We attended the 2025 conference of the Midwestern Chapter of AAPOR (MAPOR), and it was a fantastic experience.

Nearly 200 researchers gathered from industry, academia, and nonprofits, with great representation from both students and seasoned professionals.

We’re sharing key findings from the three papers we presented, along with a few broader takeaways from the conference.  If you would like to talk more about any of these topics, please reach out!

Our Presentations

If You Win, Do I Lose? Survey Timing and the Winners–Losers Gap

Paula Armendáriz

Paula’s paper explores the question: How quickly does trust in democracy shift after an election? Using survey data collected before and after the 2024 election, she found that trust in democracy moves fast depending on whether people feel they’re on the winning or losing side. Republicans’ trust increased just days after the 2024 results, while Democrats’ trust fell just as quickly. The findings highlight a core challenge in measuring democratic attitudes—timing matters. Capturing these rapid shifts offers new insights into the fragility and resilience of democratic trust in a polarized environment.

Breathing the Truth: Building Perception and Reality in Public Opinion on Air Quality

Jenny Berg, Kristen Purcell, Darby Steiger, and James McKinstry

Jenny’s presentation examined the gap between how Americans perceive their air quality and the air they actually breathe. By fusing survey responses with objective AQI data at the respondent level, we found that most people live in areas with generally good average air quality and show low engagement and concern. However, peak AQI readings tell a different story: many communities still face significant short-term spikes and public health risks. These findings underscore a key nuance—low concern doesn’t always mean low risk—and highlight the value of pairing environmental data with public opinion to better understand how people experience their surroundings.

What Teens Really Hear: Rethinking Survey Design Through Cognitive Interviews

Jania Marshall, Kristen Conrad, Darby Steiger and Melissa Silesky

Jania’s presentation looked at how teens actually interpret survey questions—often differently from how researchers expect. Through conducting cognitive interviews with teens across multiple studies, we’ve identified consistent patterns and developed best practices tailored to this population. Teens’ developmental stage shapes how they comprehend questions, retrieve information, and make judgments, sometimes introducing hidden measurement error. Adjusting the interview process—from rapport-building to age-appropriate probing—helps surface these issues and improve question wording, structure, and emphasis. By aligning survey design with how teens think, we produce data that more accurately reflects their experiences and perspectives.

What Stood Out Across MAPOR

Across two days and more than 20 concurrent sessions, several themes particularly stood out for the four of us:

  • AI in Survey Research: AI continues to be a major topic. Most sessions focused on practical uses—translation, data entry, open-ends—with important caveats around quality and system choice. And no surprise: AI is not a substitute for cognitive interviews. Regardless of the task, AI’s impact can vary based on the specific system, so researchers need to be mindful when working with vendors and ask for transparency around how AI is being used.
  • Public Opinion and the Media: There’s growing attention to how media environments shape public opinion. Several presentations explored how media outlets can act as echo chambers, contributing to polarization.
  • Democracy: Interest in democratic attitudes is strong. Some research focused on predictors of trust in democracy—crime, culture, media exposure—while others looked at how to measure democracy more effectively. One key takeaway: a single survey question isn’t enough; a battery of items provides a more complete assessment.

MAPOR also celebrated its 50th anniversary this year with a delightful mug. Happy anniversary, MAPOR—and thanks for hosting a wonderful conference!