Methods 101: What is machine learning, and how does it work?
We explain the basics of machine learning – using computer programs to identify patterns in data – and how it allows researchers at the Center to analyze data on a large scale.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
We explain the basics of machine learning – using computer programs to identify patterns in data – and how it allows researchers at the Center to analyze data on a large scale.
While survey research in the United States is a year-round undertaking, the public’s focus on polling is never more intense than during the run-up to a presidential election.
The Center conducts polls in many countries other than the U.S. – but the methodology behind our international surveys can vary.
Pew Research Center conducts surveys over the phone and, increasingly, online. But these two formats don’t always produce identical results.
Many online surveys are conducted using “nonprobability” or “opt-in” samples, which are generally easier and cheaper to conduct. In our latest Methods 101 video, we explore some of the features of nonprobability surveys and how they differ from traditional probability-based polls.
Donald Trump’s victory in 2016 and the U.K. “Brexit” decision rattled public confidence in polls. Our new video explains why well-designed polls can be trusted.
In the second video from our Methods 101 series, we’re tackling why question wording is so important in public opinion surveys.
The first video in our “Methods 101” series is about random sampling, a concept that undergirds all probability-based survey research. Here’s how it works.
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ABOUT PEW RESEARCH CENTER Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts.
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