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Survey Basics
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Survey Basics
Publications
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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.
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How do people in the U.S. take Pew Research Center surveys, anyway?
Here, we address some of the most common questions we receive about the nuts and bolts of taking a U.S.-focused Pew Research Center poll.
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How to access Pew Research Center survey data
Pew Research Center makes most of its datasets available for download once reporting has been completed for a given study. Here’s how to find and access our data.
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Want to better understand how surveys work? We’ve got an email course for you
If you’ve wondered what opinion polls are for, how they are done or how to tell a good one from a bad one, sign up for our email mini-course.
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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.
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Methods 101: How is polling done around the world?
Polling in different parts of the world can be very challenging, because what works in one country may not work in a different country.
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Methods 101: Mode effects
How does the way a poll is conducted influence the answers people give?
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How asking about your sleep, smoking or yoga habits can help pollsters verify their findings
Pew Research Center uses benchmarking questions to ensure our surveys are accurate. Learn why and how we use these questions.
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‘Defining the universe’ is essential when writing about survey data
Given the wide range of people we speak to for our polls – and the issues we ask them about – it’s important to be as clear as possible about exactly who says what. In research circles, this practice is sometimes called “defining the universe.”
