hygienist poll current events

Dental hygienists “strongly support” the legalization of same-sex marriages, support a quicker withdrawal of troops in Afghanistan, and remain pessimistic about job opportunities in their area, according to a survey posted in the March 23, 2012, issue of RDH eVillage.

The “current events” survey solicited the opinions of 322 dental hygienists about political and societal issues presented to Americans in daily news coverage. A few “fun” questions were added as well.

The responses are grouped into four categories below. In addition, the age of the respondents were evenly divided between over age 50 and under age 50. So the fifth category below compares the opinions of dental hygienists in those two age groups.

Overall, most dental hygienists keep up with current events through either television news (36%) or Internet news providers (32%). Newspapers (18%), radio news programs (10%), and social media (2%) are the preferred methods for keeping up with current events for the remainder.

Editor’s Note: The links below take you to a “photo” where the statistics can be viewed. You will definitely want to click on “view full size.” The text may still appear small; if you click again on the image, the “magnifying glass” increases the size to full resolution.

Politics

The March 23 publication of the survey preceded the Wisconsin, Maryland, and District of Columbia primaries, when Mitt Romney appeared to secure his status as the Republican frontrunner. So dental hygienists‘ feelings about the upcoming elections may be different now. But three weeks ago, dental hygienists gave less than a percentage point of confidence to President Obama. Click here to read more.

Dentistry

Dentistry has its own connections with current events. Alternative practice plans for non-dentists, for example, have been suggested in efforts to revamp health care. Health care reform and insurance is an issue that remains hotly contested. Click here to read more.

Fun

Well, it’s not all ha-ha funny. We asked you about the kids you treat. Is there any hope for them? And no one is finding gasoline prices to be particularly amusing. Maybe that’s why you skipped the NCAA March Madness? Click here to read more.

By generation

Does the age of the dental hygienist affect his or her opinion about current events? Click here to read more.

Finally, here are some noteworthy comments from readers about the “current events.”