NEI Nuclear Notes

Ann Bisconti The following is a guest post by Ann S. Bisconti, PhD, President, Bisconti Research, Inc. Davis Burroughs deserves credit for a sensible exploration of the gender differences in attitudes toward nuclear energy that his organization, Morning Consult , found in a national public opinion survey this spring. In that survey, 59 percent supported the use of nuclear energy and 29 percent opposed; 52 percent supported increasing the use of nuclear energy and 34 percent opposed. The gender differences in the Morning Consult survey are striking: Among men, 74 percent supported the use of nuclear energy and 20 percent opposed; Among women, 45 percent supported the use of nuclear energy and 36 percent opposed. It is tempting for commentators to dramatize this “gender divide” and convey a picture of strongly conflicting views , but Burroughs rejected drama for accuracy. He focused instead on the important fact that many people, especially women, took middle positions o...