This is an overview of how to obtain opinon poll data. The emphasis is on resources that provide studies that are the untabulated responses of all participants to all questions, and would be useful for researchers interested in secondary analysis of survey data files. Questions about opinion poll data can be sent to eds@columbia.edu

• Roper Center for Public Opinion Research
  Roper is the world's largest computer-based archive of survey research and public opinion data.
  
  • Obtaining Data:
    Studies are available to Columbia users. Codebooks and data can be downloaded directly using the Finding Tools listed below (Catalog of Holdings or iPoll).
  • Content:
    national, state (especially California, Texas, Minnesota, and Iowa), and foreign surveys (especially Great Britain, Canda, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, and Latin America), as well as special samples such as leaders or youth; all acquired from major survey organziations like Gallup, Pew, major news media, National Opinon Research Center (NORC) and many other commerical and non-profit survey organzations.
  • Coverage:1937 forward
  • Finding Tools
    • Catalog of Holdings
      Contains entries for all the surveys archived at Roper. Searching is based only on the text of the title and brief abstract, date and/or the survey sponsor. Most are available for download. If you are interested in a survey that does not have a link for downloading, contact EDS at eds@columbia.edu
    • iPoll
      Contains entries only for national U.S. surveys some of which may not be archived at Roper. iPoll is a question-level index to opinion polls so searching is done across the wording of individual questions. Search results give the question text and a tabulation of the responses to that question and, for any survey archived at Roper, a direct link to the Catalog of Holdings entry for that survey. Users who find a survey that is not linked to the Roper catalog should contact EDS at eds@columbia.edu.
  • Other Features:
    The Roper site offers the online publication Public Opinion Matters which highlights studies relating to a wide range of topics. Topic coverage can include selected questions from the iPoll database, selected studies from the Catalog of Holdings (sometimes with an online anlaysis tool), and brief analytic articles.
 
• ICPSR
  The ICPSR catalog contains numerous polls, particularly from major news organizations like national newspapers, ABC, and CBS. Internationl data includes data relating to regional integration and other political issues asked in cross-national series like Eurobarometer or Afrobarometer, and political polls from specific countries.
 
• Odum Institute Public Opinion Poll Question Database
  This is a public archive maintained by the University of North Carolina.
  
  • Obtaining Data:
    Studies (codebooks and data files, many in SAS or Spss format) can be downloaded directly from the site.
  • Content:
    National polls conducted by Louis Harris and Associates, polls in National Network of State Polls collection, Carolina Polls, Southern Focus Polls, and others.
  • Coverage: some coverage starting 1958
  • Finding Tools
  • Public Opinion Poll Question Database is a question-level index to the polls that are archived here. Each question result contains a link to a description of the entire survey with links for dowloading.
  • Other features:
    Study descriptions often contain a link to a feature that allows you do to cross tabulations online.
 
• Pew Research Center for the People and the Press
  The Center is an independent opinion research group that studies attitudes toward the press, politics and public policy issues.
  • Obtaining Data:
    Data can be downloaded from the "Datasets" section of their website. Data are also archived at Roper.
  • Content:
    Datasets and reports based are available at the Pew site.
  • Coverage:1997 forward
  • Finding Tools
  In addition to the lists that can be browsed at the Pew site, the surveys can be searched at the question level at the iPoll site.
 
• Eagleton Poll Archive
  This is a public archive containing Eagleton's quarterly statewide polls of New Jersey residents on matters of political and social interest.
  • Obtaining Data:
    Studies (data files and codebooks) can be downloaded directly from the site.
  • Content:
    Surveys of New Jersey State residents conducted by the Eagleton Institute in conjunction with the newspaper, the Star-Ledger.
  • Coverage:1971 forward
  • Finding Tools
  • The search and browse features at the site serve as a question-level index to the polls that are archived here. When selection of questions narrows to a particular survey a download option for that survey appears.
 
• Polling the Nations
  A commercial index to question level results.
  • Obtaining the Data:
    The full data files are not available at this site. Contact EDS at eds@columbia.edu. For assistance in determining if the data are available.
  • Content:
    Local polls (city and state), as well as well as national and international polls from a variety of survey organizations.
  • Coverage:mid 1980's forward.
  • Finding Tools
    The strength of this database is search interface for that allows for searching by location (including state, city, country), broad topic, keywords in the question, survey organization, and/or population group interviewed.