A study recently accepted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal makes a startling suggestion about so-called ”robo-polls” in the 2012 Republican presidential primaries, raising the question of whether these automated surveys may have been adjusted to match live-interviewer polls. The paper, produced last spring, says its findings mean that aggregated […] Read more »
Putting Statistics to Work in a Land of Illusions
Wanted: statisticians to teach their craft in what many experts call the country with the least reliable statistics in the world. The Pyongyang Summer Institute in Survey Science and Quantitative Methodology last year began teaching students at North Korea’s first private university about such topics as probability, correlation and survey […] Read more »
Interactive Graphics in Surveys: Why and When?
… When designing a web site or survey, it is very important to consider the nature of visual elements used and how they affect the experience and thought process of the user. The primary consideration is that the graphics not distract from the essential goals of the survey. The purpose […] Read more »
Are Potential Panelists Scorning Google?
Suppose a stranger showed up at your house, a shiny new modem under his arm. He says he wants to attach the device to your computer so he can see everything you do online. … Google has hired a research company, GfK Custom Research, to send out old-fashioned letters seeking […] Read more »
The top five polling lessons from the 2012 election
The 2012 election is in the books, and as we head into the new term filled with new elections, there are polling lessons we should take with us. Yet, as this list of the top five polling rules from 2012 will demonstrate, there will always be exceptions to the rule. […] Read more »
Pollsters’ Cell Phone Problem Getting Worse
The percentage of adults without a landline telephone rose again during the first half of 2012, according to a new report released last week, continuing to present pollsters with unprecedented challenges. The report, compiled by the Center for Disease Control, shows that fully 34 percent of adult Americans lived in […] Read more »