It’s no secret that academic survey researchers and public pollsters have very different goals for their work. Public pollsters are gathering data to quickly measure the current environment and find out who thinks what. In contrast, academic researchers ponder why the environment is what it is, and what the implications of their findings are for theoretical approaches in their discipline. …
The difference in purpose is best illustrated by comparing public pre-election polls to the American National Election Study (ANES), conducted for every presidential election since 1948. [cont.]
Natalie Jackson, Marist Poll