2025 MAPOR Spring Webinar Series

Benjamin Schapiro

Political Polling Insights for Survey Professionals: Margins, Metrics, and Methodology

Friday, April 11th, 1-2pm CT: Polling 101: The Who, What, Why, and How of Modern Political Polling?

Friday, April 25th, 12-1 CT: New Measures of Selection Bias for Pre-Election Polling

Friday, May 2nd 12-1pm CT: Election Polling in the “Blue Wall”: Lessons from Michigan and Wisconsin

Register Here

The Midwest Association for Public Opinion Research (MAPOR) is pleased to announce “Political Polling Insights for Survey Professionals: Margins, Metrics, and Methodology” a three-part webinar series offering a deep dive into the world of political polling. While not all survey professionals work in political contexts, the challenges, innovations, and lessons emerging from election polling offer valuable insights for the broader survey community.

Whether you’re looking to sharpen your methodological toolkit with lessons learned from political polling or better understand how election polling intersects with your work, this series brings timely, relevant perspectives to the table for any survey professional.

This webinar is free for MAPOR members and all students.

Polling 101: The Who, What, Why, and How of Modern Political Polling?

Friday, April 11th, 1-2pm CT

In this webinar, we will cover the basics of modern political polling. We’ll discuss the types of polls that are often conducted, the methods and modes that are often used, and the unique challenges and opportunities that face the polling industry. We’ll situate political polling in the total survey error framework, assess the overall accuracy of the polling industry in recent years, and discuss nonresponse bias and changes people in the industry have made to address it.

Joy WilkeJoy Wilke is the Polling Director at Blue Labs, a progressive data and analytics firm. At Blue Labs, Joy’s team is responsible for survey data collection across the organization, where they work on everything from questionnaire design, sampling, weighting, programming, and budgeting. She’s worked in polling for 13 years, and has previously held polling positions at Civis Analytics, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and the Gallup Organization. Joy has her Master’s in survey methodology from the University of Michigan, and her PhD in political science from UCLA.

New Measures of Selection Bias for Pre-Election Polling

Friday, April 25th, 12-1 CT

Recent developments in survey statistics have yielded simple, novel measures of the non-ignorable selection bias in estimates of means, proportions, and regression coefficients that may arise due to deviations from ignorable sample selection, where these deviations might be introduced by the sampling mechanism (e.g., non-probability sampling) or survey nonresponse. This webinar will review the computation of these indicators, the data required to compute them, software tools for computing them, and examples of their use and interpretation based on real survey data. An illustration of the use of these measures to assess the selection bias in pre-election polls conducted for the 2020 presidential election will be presented, followed by discussion of the results and suggestions for future research.

Brady WestBrady T. West is a Research Professor in the Survey Methodology Program, located within the Survey Research Center at the Institute for Social Research on the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (U-M) campus. He earned his PhD from the Michigan Program in Survey and Data Science in 2011. Before that, he received an MA in Applied Statistics from the U-M Statistics Department in 2002, being recognized as an Outstanding First-year Applied Masters student, and a BS in Statistics with Highest Honors and Highest Distinction from the U-M Statistics Department in 2001. His current research interests include the implications of measurement error in auxiliary variables and survey paradata for survey estimation, selection bias in surveys, responsive/adaptive survey design, interviewer effects, and multilevel regression models for clustered and longitudinal data. He is the lead author of a book comparing different statistical software packages in terms of their mixed-effects modeling procedures (Linear Mixed Models: A Practical Guide using Statistical Software, Third Edition, Chapman Hall/CRC Press, 2022), and a second book entitled Applied Survey Data Analysis (with Steven Heeringa and Pat Berglund), the third edition of which will be published by CRC Press in April 2025. He was elected as a Fellow of the American Statistical Association in 2022. 

