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WHY do people think what they think?

A Viewpoint Map distills viewpoints to digestible format so one can calmly ponder them without the distraction of confrontation.

This map addresses Miami Beach residents’ perspectives on crime levels in 2021. We surveyed to understand if they thought crime had recently worsened into a serious problem and if so, why they thought that had happened.

With that, now you may:

Our reporting does not imply our support for any of these views.

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PERSPECTIVES GATHERED

Attributed comments are Miami Beach residents unless otherwise indicated. Unattributed are paraphrases of sentiment expressed in Miami Beach-focused online communities.

People who feel crime has worsened in Miami Beach cite these causes:
(ranked according to survey results, click each to expand for detail)

Summary: People who feel crime has NOT worsened cite these alternative explanations:
(ranked according to survey results, click each to expand for detail)


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SURVEY RESULTS

We wanted to know how many people held each of the views reported above. Therefore, we conducted a survey in October 2021 to (a) identify the full range of reasons people held their view on crime and (b) roughly assess which of those reasons are most commonly shared.

Methodology details are at bottom. This was not a scientific survey; results are directional, not conclusive and should be considered in the context of broader data sources. We make no representations about its accuracy nor fitness for any purpose.

With those caveats, among those identifying as residing or working in Miami Beach:

  • 79.4% responded that crime is a serious problem
  • 20.6% characterized it as no worse than historically, or only temporary.

Of those believing crime to be a serious problem, the percent that named each cause is shown here (eg., 55% of those responding felt “Tourist Quality” was at least part of the problem):

Again of those believing crime to be a serious problem, of all the reasons they voted for as causes (they could name up to three) the following chart shows what percent of the the total votes each cause received:

For those asserting crime is no worse than historically, of all the alternative reasons they voted for (they could name up to three) the following chart shows what percent of the the total votes each reason received: :

Observations on survey:

  • The responses shown in the charts are shorthand for the full text choices shown in the summary above.
  • Sample size. Simply put, this is a good sample size. There are other limitations to the survey, listed below, but sample size is not one of them.
    • From a statistical standpoint, the final sample size of 97 Miami Beach participants is “spot on” for achieving results with 10% margin of error. Within a community of 82,890 residents (most recent census, April 2020), for a 95% confidence level one would want 96 responses (see Qualtrics).
    • For context, a standard national Gallup poll typically uses 1,000 participants, within a population of 323,000,000 Americans. That represents 0.0003% of the population. By contrast, this poll represents 0.12% of the Miami Beach population, or a 378x larger portion of the underlying population than a standard Gallup poll.
    • All of this said, we do not represent that these results are conclusive, only that the sample size is not a problem.

Notes on Methodology:

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This is an initiative of Project LISTEN, one of the e.pluribus.us programs to overcome divisive partisanship. Learn more about Project LISTEN’s surveys of political perspectives.

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Thoughts from across the aisle...

“I know there are California oranges and Florida oranges. When I’m in Florida, I like Florida oranges. Today, I think California oranges are the best, of course.”

— Bob Dole, 11-year Senate Majority Leader (R-KS), WW2 purple heart veteran

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