Method statement
YouGovLabs research is anecdotal, with polls being open to all panellists who wish to take part. In contrast to YouGov’s Public Opinion polling, YouGovLabs seeks to understand the attitudes of specific subsets of people: sports fans tell us how they feel about sports and music fans tell us how they feel about music, for example. YouGovLabs results are unweighted, and figures reported do not reflect the attitudes of the population as a whole.
Majority of those polled say violence always or sometimes justified when confronting an intruder
Violence can sometimes or always be justified in the defence of your home from an intruder, say the vast majority of the panellists who responded to our survey on the subject, while a golf club is the most popular weapon of choice among those polled who consider violence to be justified in all cases of burglary.
- The most common feeling among those asked said that violence could ‘sometimes be justified’
- But a substantial amount said it could ‘always be justified’
- Only a few people said that violence could ‘never’ be justified
The use of violence
Among those asked who say that they think ‘violence would always be justified’, however, there is a discrepancy between what respondents thought should be acceptable, and what they themselves would probably do if confronted by an intruder.
Almost everyone in this group said that homeowners should be able to use weapons in case of a break-in, with very high numbers saying using a golf club or a baseball bat as a weapon should be allowed. Significant numbers said that crowbars knives would be acceptable, but just under half the group thought that guns should be allowed. The numbers of those who think that they would actually use said weapons, however, were much lower.
- Under two thirds of the group said they would use a golf club or a baseball bat against an intruder
- The group was largely divided over whether they would use a crowbar or a knife
- While just over a quarter of those asked said that they would probably use a gun
For each of the following weapons, please state
- whether you think people should or should not be allowed to use them in defending their home from an intruder
- whether you think that you probably would or probably would not use them in defending your home from an intruder
‘Escalating the situation’
Among respondents who felt that violence was never justified, 59% said that they would not engage in violence because they ‘don’t like it’, while 24% said they thought it would ‘escalate the situation’, and 15% said that they would ‘worry about their family’s safety’ if violence was used.
Method statement
YouGovLabs research is anecdotal, with polls being open to all panellists who wish to take part. In contrast to YouGov’s Public Opinion polling, YouGovLabs seeks to understand the attitudes of specific subsets of people: sports fans tell us how they feel about sports and music fans tell us how they feel about music, for example. YouGovLabs results are unweighted, and figures reported do not reflect the attitudes of the population as a whole.