Webinar 3: Election Polling in the “Blue Wall”: Lessons from Michigan and Wisconsin

Friday, May 2nd 12-1pm CT

Panelists: Emily Swanson (The Associated Press), Charles Franklin (Marquette University) & Barry Burden (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
Moderator: Erik Nisbet, Northwestern University

A moderated panel of academic and industry experts will discuss polling performance in key Midwestern states, examining the forces that influenced outcomes and how polling methodology is evolving in these politically pivotal regions.

2024 MAPOR Fall Webinar Series

Benjamin Schapiro

Generative AI 101: How Survey Researchers Can Apply AI

November 8, 2024 at 11:30am CT

Register Here

Claire Kelley and Sarah Kelley

Child Trends

How can generative AI be used to support survey research? In this introductory webinar we will provide a primer on how generative AI works and how it can be used for survey research. This course will cover a (math free) introduction to how generative AI models are built, and introduce core concepts such as API’s,  transformers, prompt engineering, few-shot learning, and fine-tuning. We will provide a brief overview of how generative AI is currently used in survey research with a focus on how learners can apply these concepts to their own research. 

Registration to this webinar gives you access to the live webinar as well as access to the recording for one price. The cost for MAPOR members is $10, $40 for non-members, and FREE for students with a valid .edu email address.

Claire Kelley is a co-program area director of data science and senior data scientist at Child Trends, where she conducts and supports research across all program areas. Her primary research interests focus on the intersection of machine learning and social science, particularly in the domains of health and education.
In her work, Claire blends traditional quantitative methods with machine learning and software engineering. Some of her recent projects include using computer vision to assess bias in news articles, co-authoring an open source software package for fitting mixed effects models with complex survey weights, and creating an interactive JavaScript-based data story about algebra enrollment. In addition to writing software and conducting research, Claire is passionate about creating a community of practice around data science for social research. She regularly presents her research and teaches professional development courses at data science and social science conferences including PyData, the American Association for Public Opinion Research, and the American Education Research Association.
Prior to joining Child Trends, Claire worked as a data scientist at the American Institutes for Research (AIR) and at Merck. At AIR, Claire worked on a variety of data engineering and data science projects and led the data visualization and reporting working group. At Merck, she worked on e-commerce data science, including developing a parallelized system for generating product recommendations and using time series models for forecasting product demand. She holds a bachelor’s degree in statistics from Yale University and a master’s degree in quantitative methods from Columbia University.
Sarah Kelley is a co-program area director of data science and senior data scientist whose research focuses on applying data science techniques— especially natural language processing, computer vision, and machine learning—to answer questions related to social science and education.
She has worked on a diverse set of social science problems, from using social media data to explore public conversations around child abuse in Haiti, to using big data and geospatial statistics to understand drivers of the opioid crisis, to using natural language processing to gain insight into political polarization online. Sarah is particularly excited about the potential of data science methods to augment traditional research methods. She seeks to make her work accessible to general audiences through data visualization. She also hopes to support quantitative researchers by using data science methods to create and integrate rich data sets, providing data access through application programming interfaces, and linking data sets using machine learning methods.
Previously, Sarah was a data scientist at the American Institutes for Research, where she led projects focused on applying computer vision algorithms in education contexts, developing large-scale data processing pipelines, and using machine learning techniques to improve predictive modeling. She holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Yale University and a master’s degree in data science from the University of California, Berkeley.

2023 MAPOR Fall Webinar Series

Benjamin Schapiro

Survey Success Trilogy: Introduction to the Field, Networking, and Navigating Your Career in Survey Research

October 13th 12-1pm CT: What is Survey Research?

October 27th 1-2pm CT: How to Network in the Survey Field

November 3rd 12-1pm CT: Navigating the Survey Job Market

Register Here

Registration to this series gives you access to all three live webinars as well as access to a recording of each webinar for one price. The cost for MAPOR members is $30, $60 for non-members, and FREE for students with a valid edu email address. In addition to these amazing webinars, students who attend will be entered into a raffle for a FREE resume review by Dr. Chris Timm of the University of Nebraska.  Each webinar you attend will be another entry into the raffle, so come learn about the field and get set up for success.  7 lucky students will win this opportunity.

