you have completed?
o Elementary o Middle school/junior high o Some High school/No
Degree
o High school o Some college/no degree o Associate’s Degree
o Bachelor’s Degree o Some graduate school/no degree o
Master’s Degree
o Professional Degree o Technical Degree o Doctoral Degree
(45) If you have an educational degree beyond high school,
in what subject(s)? Check all that apply.
o Agriculture o Education o Natural Sciences o Social Sciences
o
Arts o Engineering o Mathematics o
Computers
o Health
o Law/Legal Studies o Business/Administrative
o
Languages/Linguistics/Literature o Other, please specify ____________________________
IV. Movement Identification:
(46) Do you
strongly identify with, or are you actively involved in, any social movements?
o
No
o Yes
àIf your answer to
46 was “no,” please skip to question # 48.
(47) Below
is a list of movements. Please check if the movement is one in which you (a)
strongly identify, (b) are actively involved in, and/or (c) are engaged
internationally. Check all that apply.
(a) strongly (b) actively (c) engaged
identify
involved internationally
1. Alternative
media/culture
o o o
2. Anarchist
o o o
3.
Anti-corporate
o o o
4. Anti-globalization
o o o
5.
Antiracism
o o o
6.
Autonomous
o o o
7. Communist o o o
8. Development aid/Economic development o o o
9.
Environmental
o o o
10. Fair Trade/Trade
Justice
o o o
11.
Food rights/Slow Food
o o o
12. Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender/Queer
Rights o o o
13.
Global justice/Alternative globalization o o o
14. Health/HIV
o o o
15.
Housing rights/anti-eviction/squatters
o
o o
16. Human Rights
o o o
17.
Indigenous
o o o
18. Jobless workers/welfare
rights
o o o
19.
Labor
o o o
20. Migrant/immigrant
rights
o o o
21.
National Sovereignty/National
Liberation o o o
22. Open-Source/Intellectual Property Rights o o o
23.
Peace/Anti-war
o o o
24.
Peasant/Farmers/Landless/Land-reform o o o
25.
Religious/Spiritual
o o o
26. Socialist
o o o
27.
Women's/Feminist
o o o
28. Other(s), please specify _________________ o o o
(48) Do you consider
yourself to be part of a global social movement?
o No o Yes
(49) If you do
consider yourself to be part of a global
social movement, what are the main goals of this movement?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
(50)
Do you have any suggestions for improving the social forum? Please write below:
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
We appreciate you taking the time to complete this survey. Please
return it to the person who gave it to you when you are finished. Or to
send the completed survey:
Institute for Research on World-Systems
College Building South
University of California-Riverside