STATISTICS AND POLLS. Rules to live by. #1.

MANIPULATING THE RESULTS IS TO EASY.



This should be a given, but it is often not reported or ignored.  Poll results can be greatly influenced by the Tactics of those conducting them.

Example-  How often do you hear a poll prefaced by the words like...

"... among registered..."

"...survey of likely voters..."

"...who identify themselves as.."

"...popularity among age groups..."

What do they all have in common? They tell us virtually nothing.

-  Where did the questioning take place?  Particularly, the "COMMUNITY."  Even in a small city or town, political differences can vary greatly, so knowing the exact locations can give us an indication about the validity of reported results.

-  How much of the information acquired about those who were interviewed or polled, was self- reported or unverifiable?

-  What were the guidelines or standards set that could disqualify an individuals answers from being included in the final results?

-  If there was more than a single question asked, was each individual asked ALL of them, or did previous answers influence the length of the interview?

-  What protocols were in place to guarantee that the Interviewers or Pollsters followed proper procedures?

NEVER ASSUME THAT  POLL RESULTS, EVEN IF THEY ARE IN FAVOR OF YOUR POINT OF VIEW, WERE 

CONDUCTED WITHOUT BIAS, WITH ALL SIDES TREATED FAIRLY. TO OFTEN THIS LEAVES US WONDERING..."WHERE DID IT ALL GO WRONG?"