Visualizing the 2017 Conference Program
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AAPOR Behind the Scenes
Much of AAPOR’s activities take place behind the scenes. For example, AAPOR currently has four task forces operating—one on the future of telephone interviewing, one on election polling, one of the survey climate, and one on data falsification. In this month’s newsletter, I’d like to update you on the work of these task forces, and also bring you some news about the association’s very successful fundraising efforts in the last year. I think you’ll agree that there’s a lot of hard work going on!
AAPOR Profile: Eleanor Singer
When it comes to AAPOR, Eleanor Singer has pretty much done it all. She served on Council five times (which may be a record!)—twice as Councilor-at-Large, once as Conference Chair, once as Standards Chair, and as President in 1987-1988. She also edited Public Opinion Quarterly for 11 years, from 1975-1986. (In that role, she accepted my first POQ paper, with Wade Smith. I’ll always be grateful to her for that.) Before that, she served as the journal’s managing editor. She also edited a special issue of POQ on nonresponse bias in household surveys in 2006. No one has done as much for Public Opinion Quarterly as Eleanor has.
Chapter Spotlight: MAPOR
MAPOR had an amazing and incredibly busy 41st year! We just completed our Annual Conference on November 18 and 19, 2016. The conference featured 201 attendees, a Keynote Address from Scott Keeter of the Pew Research Center, a short course from Scott Crawford, and a Pedagogy Hour led by Sherry Emery of NORC. The conference also included two panels, our second Respondent-Interviewer Workgroup, and submissions from 43 different institutions (highlighting that the Midwest is definitely a state of mind!).
Membership and Chapter Relations Update
The annual AAPOR Membership Drive is in full swing! Thank you to those of you who have renewed your membership already. If you have not yet had the chance to renew, please do so today. You can renew online at: https://register.aapor.org/. This will allow you to continue to enjoy your membership so you can continue to enjoy all of the benefits of AAPOR membership, such as:
Transparency Initiative Update
It has been two years since AAPOR’s Transparency Initiative began accepting members in fall 2014. Now with more than 80 members, the TI is focusing on continuing our outreach for new members, conducting current members’ biennial reviews, presenting research at conferences, and educating the public and the survey community on the importance of transparency and disclosure. As part of our continued outreach, we would like to focus on one of our charter members – National Research Center – who joined the TI in January 2015.
Conference Update: Abstract Submissions, Volunteer Thanks, Polling and the 2016 Election
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This year we received a record number of proposals during the submission process. The sheer volume coupled with a shortened review window set the stage for what appeared an impossible task for our volunteer reviewers. However, in true AAPOR fashion, our members turned out in record number (230 to be exact!) to offer their evaluations of the many panels, papers, methodological briefs, and poster submissions we received. We express our sincere thanks to those who participated in this invaluable task. Immediately following the review period, a small group convened in Madison, WI for two days to select abstracts, group them in cohesive sessions, and track them by topic, day, and time. This was an intense job, requiring hours of focused concentration, and sharp eyes. Thanks to Trent Buskirk for supplying us with reading and magnifying glasses, and to the entire group – Peyton Craighill, Heidi Diederich, Nora Cate Schaeffer, Mandy Sha, John Stevenson, Adam Thocher, and Vince Welch – for their enormous contributions in shaping the upcoming AAPOR program.
Moving Forward
Public opinion polling and survey research receive a lot of scrutiny during presidential election years, and this year was no exception. In the immediate aftermath of the 2016 presidential election, it looked as though the polls had done pretty badly this year. However as the popular vote continues to roll in, the national polls are looking better and better. We are all looking forward to the work of the Ad‐Hoc Committee on 2016 Election Polling for a final assessment of how the polls did this time. In the meantime, we should take this opportunity to reflect on why these polls are done in the first place.
Call for Executive Council Nominations
The AAPOR Executive Council Call for Nominations are open! Do you know someone whose expertise and values should be represented on the AAPOR Council? Would you personally like to play a leadership role in AAPOR and have a voice at the table? Each year we ask the AAPOR community to nominate qualified candidates for service on AAPOR’s Executive Council. Council members represent the general membership and provide leadership and oversight for AAPOR’s policies, finances and activities.
Chapter Spotlight: NYAAPOR
The New York chapter of the American Association for Public Opinion Research (NYAAPOR) mission is to offer its members and the research community an opportunity to discuss and debate methodological, ethical, and substantive issues related to a broad range of research topics. We had a great kickoff event this past month, and we are looking forward to an exciting program over the next year.