Public Opinion Polling Basics
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Jewish Americans in 2020: Answers to frequently asked questions
Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about Pew Research Center’s report “Jewish Americans in 2020”
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Q&A: How Pew Research Center studied press coverage of the Biden administration’s early days
We thought it would be valuable to combine our study of news coverage itself with data on people’s views about, and exposure to, that coverage.
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Confronting 2016 and 2020 Polling Limitations
Looking at final estimates of the outcome of the 2020 U.S. presidential race, 93% of national polls overstated the Democratic candidate’s support among voters, while nearly as many (88%) did so in 2016.
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Q&A: After misses in 2016 and 2020, does polling need to be fixed again? What our survey experts say
Polling organizations have taken close looks at how election surveys are designed, administered and analyzed. We are no exception.
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With fewer state governments divided by party than in years past, GOP has edge in redistricting
When legislatures get the data to draw new congressional maps, Republicans will drive that process in 20 states, versus 11 for Democrats.
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What 2020’s Election Poll Errors Tell Us About the Accuracy of Issue Polling
Given the errors in 2016 and 2020 election polling, how much should we trust polls that attempt to measure opinions on issues?
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How we know the drop in Trump’s approval rating in January reflected a real shift in public opinion
The 9-point fall in approval was the largest change between two Pew Research Center polls since Donald Trump took office.
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Measuring Religion in Pew Research Center’s American Trends Panel
Since the establishment of the ATP, the Center has gradually migrated away from telephone polling and toward online survey administration, and since early 2019, the Center has conducted most of its U.S. polling on the ATP. This shift has major implications for the way the Center measures trends in American religion – including those from the Center’s flagship Religious Landscape Studies, which were conducted by phone in 2007 and 2014.
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Measuring News Consumption in a Digital Era
As news outlets morph and multiply, both surveys and passive data collection tools face challenges.
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Understanding how 2020 election polls performed and what it might mean for other kinds of survey work
Many who follow polls are asking how these errors could happen. Here, we’ll take a preliminary shot at answering that question.
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A Field Guide to Polling: Election 2020 Edition
While survey research in the United States is a year-round undertaking, the public’s focus on polling is never more intense than during the run-up to a presidential election.
Comparing Two Types of Online Survey Samples
Pew Research Center conducted a study to compare the accuracy of six online surveys of U.S. adults – three from probability-based panels and three from opt-in sources. On average, the absolute error on opt-in samples was about twice that of probability-based panels.
Q&A: What is the American Trends Panel, and how has it changed?
Members of the American Trends Panel can now take our surveys online or over the phone with an interviewer.
How Public Polling Has Changed in the 21st Century
A new study found that 61% of national pollsters used different methods in 2022 than in 2016. And last year, 17% of pollsters used multiple methods to sample or interview people – up from 2% in 2016.
© 2024 Pew Research Center