Quick Chat: The Problem with Polling

We’ve all been there: you’re just about to sit down with the family to a nice, fresh,  hot dinner….and the phone rings.

Do you answer it, or do you let it go to voice mail? 

What if it’s something important? 

You don’t recognize the number on the call display, but you grab the handset anyway.

Surprise, it’s a pollster! This really shouldn’t come as a shock, as Alberta is in the midst of a provincial election.

But are polls really worth the time and effort?  Richard Heyman doesn’t think so. The professor in the Werklund School of Education says he doesn’t believe polls provide any sort of real analysis, in large part due to the manner in which each question is framed.

In this quick chat, Heyman explains his thoughts on what he calls “The Problem with Polling”.

Audio:

• Quick Chat (7:31)