CHAOS SURVEY RESULTS pt 1

a thousand questions

Usually with surveys you carefully massage the questions to be precise and efficient. But what happens if you do the exact opposite?

I asked people to submit questions for a survey. I gave them no topic, asked them to submit questions about anything at all. The only stipulation was that they must be framed as a statement for which people would agree or disagree.

If you’d like to take the survey, please do it now before you get primed by reading this post!

People submitted a wide variety of stuff. A smattering of examples:

i like cilantro
Alcohol causes more harm than good.
I really need to schedule a dentist appointment
I have a name that starts with a vowel
I have fantasized about a school shooting occurring at my school.
not liking pets means you are, at least on some level, sociopathic
Only dumb, unemployed, upper-class white kids like communism
Fly fishermen are kinda hot
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is an amazing movie
The Beatles are poor vocalists and disappointing composers
I made promises to myself as a child that I do not remember
I believe thinking carefully about what I say during conversation makes conversations run smoother
Opposing cannibalism is a form of neo-colonialism

I removed the bottom 9% of answered questions (ones people skipped typically cause they referred to obscure things), until I ended up with 1000 questions exactly.

Sample size wasn’t huge; while ~10kish took the survey, I ended up with only around 1400 cis men and 185 cis women per question (there were a lot of questions) - a gender gap mostly reflected in my followership. I’m definitely just sampling “people who follow Aella” here, and these people tend to be white, western, with disproportionate (tho not overwhelming) representation from tech-STEM-nerd-libertarian-greytribe-sexworkfriendly demographics.

In the survey, I instructed people to quit when they got bored, and gave them the questions randomized. People, on average, completed around 100ish questions.

For all questions, I asked people to pick an answer on a 7-point spectrum from “strongly disagree” (-3) to “strongly agree” (3). In the results here I occasionally delete extremely similarly-worded questions.

Men Vs Women

What are the questions men and women answered the most differently? (only reporting for cis people here unless otherwise stated, and only reporting differences of 1 point (out of 7 or higher)

Statements most disproportionately agreed upon by women

(number in parentheses is the difference in score between women and men)

I am sexually attracted to men (3.29)
I am a feminine person (2.36)
I prefer written pornography to visual. (1.74)
I love being railed (1.69)
I would have sex with Isaac Newton (1.27)
I want to experience childbirth (1.23)
I keep a journal. (1.21)
I would feel violated if I learned that my opposite-sex friend was imagining what I would be like to have sex with. (1.19)
The decoration of my house is something that matters for me, that I think about often. (1.15)
I'm always cold (1.14)
My dreams are vivid (1.13)
I would rather eat with a short-tined "salad" fork than a long-tined "dinner" fork. (1.11)
I get upset easily (1.05)
I have been raped (1.03)
I don't like to be around weapons of any sort (guns, bows, swords; only counting things made as weapons, not e.g. cleavers) (1.03)
There have been mornings where I could recall 4 or more different dreams. (1.02)
i care a lot about my own birthday (1.02)

Statements most disproportionately agreed upon by men

I am sexually attracted to women (2.13)
The primary reason I interact with Aella's web prescence is a (dimly) conscious desire to do something sexual with her. (1.93)
I am a masculine person (1.91)
I often imagine having sex with stranger I see in public. (1.79)
I was down to fuck at 13. (1.65)
I would bang a hot 15yo if I had enthusiastic consent and a certainty of getting away with it (1.58)
I like porn (1.56)
I wish more public nudity was going on. (1.52)
I often imagine having sex with my acquaintances. (1.52)
Humanity should have base on the moon and mars. (1.46)
I am attracted to drawn/animated characters (anime, furries, etc.) (1.46)
I like video games focused on combat more than those without it. (1.37)
I would rather rape someone than be raped (1.34)
I am sexually attracted to large breasts (1.31)
I have an above average understanding of the economy (1.30)
I can do a lot of push ups (1.28)
Everyone should just leave the toilet seat however they used it (1.21)
I do not enjoy watching dance performances (1.19)
I would go to war to defent my country from a nazi invasion (1.17)
I would rather be heterosexual than gay (1.15)
Manicures and oral sex should be convenience purchases available at (some) gas pumps (1.11)
I prefer redheads (1.10
I would have sex with my dad for 1 billion dollars tax free. (1.03)
The average adult female at least occasionally experiences sexual attraction to minors (1.02)
I would have sex in public if not for legal and social consequences. (1.02)
I have intentionally harmed an animal at least once in my life (1.02)