Please share broadly, we are hoping to especially engage students inside and outside the AAPOR & MAPOR communities.

Brad Edwards
Michelle Amsbary
Jesus Arrue		Brad Edwards, Michelle Amsbary, and Jesus Arrue
Westat

What Is Survey Research

Our first webinar, What is Survey Research? led by Brad Edwards of Westat, will provide an introduction to the field of survey research, why it is important, and what a typical day in this field looks like. Brad and two additional panelists – Michelle Amsbary (Westat) and Jesus Arrue (Westat) will also answer questions from the audience. This webinar will be held on October 13th at 12pm CT.

About the Presenters: 

Brad Edwards is a Westat Vice President and Lead Scientific/Methodological Advisor in the Survey Research Sector. He has more than 40 years of experience in survey design and project management in health and healthcare financing, aging and long-term care. Methodological interests include multimode survey design, multicultural survey methods, total survey error, survey costs, and data collector staffing and training. He has led design and implementation of major face-to-face survey methods and tools, including video interviewing, CAPI, ACASI, CARI, mobile field management systems, and performance dashboards.

Michelle Amsbary is a Vice President in Westat’s Large Surveys Practice. She holds a Masters in Survey Methodology from the Joint Program in Survey Methodology (JPSM) at the University of Maryland and a degree in Sociology from the University of Virginia. With over 25 years of experience in all phases of survey research, including survey operations management, Amsbary directs surveys in energy and voting behavior, among others. More recently she has focused on business development activities, such as proposal development and internal training efforts.

Jesus Arrue, MS, Survey Methodologist. Jesus Arrue has 7 years of experience analyzing survey data, conducting literature reviews on survey methodology topics, performing data analysis, and assisting cognitive interviews. Arrue supports a number of projects on quality improvement efforts, as well as video interviewing.

Tiffany Neman
Brittany Creel
Ned English		Tiffany Neman, Felicitas Mittereder, Brittany Creel, and Ned English
University of Wisconsin, Meta, Abt, and NORC

How to Network in the Survey Field

In our second webinar, How to Network in the Survey Field, a panel of MAPOR members with a variety of backgrounds will talk about their experiences networking and answer questions from the audience. We are excited to have Tiffany Neman (PhD Student at the University of Wisconsin), Felicitas Mittereder (Meta), Brittany Creel (Abt), and Ned English (NORC) join us for this panel. This webinar will be held on October 27th at 1pm CT.

Tiffany Neman recently obtained her Ph.D. in Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is currently interning as a Survey Statistician at the U.S. Census Bureau’s Center for Economic Studies (CES), where she conducts research on unit nonresponse and panel attrition using administrative records. Her research has been published in several peer-reviewed journals including Public Opinion Quarterly, Survey Practice, and Field Methods, and she frequently presents work at the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) annual conference. Tiffany also serves as the Student Representative on the executive council of the Pacific chapter of the American Association for Public Opinion Research (PAPOR).

Brittany Creel is a Survey Research Senior Analyst at Abt Associates, based in Chicago, IL. She focuses on data collection operations, survey methodology, reporting, and data visualization. Prior to her role at Abt Associates, Brittany held research roles at Universal Orlando Resort and MMGY Global. Brittany recently began the Master of Science in Applied Data Science program at the University of Chicago. Previously, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from the University of Central Florida and completed the University of Georgia’s Principles of Market Research certificate program. When not working or studying, you can find Brittany on hiking trails with her dog, reading mystery novels, watching movies, cheering on the UCF Knights, or playing board games.

Ned English is a Principal Research Methodologist at NORC, where he has contributed to numerous studies, managed research projects, and led its Geographic Information Systems (GIS) group since 2002. English is considered a leader in address-based sampling (ABS) for single and multi-mode surveys, advising on studies across disciplines. He has also served as the lead methodologist on projects for clients such as the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Institute on Aging.  His work has been published in leading journals as well as book chapters and conference proceedings. English also teaches “GIS Applications in the Social Sciences” at the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago. Prior to NORC, he worked as a GIS consultant implementing geospatial solutions for clients in the public and private sectors. He earned his M.S. in Geography from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his B.S. in Geography from McGill University. Ned is also proud to have served on MAPOR council as President, Conference Chair, and Secretary/Treasurer over the past ten years.

