51st Annual Conference
November 13-14, 2026
Embassy Suites Chicago Downtown
600 N. State Street
The Midwest Association for Public Opinion Research (MAPOR) is preparing for its 51st annual conference, to be held November 13–14 in Chicago. Unlike previous years, the 2026 conference will take place two weeks before Thanksgiving, rather than on the traditional weekend immediately preceding the holiday.
MAPOR is now accepting abstract submissions for the 2026 conference on topics related to public opinion research, communication, and survey methodology. This year, we welcome submissions for papers, posters, and paper panel sessions.
The conference theme, “Navigating Shifting Challenges and Emerging Opportunities in Public Opinion Research,” focuses on how the field is evolving amid ongoing social, political, and methodological change. We welcome submissions from academic researchers and industry practitioners on methodological, theoretical, and substantive topics in public opinion, communication, survey research, and related methodologies that examine how researchers are adapting their approaches, innovating in response to new challenges, and identifying opportunities to strengthen the practice and impact of public opinion research.
New this year, to recognize MAPOR’s many accomplished, long‑standing members who have made invaluable contributions to the organization, we are considering panel submissions that honor and celebrate individual MAPOR members.
Abstract topics may include, but are not limited to: politics and public opinion; social media and public opinion; journalism, media, and public opinion; public opinion on social, economic, and political issues; questionnaire design; data collection strategies and challenges; established and emerging methods for collecting data from respondents; online panels; nonresponse and total survey error; machine learning, artificial intelligence, big data, and data science; geographic and location-based data; ethical considerations in the use of public opinion and survey data; qualitative and mixed-methods research; cross-cultural research; research with hard-to-reach and historically underrepresented populations; and issues related to data quality.
Submissions: Abstracts of 300 words or fewer can be submitted here. In addition to a title and abstract, you will be asked to provide the name, institutional affiliation, and email address for all authors. The same author’s name may appear as first author on a maximum of two submissions. To allow for blind review, please remove all personally identifying information from the abstract’s text before submission.
Note to student authors: If the lead author is a student who will be enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program at the time of the conference, you may submit your paper to the MAPOR Fellows Student Paper Competition (see additional information on the MAPOR Fellows Student Paper Competition, available at www.mapor.org). When submitting a student paper to the competition, the student submitter will be asked to provide the name and e-mail address of a faculty mentor, who will need to endorse the paper when it is submitted. The student paper competition team committee will reach out after the abstract submission window has closed. If you have questions, reach out to president@mapor.org.
Panel Proposals: A panel is a session focused on a common theme that includes 4 or 5 participants. A panel proposal requires a description of 300 words or fewer discussing the issues addressed and their importance. Also, submissions should list the potential panelists, their institutional affiliations, email addresses, and tentative presentations titles. Panels related to the conference theme are especially encouraged.
Submission Information: All abstracts must be posted no later than 11:59pm CDT on Friday, June 26, 2026. Accepted papers on a shared theme will be scheduled in a paper session. Papers with more individualized topics will be scheduled during a poster session. MAPOR considers both types of presentation equally valuable. All submitters will be notified via e-mail by August 14th of their abstract’s acceptance status. For questions or problems with the submission process, please contact the 2026 MAPOR conference chair, Lindsey Witt-Swanson at: abstracts@mapor.org.
Travel Grants: The MAPOR Council will be offering two types of support grants for the Annual Conference: the MAPOR Student Support Grant and the MAPOR Colleague Grant. More details on these awards can be found here: https://www.mapor.org/support-grants/.