To Do:
Click on the highlighted link: Public Opinion Polls Comparison Public Opinion Polls Comparison – Alternative Formats (ATTACHED PDF FILE IN THE UPLOAD FILE SECTION)
In the pdf document, you will find five sets of public opinion polls (each set contains two or three questions, the sample surveyed, who conducted the survey, the dates the surveys were conducted, and the results).
Select two (2) sets [A, B, C, D, or E] and analyze and critique the questions and results within each set. [Do NOT evaluate between sets — i.e. do NOT evaluate Set A with Set B (that would be like comparing apples and oranges), but if you choose Set A as the first of your two sets, then evaluate and compare the three questions/polls within Set A; if you then choose Set B as your second set, then evaluate and compare the two questions/polls within Set B; and so on].
Write a 4-5 page paper, which includes only the body of the paper, not cover pages, bibliographies, charts, etc., that thoroughly explains your two sets of analysis and critique.
Things you might consider in your analysis/critique (be sure to provide explanation and analysis — do not merely ‘answer’ these topics):
Wording of the questions (were the questions clear, ‘loaded’, ‘double-barreled’ etc.?)
Answer options (e.g. too many, too few, ambiguous, etc.)
Who commissioned and who conducted the survey (and why it might matter)
Who was surveyed and the sample size (and why it might matter)
The Margin of Error (MOE) for each survey [see Babbie (2013) ideas related to sampling error on pages 83-84]
REFERENCE FOR THE TEXTBOOK:
Babbie, E. (2013). Social research counts. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage.
