Opinion Polls: History, Theory and Practice

Public opinion polls are a strong part of journalistic and political life, and appear wedded to the democratic process. 50 polls were conducted during the 30-day election campaign leading up to the 1992 British general election. This study sets the scene by defining opinion poll and describing its history. It goes on to consider the importance of opinion polls and explains how data is collected and how accurate they can be. It asks why pollsters got it wrong in 1992, and how polls might be made more accurate in the future.