Natalie JacksonDr. Natalie Jackson
Vice President
GQR

Navigating the Survey Job Market

The final webinar of this series, Navigating the Survey Job Market led by Natalie Jackson of GQR will focus on tips and tricks for cover letters and resumes, preparing for interviews (online or in-person), and other advice for ensuring a successful job hunt. This webinar will be held on November 3rd at 12pm CT.

Natalie Jackson, PhD, is Vice President at GQR. She has spent nearly two decades developing extensive expertise in survey research, methodology, and political polling. Her research on how people form opinions, as well as on the election polling and forecasting landscape has appeared in peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes, and she has a weekly column on data politics called Leading Indicators at National Journal.  

Prior to joining GQR, she was Director of Research at PRRI and Managing Director of Polling at Just Capital. Earlier in her career, she held senior and management positions at the Marist Institute for Public Opinion and The Huffington Post. She is an active member for the American Association for Public Opinion Research, serves on the council for the National Capitol Area Political Science Association, and co-chairs the Careers Diversity Committee for the American Political Science Association. She is on the editorial boards of Social Science Quarterly and PS: Political Science and Politics. Natalie received her PhD in political science from the University of Oklahoma and was a postdoctoral associate at the Duke University Initiative on Survey Methodology. Her BA in political science and history is from West Texas A&M University. She has just published an edited volume, Non-Academic Careers for Quantitative Social Scientists, with Springer Nature.

2023 MAPOR Spring Webinar Series

Benjamin Schapiro

Web Surveys 201: Beyond the Basics

Three-part series (or any single session):
Friday, April 14th from 11:30-1:00 CT
Friday, April 21st from 10:30-12:00 CT
Friday, April 28th from 11:30-1:00 CT

Register Here

MAPOR is excited to announce its upcoming slate of Spring webinars – Web Surveys 201: Beyond the Basics. In this three-webinar series, presenters will go beyond the basics of setting up a web survey, and explore more advanced topics: monitoring web survey data quality using paradata, detecting falsification in web surveys, and storing and retrieving survey data using SQL. These webinars will be held on April 14th, April 21st, and April 28th respectively. Read more about each webinar and note the respective webinar times below. Registration to this series gives you access to all three live webinars as well as access to a recording of each webinar for one price. The cost for MAPOR members is $20, $30 for non-members, and FREE for students.

Dr. Steven Snell
Principal Survey Methodologist
Goldman Sachs

Front End Survey Development For Data Quality

Our first webinar, Front End Survey Development For Data Quality,  Steven Snell from Goldman Sachs will cover advanced web survey options that will allow you to monitor and improve the quality of your data. Examples include page/block timers and built in items to assess response validity. This webinar will be held on April 14th at 11:30am CT.

About the Presenter:

Steven Snell, PhD, is Principal Survey Methodologist at Goldman Sachs, where he leads a research center of excellence to provide guidance to strategic research projects across the firm. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, he led research consultancies at Qualtrics and Duke University, advising hundreds of survey research projects in brand, product, employee, customer, and marketing research for B2B and B2C clients. Steve’s expertise in survey and market research include questionnaire design, concept and product testing, segmentation, experimental design, brand tracking, and longitudinal research.

He holds a PhD in Politics from Princeton University and attained further training in survey methodology as a postdoctoral fellow at the Initiative on Survey Methodology at Duke University. Steve is a member of the American Association for Public Opinion Research and AAPOR’s Pacific chapter as well as the Market Research Council, where he serves on the executive committee as Secretary/Treasurer.

