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The "how" behind the numbers, facts and trends shaping your world.

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  • Contending with the 80/20 rule when studying online behavior

    Contending with the 80/20 rule when studying online behavior

    The Pareto principle, or “80/20 rule,” holds that in many systems, a minority of cases produce the majority of outcomes.
    Go to the profile of Aaron Smith
    Aaron Smith
    Feb 25
    Assessing the consistency of online opt-in polls

    Assessing the consistency of online opt-in polls

    In this post, we examine whether online opt-in or “nonprobability” surveys are consistent in the same ways as probability-based surveys.
    Go to the profile of Arnold Lau
    Arnold Lau
    Jan 21
    When working with focus groups, quantitative methods can help

    When working with focus groups, quantitative methods can help

    In a recent project involving focus groups, we tested out quantitative as well as qualitative research methods.
    Go to the profile of Kat Devlin
    Kat Devlin
    Dec 18, 2020
    Building our first video series

    Building our first video series

    Our Methods 101 videos aim to make survey research accessible to a non-specialist audience. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look.
    Go to the profile of Kimberly Arias
    Kimberly Arias
    Dec 9, 2020
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    Americans’ perceptions of their own community type differ by party

    Americans’ perceptions of their own community type differ by party

    Even when they live in similar areas, Democrats and Republicans differ over whether those areas are urban, suburban or rural.
    Go to the profile of Brad Jones
    Brad Jones
    Oct 20, 2020
    Testing survey questions ahead of time can help sharpen a poll’s focus

    Testing survey questions ahead of time can help sharpen a poll’s focus

    Testing questions in advance can help ensure they are as clear as possible — and that they measure what researchers set out to measure.
    Go to the profile of Laura Silver
    Laura Silver
    Oct 14, 2020
    How focus groups informed our study about nationalism in the U.S. and UK

    How focus groups informed our study about nationalism in the U.S. and UK

    We convened 26 focus groups in the U.S. and UK and asked participants to share their views about local, national and international issues.
    Go to the profile of Mara Mordecai
    Mara Mordecai
    Oct 5, 2020
    Adapting how we ask about the gender of our survey respondents

    Adapting how we ask about the gender of our survey respondents

    Updating our question wording acknowledges changing norms around gender identity and improves data quality and accuracy.
    Go to the profile of Ashley Amaya
    Ashley Amaya
    Sep 11, 2020
    Small changes in survey scales can matter when measuring political ideology in Europe

    Small changes in survey scales can matter when measuring political ideology in Europe

    In this analysis, we compare two different ways of asking telephone survey respondents in Europe about their ideology.
    Go to the profile of Martha McRoy
    Martha McRoy
    Sep 1, 2020
    Introducing Pew Research Center’s Python libraries

    Introducing Pew Research Center’s Python libraries

    We’re excited to release a collection of Python tools that we’ve found ourselves returning to again and again.
    Go to the profile of Patrick van Kessel
    Patrick van Kessel
    Jun 9, 2020
    Communicating technical content

    Communicating technical content

    A common challenge facing researchers is how to make complex subject matter accessible to a general audience.
    Go to the profile of Rachel Weisel
    Rachel Weisel
    May 14, 2020
    The challenges of using real-time epidemiological data in a public health crisis

    The challenges of using real-time epidemiological data in a public health crisis

    Three widely cited coronavirus trackers differ in their methods and in the kinds of information they provide.
    Go to the profile of Regina Widjaya
    Regina Widjaya
    May 1, 2020
    Analyzing international survey data with the pewmethods R package

    Analyzing international survey data with the pewmethods R package

    Data from Pew Research Center’s annual Global Attitudes Survey is publicly available.
    Go to the profile of Kat Devlin
    Kat Devlin
    Apr 13, 2020
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