February 14, 1999

ABC NEWS FOR KIDS POLL: PRESIDENTS DAY

Grow up to be President?
Teens Say: 'No Thanks'

Analysis by Gary Langer, ABC News

When it comes to attaining the presidency, the American dream is alive – but not well.

The dream: Most teen-agers believe they could grow up to become president of the United States. The problem: Eight in 10 wouldn't want the job, an ABC News for Kids poll has found. The poll marks Presidents' Day, Feb. 15.

An impressive 62 percent of 12 to 17 year-olds believe they could become president one day, the national, random-sample survey found. Yet only 17 percent would want the top job; 81 percent say no thanks. One turn-off could be the trial and tribulations of President Clinton, whose past year hasn't made the job look like a whole lot of fun.

FIRST PARENT - Grownups are a bit less optimistic about their kids' chance of attaining the presidency – but also less quick to reject the job. Fifty-three percent think their child could be president (nine points fewer than kids), while 30 percent like the idea (13 points more.)

This poll finds a continuing decline in adults' interest in becoming First Parent. In a 1988 poll, 41 percent said they'd want their child to be president. That slipped to 35 percent in 1992, and it's down again to today's 30 percent. (There's no historical trend on the views of teen-agers.)

MADAME PRESIDENT– The fact that a woman never has become president doesn't stifle the conviction among girls that they could attain the job. Sixty-four percent of girls think they could grow up to be president, about the same as it is among boys (61 percent).

Girls, moreover, are a tad more interested in the job: Twenty-one percent of girls would like to be president, compared to 13 percent of boys.

INCOME - Higher and lower-income kids are equally likely to think they could become president, and income has very little effect on whether adults think a child of theirs could take the job. People may be remembering that many presidents have risen from humble origins to the Oval Office – including Bill Clinton.

METHODOLOGY - Two surveys were conducted by telephone Feb. 3-7, 1999, one among a random national sample of 500 12 to 17 year-olds, the second among a random national sample of 1,008 adults. The results have error margins of 4.5 points for the teen sample and 3.5 points for the adults. Field work by ICR/International Communications Research of Media, PA.

Full results follow:

1. Adults: Do you think that your child could grow up to be President of the United States, or not?

Teen-agers: Do you think that you could grow up to be President of the United States if you wanted to, or not?

2. Adults: Would you want your child to grow up to be President or not?

**AP/Media General

Teen-agers: Would you want to be President when you grow up, or not?