Ms. Emily Geisen
Senior Product XM Scientist
Qualtrics

Detecting Fraudulent Data in Web Surveys

In our second webinar, Detecting Fraudulent Data in Web Surveys, Emily Geisen from Qualtrics will share recent research and developments related to identifying and preventing fraudulent responses. Topics include digital fingerprinting, bot detection, attention checks, inconsistent data, speeding, NLP, and AI. This webinar will be held on April 21st at 10:30am CT.

About the Presenter: 

Emily Geisen is a survey methodologist and Senior Product XM Scientist at Qualtrics. She helps develop Qualtrics products and tools for researchers and insights professionals. Her current projects include fraud detection for online panels, usability testing, and accessible survey design layouts. Prior to her current role, she was a senior manager in Qualtrics Sample Science and Delivery unit, where she oversaw a team of project managers responsible for running 150 online sample projects per week. Ms. Geisen is the Editor-in-Chief of Survey Practice. She teaches Questionnaire Design at the University of North Carolina and she teaches Usability Testing for Survey Research at the International Program in Survey in Data Science. She is the author of the 2017 book, Usability Testing for Survey Research.

Dr. Scott Adams
Analytics and Insights Leader
National Business Furniture

Demystifying SQL

Interested in learning how to store your survey data in something a little more sophisticated than an Excel spreadsheet, but aren’t sure where to start? In our final webinar, Demystifying SQL: Learning a Lingua Franca for Data Professionals, Scott Adams, Analytics and Insights Leader at National Business Furniture, will walk you through the basics of using SQL (one of the most common programming languages for working with databases of structured data). After completing this webinar, you’ll learn the uses for SQL and be able to write basic SQL queries. No experience with SQL is required! This webinar will be held on April 28th at 11:30am CT.

About the Presenter: 

Scott A. Adams is an Analytics and Insights Leader for National Business Furniture (NBF), where he leads efforts to enhance marketing activities using advanced analytics, data visualization, and machine learning. Prior to joining NBF, Scott worked as a data scientist at several different organizations, including Nielsen and Northwestern Mutual, and taught data analytics courses to aspiring data professionals. Scott earned his PhD in Sociology, with a concentration in Survey Research and Methods from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2016 and currently resides in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his wife Liz and feline companion, Zazzles.

2022 MAPOR Fall Webinar Series

Patrick Hsieh

Military Populations Research Best Practices Webinar

Amanda Barry
Director of Military Workplace Climate Research
Fors Marsh

January 27th at 11:30am to 12:30pm CST

Register Here!

Title: Military Populations Research Best Practices

Presenters: Amanda Barry

Duration: 60 min

Many researchers have challenges with surveying and engaging sample members, but this can be even more challenging for active-duty military, families, and veterans.  During this webinar, we will discuss the best practices for conducting research with this unique population.

About the presenters:

Amanda Barry is the director of Military Workplace Climate Research at Fors Marsh where she oversees a research portfolio that leverages qualitative and quantitative methods to examine different facets of workplace culture and climate with a key focus on gender relations and equal opportunity within the military. Her research spans a wide range of Department of Defense populations, including members of the active duty and reserve components, military service academy cadets and midshipmen, DOD civilians, and Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO) personnel.

2022 Spring Webinar Series

Hillary Hanson

Tidy Survey Analysis in R: Workshop Series

Dr. Stephanie Zimmer
Senior Associate
Abt Associates		Dr. Rebecca Powell
Research Survey Methodologist
RTI International		Isabella Velásquez
Sr. Product Marketing Manager
RStudio

Three-part series (or any single session):
Friday, April 15th from 12-1:30 Eastern
Friday, April 22nd from 12-1:30 Eastern
Friday, April 29th from 12-1:30 Eastern

Register Here!

