Introduction to the Problem
The issue we chose to investigate is whether or not there is a difference between the mean number of children in families based upon the political affiliation of the parents. This project struck us as interesting because we have seen from experience that family values can relate to the political party that the parents support, and this also influences the number of children the couple has. We decided upon this study because society suggests that the more conservative families tend to have more children, though we are unsure if there is actually a relationship. In addition, Catholic families tend lean towards the conservative side of the political spectrum. Since their religion can sometimes prevent them from using contraception, they also tend to have more children than non-Catholics. We are trying to establish whether there is a relationship between politics and family size.