It’s election season, and
with elections come, inevitably, polls. Elon University is only one of many universities
conducting studies on people’s attitudes about the current U.S. political
climate. Simply put, the Elon Poll is one drop in a massive bucket.
A particular university
I’ve found interesting this month is Quinnipiac University in Connecticut. The
university poll takes a random sample of adults 18 and older through random
digit dialing (where random phone numbers are generated by a computer), and
typically only reports on registered voters. The people calling are a mix of
university students and non-students, not computers, and states included in the
poll are Connecticut, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, New Jersey, New York, Ohio,
Pennsylvania and Virginia.
Methodology is especially important because of how much it reveals about a poll’s strengths and
weaknesses. People being polled are less likely to be honest about
controversial issues if they’re speaking to a real person than if they’re doing
a written survey. However, random digit dialing is a good way to get a truly
random sample, as every number has an equal chance of being called. It’s also important
to note that Quinnipiac is the one sponsoring this poll, meaning that there
isn’t an outside company paying for this poll to happen – there’s no outside
influence on the poll’s results.
When elections are
imminent, political polls help people all over gauge what national attitudes
are towards the presidential candidates.
by Megan Garnache
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