This comprehensive report details the methodology behind Wave 191 of the American Trends Panel (ATP), Pew Research Center’s nationally representative survey of U.S. adults. Conducted between April 6-12, 2026, this wave employed rigorous data collection and analysis techniques to ensure the accuracy and reliability of its findings. The ATP, a cornerstone of Pew Research Center’s data collection efforts, is designed to provide deep insights into the evolving opinions and behaviors of the American public. This particular wave, along with previously published surveys referenced herein, underscores a commitment to transparency and methodological excellence in public opinion research.
Overview of Wave 191
Wave 191 of the American Trends Panel achieved a robust survey-level response rate of 95%, with 3,592 out of 3,775 sampled panelists completing the survey. The cumulative response rate, accounting for initial recruitment and ongoing attrition, stands at 3%. This figure reflects the inherent challenges of maintaining a consistently engaged panel over time. The break-off rate for Wave 191 was remarkably low, with less than 1% of panelists who logged on and completed at least one item abandoning the survey.
The margin of sampling error for the full sample of 3,592 respondents is plus or minus 1.9 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. This indicates a high degree of precision for the overall findings. To enhance the representativeness of key demographic and religious subgroups, Wave 191 incorporated oversamples of non-Hispanic Asian adults, White evangelical Protestants who attend church monthly, White nonevangelical Protestants who attend church monthly, Black Protestants who attend church monthly, and Catholics who attend church monthly. These oversamples are crucial for generating more precise estimates for these smaller, yet significant, segments of the U.S. population. Following data collection, these oversampled groups are weighted back to their correct proportions within the broader population to ensure that the aggregated results accurately reflect national demographics.
The survey was administered by SSRS, a leading research firm, on behalf of Pew Research Center. Data collection utilized both online interviewing, accounting for the vast majority of responses (n=3,491), and live telephone interviews (n=101). Interviews were conducted in both English and Spanish to accommodate a diverse respondent base. For those interested in the broader context and history of the ATP, further information is available in the detailed "About the American Trends Panel" resource.
Panel Recruitment: A Foundation of Representativeness
Since 2018, the ATP has relied on an address-based sampling (ABS) methodology for panel recruitment. This approach involves mailing a study cover letter and a pre-incentive to a stratified, random sample of households selected from the U.S. Postal Service’s Computerized Delivery Sequence File. This file is estimated to cover between 90% and 98% of U.S. households, providing a strong foundation for national representation. Within each sampled household, the adult with the next birthday is identified and invited to participate. While the specifics of the ABS recruitment protocol have evolved since its inception, detailed information is available upon request, underscoring the panel’s adaptive and improving recruitment strategies. Prior to 2018, the ATP’s recruitment was conducted through landline and cellphone random-digit-dial surveys.
A national sample of U.S. adults has been recruited to the ATP on an approximately annual basis since 2014. In several of these years, the recruitment process has included targeted oversampling efforts to bolster the accuracy of data for underrepresented groups. For instance, Hispanic adults were oversampled in 2019, Black adults in 2022, and Asian adults in 2023, demonstrating a proactive strategy to ensure diverse perspectives are captured.
Sample Design: Ensuring Diverse and Precise Estimates
The overarching target population for Wave 191 encompassed noninstitutionalized individuals aged 18 and older residing in the United States. The sample design featured a stratified random selection from the ATP. This stratification allowed for the deliberate oversampling of specific groups: non-Hispanic Asian adults, White evangelical Protestants who attend church monthly, White nonevangelical Protestants who attend church monthly, Black Protestants who attend church monthly, and Catholics who attend church monthly.
For the remaining panelists, selection rates were meticulously calibrated to ensure that the proportion of respondents within each stratum closely mirrored their representation in the overall U.S. adult population. The subsequent weighting process, detailed further below, adjusts for any differential probabilities of selection, thereby enhancing the accuracy of the findings.
Questionnaire Development and Testing: A Commitment to Quality
The questionnaire for Wave 191 was meticulously developed by Pew Research Center in close consultation with SSRS. The online survey platform underwent extensive testing on both personal computers and mobile devices by both the SSRS project team and Pew Research Center researchers. This rigorous testing protocol ensured the smooth functioning of the survey logic and randomizations. Furthermore, the SSRS team populated test data that was subsequently analyzed using SPSS to confirm that all survey elements operated as intended before the live launch. This multi-stage testing process is fundamental to minimizing errors and ensuring the integrity of the collected data.
Incentives: Encouraging Participation
To encourage participation and acknowledge the time commitment of panelists, all respondents for Wave 191 were offered a post-paid incentive. Participants had the flexibility to choose their incentive in the form of a check or a digital gift code redeemable at major online retailers such as Amazon.com, Target.com, or Walmart.com. The value of these incentives ranged from $5 to $15, with differential amounts strategically implemented to motivate participation from demographic groups that historically exhibit lower survey response rates. This tiered incentive structure is a key component of the ATP’s strategy to maintain a diverse and engaged panel.