And for fun, the least gendered questions - ones where the average score of men and women were exactly the same:

The world would be better without Christianity
If I could live anywhere in the world without paying more than my current place of residence, I would move.
my quality of life will be significantly worse in 2030
I know how attractive I am
I own a formal suit or formal dress
I leave a mess in my room
I prefer to listen to music at the highest volume.
I grew up with pets
I believe in God as a way to cope with my own mortality
Intelligent Extraterrestrial life exists in our galaxy

Cis Vs Non-Cis

The questions cis people vs non-cis answered the most differently. On average, 96 non-cis males and 45 non-cis females answered each question. This is way lower than the samples I’m used to working with, and so are probably much noisier. I took the average of the averages of males/females separately, and then looked at the difference between those.

Statements most disproportionately agreed upon by cis people

I would rather be heterosexual than gay (1.79)
There are only two genders (1.61)
There's no such thing as third-gender, queer or no-binary (1.53)
If I was magically transformed into the opposite sex, I would hate it (1.47)
Furries are uncomfortably weird. (1.45)
The ultimate form of misogyny is saying trans women are women. (1.28)
It is important for society that men act masculine (1.24)
My identity has remained relatively consistent throughout my life. (1.19)
I respect Elon Musk (1.11)
Gentrification is not a bad thing. (1.08)
The main cause of obesity is a lack of self control (1.06)
It is important for society that women act feminine (1.02)

Statements most disproportionately agreed upon by non-cis people

I would prefer being the sex opposite the one I was born as (3.00)
I imagine that I am the opposite sex in fantasies (2.67)
I wish I could play more with gender expression (2.03)
The best sex is when yoire fucking in your dreams with the opposite genitals than you have in waking life. (1.80)
I think there are more than two genders (1.74)
I changed my sexual orientation in the last 10 years. (1.74)
Turns out the real Voldemort was the J.K. Rowlings we met along the way (1.69)
I am attracted to drawn/animated characters (anime, furries, etc.) (1.68)
I find it erotic to wear clothes typically associated with the opposite sex (crossdressing) (1.46)
I want to modify/have successfully modified my body in some way that is "unnatural," not temporary, and chiefly cosmetic… (1.43)
I am sexually masochistic (1.27)
A stable, peaceful anarchic nation is possible (1.22)
I am upset I have no mechanical parts (1.22)
If a civilian observes a police officer using excessive force they should be able to shoot and kill said police officer (1.17)
The republican primaries should be a sword contest until death (1.12)
We should put a cap on personal wealth(say 600? Million USD) (1.10)
Communism will win (1.09)
i feel like an alien among humans (1.04)
Polyamory should be considered as normal as monogamy (Disney movies, etc). (1.04)
I am polyamorous (1.04)
I like rats (1.02)
Rich people are inherently evil (1.01)
The more money I earn, the less money someone else will have (1.00)

Liberal Vs Conservative

I asked people how liberal and conservative they were on two different scales - social and economic. This was on a 7-point scale; I took the people from the two most extreme points of the scales and compared the answers of those two groups. Sample size again got unsettlingly low; only 90 or so social conservatives, 273 economic conservatives, 1217 social liberals, and 869 economic liberals.

(Probably correlations would work better, but I’m gonna do a correlation post separately where we can look at this political split again)

There was way stronger disagreements here; I’m changing the limit to be 1.5 points of disagreement instead of 1 in to avoid making this blog post incredibly long.

