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Through a Q&A format designed to grab readers’ attention, this thoroughly revised Sixth Edition gives voters everything they need to know about election polls. Traugott and Lavrakas cover the latest polling technologies and data collection methods, how polls are used in campaigns and by the media, and most importantly—why it all matters.
List of contents
Introduction
Chapter 1 What Are Polls and Surveys? And Why Are They Conducted?
Chapter 2 What Are Election Polls? How Are They Conducted?
Chapter 3 How Do Political Candidates and Organizations Use Poll Data?
Chapter 4 How Do News Organizations Collect and Report Poll Data?
Chapter 5 Why Do Pollsters Use Samples?
Chapter 6 How Are Questionnaires Put Together?
Chapter 7 How Are Data Gathered for Election Polls?
Chapter 8 How Do Media Organizations Analyze Polls?
Chapter 9 How Can I Evaluate Published Poll Results?
Chapter 10 What Are Some Common Problems and Complaints about Polls and the Media's Use of Them?
Epilogue
Appendix A: Standards for Disclosing Information about the Methodology of Public Polls
Appendix B: Sample Tolerances (Sampling Errors) for Samples of Different Sizes
Glossary
Selected References
About the Authors
About the author
Michael W. Traugott, PhD, is a political scientist and survey methodologist. He is professor emeritus at the University of Michigan. He has served as the president of the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) and the World Association for Public Opinion Research. Paul J. Lavrakas, PhD, is a research psychologist and methodological research consultant. He was the founding faculty director of survey centers at Northwestern and Ohio State universities, a chief methodologist for Nielsen Media Research, as well as former president of the AAPOR.
Summary
Through a Q&A format designed to grab readers’ attention, this thoroughly revised Sixth Edition gives voters everything they need to know about election polls. Traugott and Lavrakas cover the latest polling technologies and data collection methods, how polls are used in campaigns and by the media, and most importantly—why it all matters.
