******FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE******
Contact:
Terry Cleveland, Advisory Committee Chair
Ph.: 307-315-1289
terry.cleveland@bresnan.net
Press Secretary Cara Eastwood
Office: (307) 777-7437
Cell: (307) 421-0197
WYOMING RESIDENTS MORE OPTIMISTIC THAN REST OF THE NATION, SURVEY SHOWS
CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Compared to the rest of the nation, Wyoming residents enjoy a high quality of life and are more optimistic about the future and what growth could bring to the state and the region, according to a new statewide survey released today by the Building the Wyoming We Want initiative.
The survey indicated that Wyoming residents place the greatest priority on access to the great outdoors, their small, friendly communities and about the health of the land and the water.
“Wyoming people care deeply about their families, their small, friendly communities and about the health of the land and the water,” said Dee Allsop, a nationally-recognized polling expert whose company conducted the study for the Building the Wyoming We Want initiative.
The survey findings will be discussed in depth at tomorrow’s Building the Wyoming We Want: Values and Vision Conference in Casper.
“The quality of life indicator that appeared most prominently is that Wyoming people love the outdoors and the healthy lifestyle that they enjoy as a result of the state’s spectacular geography and unparalleled recreation opportunities,” Allsop said.
Allsop’s company, Heart and Mind Strategies, conducted the study over several weeks this spring, and spoke with nearly 1,000 people across the state in telephone interviews, face-to-face online interviews and online polling.
The survey results, which indicated a strongly positive outlook toward the future with measured optimism about growth, were not uniform across Wyoming.
Most residents believe that while the future looks bright for Wyoming overall, their local economies are currently neither “strong” nor “weak,” but they appear to be getting worse. Responses varied by county, with residents of Carbon, Sweetwater, Lincoln, Sublette, Uinta,
Johnson, and Sheridan Counties all viewing their local economies as getting worse. These residents also viewed themselves as being the most impacted by boom/bust cycles.
Other findings focused on perceptions of growth and future change in Wyoming. While many residents believe many of the challenges and problems their communities face are caused by growth, they soundly believe growth can bring significant benefits to Wyoming and should be
“encouraged and fostered.”
Most respondents also said that they believe “people like you and me” (rather than government) are best able to insure that growth has a positive impact.
“These findings give us great insight into what we’re trying to accomplish with Building the Wyoming We Want,” said Terry Cleveland, who heads the initiative’s advisory committee. “Clearly people in Wyoming feel that in order to maintain their outdoor lifestyle, there is much at stake going forward. Many of us have reservations about the kind of growth we see in other parts of the West but this survey indicates that we’re confident we can do it right. The key is to act now to protect what we care most about.”
The survey highlighted an interesting dichotomy in Wyoming, Allsop said, in that residents said they value the fact that the state is not crowded and that there aren’t many people in Wyoming. However one of the strongest negative responses centered on the state’s remoteness
and its relative lack of entertainment and shopping options and proximity to advanced health care providers and jobs.
“This is a key challenge for the leaders of Wyoming,” Allsop said. “Clearly people love to live here but they acknowledge that there are tradeoffs for all the benefits they enjoy in Wyoming.”
The survey results will be discussed in detail beginning tomorrow at the Building the Wyoming We Want conference in Casper at Casper College. To learn more about the conference or to register, visit: www.buildingwyoming.com
Survey Methodology
The Building the Wyoming We Want Priorities and Values Study was conducted online within the state of Wyoming between April 10-26, 2009, among 894 adults (aged 18 and over). Propensity score weighting was used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.
All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question
wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. In the hypothetical case where none of these sources of error are present, a probability sample size of 894 would have a margin of error of +/- 3.3% at the 95 percent confidence level.
These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.
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