The Tidy Survey Analysis in R Workshop Series will feature 3 online sessions (1.5 hours each) on how to analyze survey data in R.  The first workshop will introduce functions to obtain weighted totals and proportions from survey data, and how to conduct weighted analyses using χ-squared tests and logistic regression models. The second workshop will introduce functions to obtain weighted means, quantiles, and ratios from survey data, and how to conduct weighted analyses using t-tests and linear regression models. The third workshop will take a closer look at the survey design object and will review common probability sampling designs.  We will also cover how to create replicate weights, derived variables, and reproducible research output. 

All sessions will include time for exercises in breakout rooms using data from the 2020 American National Election Study and the 2015 Residential Energy Consumption Survey, so you can get hands-on experience with the functions. We will be using RStudio Cloud, so you do not need to have R or RStudio preinstalled on your computer. For the best learning experience, we recommend you have some prior experience with R and the tidyverse. You should be familiar with mutate, summarize, count, and group_by.  The instructors are providing this course to obtain feedback on the material for their upcoming book on tidy survey analysis in R.

Dr. Stephanie Zimmer is a senior survey statistician with 10 years experience in survey sampling and design, survey weighting and analysis, and data management. She is an expert statistical programmer in R, SAS, and SUDAAN. She earned her PhD in Statistics from Iowa State University and her BS in Statistics from NC State. After earning her RStudio Tidyverse Trainer certification, she taught a course on tidy survey analysis in R in an AAPOR short course. She is currently a senior associate at Abt Associates.

Dr. Rebecca Powell is a research survey methodologist at RTI International.  Her research interests focus on visual design of questionnaires and contact materials. Additionally, Dr. Powell is a Certified RStudio Tidyverse Trainer and has taught courses and webinars on data management in R and tidy survey analysis in R at both AAPOR and MAPOR.  She has a PhD in Survey Research and Methodology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a BS and MS in Applied Statistics from Rochester Institute of Technology.

Isabella Velásquez is a content strategist, data enthusiast, and author. Her experience spans data collection, grantmaking, strategy development, and survey instrument development. She earned her MSc in Analytics and BA in Economics and East Asian Languages and Civilizations from the University of Chicago. She currently works as a Sr. Product Marketing Manager at RStudio.

October 27 Webinar

Patrick Hsieh

Considering Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Research

Justine Bulgar-Medina, Ph.D.
Research Methodologist at NORC at the University of Chicago

October 27th, 12-1 pm central time

ADMISSION (Pandemic Special): 
$20 for non-members
$10 for MAPOR members
Free for student members

Register here

Please join us for an informative and interactive presentation on crafting questions to measure Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) in surveys. SOGI is measured in a variety of ways across surveys and research studies, but which SOGI question, or set of questions, is best for your study or target study population? Justine Bulgar-Medina, Ph.D. is a Research Methodologist at NORC and has dedicated much time and research to address this question. Justine will share her knowledge on the evolution of work on measurement error in SOGI populations in the MAPOR fall webinar on October 27th.

About Justine: In addition to her work at NORC, Justine also teaches courses in research methods and public policy at Northwestern.  Prior to joining NORC & Northwestern, Justine was a faculty member at Merrimack College where she taught courses in research methods, statistics, public policy and criminology. Justine completed her doctoral work in Sociology & Survey Research at the University of Massachusetts in Boston. Justine’s work focuses on looking at measurement error in surveys, especially measurement error in minority and multiple minority areas, with a focus on culturally responsive and inclusive approaches.  She has presented on these topics at several conferences (including MAPOR and AAPOR), as well as offered short courses for UNC’s Odum Institute.  Along with other researchers in the field Justine has been active in organizing AAPOR panels on SOGI populations.  

April 30 Webinar

Patrick Hsieh

Conducting Research in a Virtual Environment and What the Post-COVID “New Normal” Might Look Like for Qualitative Researchers

Andrew Stavisky
Assistant Director
Applied Research and Methods Group
US Government Accountability Office		Isaac Rogers
CEO, 20|20 Research
Chief Innovation Officer, Schlesinger Group

April 30th, 12-1 pm central time

ADMISSION (Pandemic Special): 
$20 for non-members
$10 for MAPOR members
Free for student members

Register here

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