Rising gas prices compelled many people to dump SUVs and minivans in favor of fuel-efficient cars, but data from LeaseTrader.com suggests that women in the "soccer mom" demographic have been unable to make the switch.

Based on a sampling of 1,150 transactions, the web site reported that 82 percent of soccer moms with minivans or large vehicles stayed with those types of vehicles. The majority of people in other demographic categories sought other vehicles, and often sought better fuel economy.

(Note: consider the unscientific source here. LeaseTrader released this information for promotional purposes -- seeking more paying customers for its lease-swapping site -- not for sociological benefit. But the data makes horse sense.) What do you think? Has it been hard for your family to part with its large gas-guzzler?

For the data, a soccer mom was defined as any woman who used a minivan or SUV to shuttle two or more children around at least twice a week. Frankly, I think the term hockey mom is more appropriate. Have you seen the size of those elephant bags that hockey players tote around? Soccer players by comparison only need a ball and a water bottle. But I digress.

LeaseTrader believes a sustained period of $4 per gallon gas might encourage more conservation and compel people to switch to fuel-efficient cars. Soccer mom blogger and humorist Lynne Thompson said it would be difficult to get her kids and their friends to sports without a large vehicle: "We will have to cut back somewhere else. It is hard on us with gas prices, but not having kids in sports means them using free time in non-productive ways, or missing out on the good socialization that comes with sports."