Statements most disproportionately agreed upon by economically conservative people

I have a positive opinion of Elon Musk (2.98)
There are only two genders (2.73)
The more people are provided aid the less they are willing to work. (2.68)
Kyle Rittenhouse is a goddamn hero (2.61)
There's no such thing as third-gender, queer or non-binary (2.59)
Income tax should be a flat rate instead of progressive (2.58)
All taxation is theft. (2.55)
I am libertarian (2.36)
People that still use masks are idiots (2.29)
let's save the world from those post-modernists, progressists, atheists, comunists, that are distroying the minds of the youth with drugs. God save America! (2.21)
It is important for society that men act masculine (2.16)
Men have become worse at sex because of wokeism. (2.08)
The ultimate form of misogyny is saying trans women are women. (2.03)
It is important for society that women act feminine (2.02)
If people can't pay back their debts, then it's their own fault and I don't feel bad for consequences that might befall them (2.00)
Racial differences in IQ are mostly innate (1.84)
Transgenderism will go down in history as the mental illness that finally collapsed western civilization. (1.82)
Taxes should be entirely eliminated (1.81)
Raising prices when there are shortages (due to disasters or otherwise) is a good thing for society. (1.79)
I like to stand during the national anthem (1.75)
White people are on average smarter than black people (1.73)
Elon Musk is smarter than I am. (1.72)
Gentrification is not a bad thing. (1.69)
The correlation between socioeconomic status and academic achievement has a substantial genetic basis — that is, there are genes that influence both traits. (1.68)
The government is the problem. (1.65)
I believe in a God (1.60)
Tik tok is more dangerous to overall population health than the Corona virus. (1.54)
Only dumb, unemployed, upper-class white kids like communism. (1.54)

Statements most disproportionately agreed upon by economically liberal people

We should put a cap on personal wealth(say 600? Million USD) (3.23)
I tend to vote for liberal political candidates (3.19)
Becoming a billionaire should be impossible in a properly functioning society (3.14)
I like Greta Thunberg (2.79)
I think there are more than two genders (2.76)
Elon Musk is a grifter. (2.54)
It is right that the government has the power to mandate vaccinations (2.41)
I believe it is important for society to ensure that nobody gets left behind (2.25)
Elon has poor judgement regarding future investments (2.21)
Society ought to prevent misinformation from spreading (2.18)
Every good society should primarly aim at guarantee the basics needs of all its residents regardless of their situation (water, food, shelter, health, etc.) (2.18)
Non-citizens should have voting rights at a local level, to participate in the democratic process of their place of living. (2.08)
I believe society ought to give groups special treatment to help them with their
unique problems (2.06)
We should give people food, water, and shelter (2.05)
The only reason the individual has any freedom or power is because of the collective. (1.83)
I trust center-left media such as the CNN (1.83)
If transitioned to the opposite gender early in life (before 16), and are sent to prison for a (non sexual) offence, you should go to the prison based on your current gender identity (1.82)
Funding education is more important than funding the military. (1.79)
Driving a car to transport only yourself should be frowned upon (1.78)
Not wearing a seatbelt should be illegal (1.73)
The world would be better without Christianity (1.71)
The world does not belong to the humans. (1.69)
Body positivity makes the world a healthier place (1.69)
There's not enough time left to avert climate cataclysm (1.62)
Rich people are inherently evil (1.58)
In retrospect, it is obvious that crypto is a big ponzi scheme (1.58)
All parks should have cost-free entry. (1.50)
Bernie Sanders would be a better president than joe Biden (1.50)

Social conservativism-liberalism differences

Social and economic answers correlated pretty strongly, so much of the above list is the same if I look at social differences. I’m not going to repost the whole thing. Here are the questions with over 1.5 points of difference that were not present in the above list.

