Viewfinder: Local Elections Spark Protests in Guinea
Riot police get ready to disperse people demonstrating to denounce the results of the local elections, on February 6th, 2018, in Conakry, Guinea.
Polls
Americans' Slightly Shifting Attitudes About Rape Victims
The proportion of young American adults who hold untrue and harmful beliefs about rape victims has declined since the 1970s, but not by as much as you might think.
Americans Want to Fire Their Congressmen. Here’s Why They Won’t
We may not approve of the jobs they're doing, but we're also unlikely to take a risk by replacing our elected representatives—especially when economic times are tough.
Should We Buy Options on Presidential Candidates?
For decades, academics have been running a lively prediction market in political aspirations. But now commodities traders have proposed actually selling options on presidential candidates.
Polling of Opinion on Immigration Suggests a Lot of People Lie
UC Berkeley sociologist Alexander Janus says social desirability pressures cause some liberals to lie about their true opinion on immigration — even when asked in an anonymous poll.
Understanding Popular Uses of Percentages
While "figures lie and liars figure," that's no reason not to pay attention to some basic facts about common numerical comparisons.
Sample This: Making Sense of Surveys
There are a lot of shoddy polls out there. Some are frank about their shortcomings and some aren't. Here are some ideas for getting an accurate picture of what a poll can tell you.
Questioning Questions in Evaluating Polls
How you ask, what you ask and when you ask can all affect what you get in conducting polls.
Lies of a Cell
The importance of including cell-only households in phone surveys continues to grow alongside the difficulty of getting accurate results if you don't.
Obama's Decay Curve Steeper Than Most But Not Unusual
The study of decaying presidential popularity finds Barack Obama's large point decline in his first year fits into the pattern of all recent chief executives.
The Perils of the Poll Position
Political consultant Don Rose cautions against reading too much into polls, especially this early in the presidential contest.
It Can Be Made Into a, Umm, Monster
If you'd always thought leadership of the country at the apex of world power was kinda important, here's a smidgen of evidence indicating others agree.