Data Collection Protocol: A Multi-Modal Approach
The field period for Wave 191 extended from April 6 to April 12, 2026. Data collection was conducted through self-administered web surveys and live telephone interviews.
For online panelists, initial notification postcards were mailed to a subset of participants on April 6. The survey invitations were distributed in two phases: a soft launch and a full launch. The soft launch involved 60 panelists and began with an initial invitation sent on April 6. The full launch, encompassing all remaining English- and Spanish-speaking online panelists, commenced with an invitation sent on April 7. Online participants received an email invitation and were sent up to two email reminders if they did not initially respond. Panelists who had consented to receive SMS messages were also sent an SMS invitation with a direct link to the survey, accompanied by up to two SMS reminders.
For panelists participating via telephone, prenotification postcards were mailed on April 3. A soft launch of telephone interviews took place on April 6, with interviewers dialing numbers until five completed interviews were secured. Subsequently, all remaining English- and Spanish-speaking sampled phone panelists had their numbers dialed throughout the remainder of the field period. Telephone participants could receive up to six calls from trained SSRS interviewers. This dual-channel approach ensures maximum reach and accessibility for respondents.
Data Quality Checks: Safeguarding Integrity
Pew Research Center researchers implemented stringent data quality checks to identify any respondents exhibiting patterns of satisficing, a phenomenon where respondents provide minimal effort in answering survey questions. These checks included monitoring for exceptionally high rates of unanswered questions or consistent selection of the first or last answer option presented. As a result of these thorough checks, three ATP respondents were excluded from the final survey dataset prior to weighting and analysis, further ensuring the integrity of the findings.
Weighting: Adjusting for Representation and Nonresponse
The weighting process for ATP data is a multi-stage procedure designed to account for various sampling probabilities and nonresponse events that occur throughout the panel survey lifecycle. Initially, each panelist is assigned a base weight that reflects their likelihood of being recruited into the panel. These base weights are subsequently calibrated to align with specific population benchmarks, as detailed in the accompanying table, to correct for nonresponse during the recruitment phase and for panel attrition over time. If a particular wave involves inviting only a subsample of panelists, the weights are adjusted to reflect any differential selection probabilities within that subsample.
For panelists who successfully completed the survey, the weights undergo another calibration to match the population benchmarks identified in the table. To mitigate the impact of extreme weight values on statistical precision, weights are trimmed at the 1st and 99th percentiles. The sampling errors and tests of statistical significance are calculated taking into account the effects of this weighting procedure.
The accompanying tables provide crucial information regarding unweighted sample sizes and the expected margin of error at the 95% confidence level for various groups within the survey. These figures are essential for interpreting the precision of the reported data. Sample sizes and sampling errors for other specific subgroups are available upon request, demonstrating the Center’s commitment to providing detailed methodological transparency. Beyond sampling error, it is important to acknowledge that question wording and practical challenges inherent in survey administration can introduce additional error or bias into the findings of opinion polls.
Dispositions and Response Rates: Quantifying Engagement
The final disposition of respondents and the cumulative response rates for Wave 191 are meticulously documented. These figures offer a transparent view of the panel’s engagement and the success of the data collection efforts. The provided tables illustrate the detailed breakdown of how the initial sample was processed, including the number of completed interviews, refusals, and other disposition codes. The cumulative response rate, a critical metric for assessing the representativeness of the panel, reflects the overall success in engaging the sampled population over the entire duration of the panel’s existence, accounting for recruitment and ongoing participation.
Broader Implications and Context
Wave 191 of the American Trends Panel, with its meticulous methodology and high response rate, provides a valuable dataset for understanding contemporary American society. The detailed reporting on recruitment, sampling, data collection, and weighting ensures that researchers and the public can have confidence in the findings. The inclusion of oversamples for specific demographic and religious groups is particularly noteworthy, enabling a more nuanced understanding of the diverse perspectives within the U.S. populace. Such detailed methodological transparency is vital in an era where the accuracy and reliability of survey data are frequently scrutinized.
The ongoing efforts to refine recruitment strategies, such as the transition to address-based sampling, and the careful management of panel attrition through incentives and robust data collection protocols, highlight Pew Research Center’s dedication to maintaining the ATP as a premier resource for social science research. The data generated from this wave, and indeed from all waves of the ATP, contribute significantly to informed public discourse and policy-making by providing evidence-based insights into the attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of Americans. The consistency in methodology across waves allows for valuable trend analysis, enabling researchers to track shifts in public opinion over time. This longitudinal capacity is a key strength of the ATP, offering a unique window into the dynamics of American society.
