Polling and the Public : What Every Citizen Should Know

by Asher, Herbert B.

• ISBN13: 9781568028330
• ISBN10: 1568028334
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-02-01
• Publisher: Cq Pr

Author Biography

Herbert Asher is professor emeritus of political science at Ohio State University.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Polling and the Public	1	(27)
The Importance of Polls	2	(1)
The Pervasiveness of Polls	3	(2)
Commissioned Polls	5	(9)
The Citizen as a Consumer of Polls	14	(1)
Citizens' Views of Polls	15	(5)
Polling and Democracy	20	(7)
Exercises	27	(1)
The Problem of Nonattitudes	28	(22)
An Example of Nonattitudes	31	(1)
The Use of Screening Questions	32	(5)
Nonattitudes and the Middle Position in Survey Questions	37	(4)
Response Instability and Nonattitudes	41	(3)
Implications for Democracy and Public Policy	44	(3)
Conclusion	47	(2)
Exercises	49	(1)
Wording and Context of Questions	50	(19)
Question Wording	52	(9)
Question Order and Context	61	(6)
Conclusion	67	(1)
Exercises	68	(1)
Sampling Techniques	69	(20)
Sampling Designs	70	(7)
Sample Size and Sampling Error	77	(3)
Total versus Actual Sample Size	80	(2)
Response Rates	82	(3)
Weighting the Sample	85	(2)
Conclusion	87	(1)
Exercises	87	(2)
Interviewing and Data Collection Procedures	89	(15)
Methods of Collecting Polling Information	90	(4)
Interviewer Effects in Public Opinion Polling	94	(4)
Internet Polling	98	(4)
Conclusion	102	(1)
Exercises	103	(1)
The Media and the Polls	104	(21)
Standards for Reporting Results	105	(7)
Substantive Interpretation of Polls	112	(5)
Media, Polls, and the News Reporting Emphasis	117	(4)
Conclusion	121	(2)
Exercises	123	(2)
Polls and Elections	125	(34)
Sponsors of Election Polls	125	(1)
Types of Election Polls	126	(15)
Uses of Polls by Candidates	141	(1)
Polls in the Presidential Selection Process	142	(5)
When and Why Election Predictions Are Wrong	147	(8)
How Preelection Polls Affect Voters	155	(2)
Conclusion	157	(1)
Exercises	157	(2)
Analyzing and Interpreting Polls	159	(30)
Choosing Items to Analyze	160	(12)
Examining Trends with Polling Data	172	(2)
Examining Subsets of Respondents	174	(6)
Interpreting Poll Results	180	(5)
When Polls Conflict: A Concluding Example	185	(2)
Exercises	187	(2)
Polling and Democracy	189	(13)
How to Evaluate Polls: A Summary	190	(3)
Polls and Their Effect on the Political System	193	(7)
Conclusion	200	(1)
Exercise	201	(1)
Web Sites	202	(3)
References	205	(18)
Index	223