QUOTE
Voters nationally see Mitt Romney as a pretty face but an empty
suit, giving him high marks for his chiseled good looks but low
grades for honesty, conviction and uniqueness, according to a high-
tech poll provided exclusively to the Herald.
"He's seen as the same old pol - nothing that makes him stand
out,"said Aaron A. Reid, chief behavioral scientist for RKM Research
and Communications.
The survey used online responses from a scientific sample of
participants to measure emotional "gut" responses to photographs of
the candidates. Researchers say the cutting-edge technique - so far
untested in the political polling field - provides a more accurate
measure of a voter's opinion than traditional telephone polling.
The poll also featured head-to-head matchups showing Republican Sen.
John McCain beating New York's Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham
Clinton in blue-state Massachusetts by a 6-point margin, 53 to 47.
Nationwide, the maverick Arizona pol beats the wife of former
President Bill Clinton by 10 points.
Clinton fares better when pitted against Romney. She beats the
hometown governor on his own turf by 16 points and nationwide by 8
points. The online poll sampled 848 people nationwide, including 378
from Massachusetts, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4
percent.
But the most compelling - and controversial - findings attempt to
unearth the true feelings respondents have for the politicians. As
Reid explained, response times measured down to the millisecond
reveal how voters associate candidates with six critical traits:
honesty, conviction, attractiveness, likability, uniqueness and
optimism.
"The faster they answer, the stronger the association," said
Reid. "What we're really tapping here is nonconscious associations."
Among the findings:
Romney is strongly associated with attractiveness and to a lesser
extent with optimism and likability, but he receives low marks for
conviction, honesty and uniqueness.
Romney voters in Massachusetts say honesty is important, but Reid
said their "nonconscious" responses indicate that, deep down, they
attach no importance to the trait. Clinton voters in the Bay State
also say they value honesty - and researchers found they truly do
consider it important.
Clinton gets poor marks for physical attractiveness but scores
higher than McCain or Romney on uniqueness; McCain gets poor marks
for honesty but high marks for uniqueness, too.
A spokeswoman for Romney's political action committee, the base for
his possible presidential run, said in general they do not respond
to polls.
Requests for further comment were not returned Friday.
Romney, who has drawn fire at home for his increasingly frequent
trips to other states, fares worse with Bay State Republicans than
Democrats in some respects. More than Democrats or independents,
Republicans here give Romney the lowest marks for both honesty and
conviction.
Massachusetts Republicans, however, find him likable while Democrats
and independents do not. All groups find him highly attractive but
all give weak marks for uniqueness, Democrats far more so than
Republicans.
Source: Boston Herald
suit, giving him high marks for his chiseled good looks but low
grades for honesty, conviction and uniqueness, according to a high-
tech poll provided exclusively to the Herald.
"He's seen as the same old pol - nothing that makes him stand
out,"said Aaron A. Reid, chief behavioral scientist for RKM Research
and Communications.
The survey used online responses from a scientific sample of
participants to measure emotional "gut" responses to photographs of
the candidates. Researchers say the cutting-edge technique - so far
untested in the political polling field - provides a more accurate
measure of a voter's opinion than traditional telephone polling.
The poll also featured head-to-head matchups showing Republican Sen.
John McCain beating New York's Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham
Clinton in blue-state Massachusetts by a 6-point margin, 53 to 47.
Nationwide, the maverick Arizona pol beats the wife of former
President Bill Clinton by 10 points.
Clinton fares better when pitted against Romney. She beats the
hometown governor on his own turf by 16 points and nationwide by 8
points. The online poll sampled 848 people nationwide, including 378
from Massachusetts, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4
percent.
But the most compelling - and controversial - findings attempt to
unearth the true feelings respondents have for the politicians. As
Reid explained, response times measured down to the millisecond
reveal how voters associate candidates with six critical traits:
honesty, conviction, attractiveness, likability, uniqueness and
optimism.
"The faster they answer, the stronger the association," said
Reid. "What we're really tapping here is nonconscious associations."
Among the findings:
Romney is strongly associated with attractiveness and to a lesser
extent with optimism and likability, but he receives low marks for
conviction, honesty and uniqueness.
Romney voters in Massachusetts say honesty is important, but Reid
said their "nonconscious" responses indicate that, deep down, they
attach no importance to the trait. Clinton voters in the Bay State
also say they value honesty - and researchers found they truly do
consider it important.
Clinton gets poor marks for physical attractiveness but scores
higher than McCain or Romney on uniqueness; McCain gets poor marks
for honesty but high marks for uniqueness, too.
A spokeswoman for Romney's political action committee, the base for
his possible presidential run, said in general they do not respond
to polls.
Requests for further comment were not returned Friday.
Romney, who has drawn fire at home for his increasingly frequent
trips to other states, fares worse with Bay State Republicans than
Democrats in some respects. More than Democrats or independents,
Republicans here give Romney the lowest marks for both honesty and
conviction.
Massachusetts Republicans, however, find him likable while Democrats
and independents do not. All groups find him highly attractive but
all give weak marks for uniqueness, Democrats far more so than
Republicans.
Source: Boston Herald