methods

We created a ten question survey addressing age, major, knowledge of genetic editing, and opinions on different areas of the topic. We provided specific statements about the use of gene editing in the treatment of genetic disorders, and had survey participants indicate to what degree they agreed or disagreed with them. We sent out the survey to students from the University of Massachusetts Amherst through Survey Monkey, which allowed for easy sharing of the survey link as well as a clear format for analyzing the results. We posted a link to the survey in a Facebook group for the clarinet section of the UMass Marching Band which consists of students of various ages and majors in order to get a variety of different responses.  

Once we got enough responses we were able to view the resulting data in graphs. We analyzed these graphs to see if there were any observable trends between college major and attitude towards the topic of using gene editing to treat genetic diseases.