Statements most disproportionately agreed upon by socially conservative people

Sexual promiscuity is a measure of low character. (2.60)
I'd be worried if polyamorous people outnumbered monogamous people. (2.54)
I believe in one true religion (2.41)
Sex work will contribute to the downfall of society (2.25)
The Crusaders did nothing wrong (2.22)
Switching my country's government to a Catholic theocracy would be an improvement. (2.17)
Sexually promiscuous teenagers are people of low character. (2.07)
Jewish writers are the biggest drivers of antisemitism (1.95))
People are gay because they choose to live that way (1.93)
I'd prefer if there was a god (1.86)
I would erase one or more entire ethnicities from the planet if I could get away with it. (1.81)
Furries are uncomfortably weird. (1.75)
I would rather be heterosexual than gay (1.74)
I have felt contact with a divine power (1.68)
The main cause of obesity is a lack of self control (1.64)
Consent is overrated by mainstream liberal American culture. (1.63)
We should create a demographics credit market, where to retire, each person needs to have two children or buy credits from people who had more than two children (1.59)
All pedophiles (including non-offenders) should face the death penalty. (1.55)
A great king is better than the average democratic government (1.52)
Consent is overrated by mainstream conservative American culture. (1.51)

Statements most disproportionately agreed upon by socially liberal people

(Again, this is not including questions that were duplicates from the economic lists)

Polyamory should be considered as normal as monogamy (Disney movies, etc). (2.45)
There is no such thing as God. (2.44)
Non monogamy can be ethical. (2.23)
Prostitution should be legalized (2.07)
Prostitution should be decriminalized (2.01)
Religion is a net negative in the world (1.99)
Organized religion is so divisive and restrictive that it causes more harm globally than does evil intentions (1.98)
If I died, I would be surprised if I woke up in an afterlife. (1.92)
I wish I could play more with gender expression (1.79)
People should be able to modify their body however they want, for any reason, even if it's repulsive or offensive to others. (1.75)
Sexual attraction to inanimate objects are okay. (1.68)
It's not immoral if someone fantisises about sex with animals but never acts on it (1.67)
I want to modify/have successfully modified my body in some way that is "unnatural," not temporary, and chiefly cosmetic… (1.62)
Consensual same sex adult incest is not immoral (1.55)
Where regulated sex work is illegal, it is primarily due to religious influence on politics (rather than actual humanitarian concerns) (1.54)
The median individual of every race has equal moral value. (1.52)

General Question Stats

Here’s the questions with the highest standard deviations (roughly speaking, the questions people disagreed on the most)

(the numbers are the standard deviations):

The republican primaries should be a sword contest until death (2.37)
The last time I had covid it was included in official statistics (e.g. I was tested at the doctor, or I reported my positive test result). (2.29)
The democratic primaries should be a sword contest until death (2.27)
i know the birthdays of every member of my nuclear family (2.26)
I want to modify/have successfully modified my body in some way that is "unnatural," not temporary, and chiefly cosmetic… (2.26)
I was down to fuck at 13. (2.25)
I have taken nude photographs of myself before. (2.24)
I’d rather be a millionaire in 1978 than a millionaire in 2023 (2.24)
I want to have more children than I already have (2.24)
I would bang a hot 15yo if I had enthusiastic consent and a certainty of getting away with it (2.23)
Becoming a billionaire should be impossible in a properly functioning society (2.21)

And questions with lowest standard deviation - ones people tended to select very similar answers on

There isn't anything wrong about torturing babies to death.
I would like some money
I wish I was disabled
i enjoy having inside jokes with people
If data is incomplete or biased, it is important to be careful in considering its limitations
I am currently responding to this survey
I am conscious
Humans are a species of animal
Dating and pairing should be performed algorithmically and exclusively by the state
I have experience doing engineering work with nanotechnology

If you wanna look at the complete question lists and the scores for each, raw data is here. I’ll be posting more info about general correlations and attempting some dreaded factor analysis or something soon.