About the Survey & Topline

Topline questionnaire is available at the end of the original report PDF, or at https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/media/Files/Questionnaire/Old/Topline.pdf .

Results for this survey are based on telephone interviews conducted under the direction of Princeton Survey Research Associates International among a nationwide sample of 1,430 adults, 18 years of age or older, from December 19-30, 2007 (1,089 respondents were interviewed on a landline telephone, and 341 were interviewed on a cell phone, including 113 who had no landline telephone). Both the landline and cell phone samples were designed by Survey Sampling, Inc.

The combined landline and cell phone data were weighted using demographic weighting parameters derived from the March 2006 Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey, along with an estimate of current patterns of telephone status in the U.S. derived from the 2006 National Health Interview Survey, using an iterative technique that simultaneously balances the distributions of all weighting parameters. The weighting procedure also accounted for the fact that respondents with both landline and cell phones had a greater probability of being included in the sample.

The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press will be releasing a detailed analysis of the landline and cell phone samples in the coming weeks.

In addition to sampling error, one should bear in mind that question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of opinion polls.

About the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press is an independent opinion research group that studies attitudes toward the press, politics and public policy issues. We are sponsored by The Pew Charitable Trusts and are one of eight projects that make up the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan “fact tank” that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world.

The Center’s purpose is to serve as a forum for ideas on the media and public policy through public opinion research. In this role it serves as an important information resource for political leaders, journalists, scholars, and public interest organizations. All of our current survey results are made available free of charge.

All of the Center’s research and reports are collaborative products based on the input and analysis of the entire Center staff consisting of:

  • Andrew Kohut, Director
  • Scott Keeter, Director of Survey Research
  • Carroll Doherty and Michael Dimock, Associate Directors
  • Richard Wike and Kim Parker, Senior Researchers
  • April Clark, Juliana Menasce Horowitz, Robert Suls, Shawn Neidorf and Leah Christian, Research Associates
  • Kathleen Holzwart, Research Analyst
  • James Albrittain and Alec Tyson, Research Assistants

About the Pew Internet & American Life Project

The Pew Internet Project is an initiative of the Pew Research Center, a nonprofit “fact tank” that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. Pew Internet explores the impact of the internet on children, families, communities, the work place, schools, health care and civic/political life.  The Project is nonpartisan and takes no position on policy issues. Support for the project is provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The Project’s Web site: https://www.pewresearch.org/internet

About Princeton Survey Research Associates

PSRA conducted the surveys that are covered in this report. It is an independent research company specializing in social and policy work. The firm designs, conducts, and analyzes surveys worldwide. Its expertise also includes qualitative research and content analysis. With offices in Princeton, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C., PSRA serves the needs of clients around the nation and the world. The firm can be reached at 911 Commons Way, Princeton, NJ 08540, by telephone at 609-924-9204, by fax at 609-924-7499, or by email at ResearchNJ@PSRA.com