In April 1998, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) approved a proposal submitted by the University of Florida to conduct a Cuban public opinion survey. The Project Team was led by Dr. Churchill Roberts, College of Journalism and Communications. Dr. Richard Scheaffer, from the Department of Statistics, provided advice on statistical methodology and supervised results tabulations. Dr. Guillermo Grenier of Florida International University supervised questionnaire development and interviews. Mr. Ernesto Betancourt served as a consult-
ant on current Cuban affairs. Mrs. Norma Miranda acted as supervisor of the interviews.
The survey used an availability sample of Cuban em- igres who had been in the United States three months or less. Interviews, which were voluntary, lasted approximately an hour and were
conducted in the homes of host families or at a place convenient to the respondent. From December, 1998 to April, 1999, 1023 interviews were conducted.
The survey work was facilitated by the cooperation of the U. S. Department of State Cuban Affairs Coordinator, the Immigration and Naturalization Service offices in Washington and Miami, and by the various NGO offices in Miami that support recent emigres in their efforts to start new lives in the United States.
Members of the Project Team presented two papers at the 1999 ASCE meeting, which are included in this volume, together with comments by discussants: (1) a paper on the methodology of the survey, presented by Churchill Roberts, with comments by Mitchell A. Seligson; and (2) a paper on results regarding economic, social and political issues, present- ed by Ernesto Betancourt and Guillermo Grenier, with comments by Ricardo Puerta.
Leave a Reply