Final answer:
Push polls are a deceptive technique disguised as genuine polls, designed to influence voters under the facade of survey research. They use leading questions and provide biased information to manipulate respondents' opinions instead of measuring public opinion accurately.
Step-by-step explanation:
Push polls are a type of pseudo-survey or a strategic political tool masquerading as a poll. Unlike legitimate surveys or polls designed to gauge public opinion on various issues and candidates in an unbiased manner, push polls have an ulterior motive. Their main purpose is to influence or alter the views of the respondents under the guise of conducting a survey.
How Push Polls Deviate from Genuine Polls
Traditional polling aims to collect data without bias to reflect the genuine sentiments and opinions of the population. This involves the use of neutral language, random sampling, and avoiding leading questions. By contrast, push polls utilize leading questions that impart negative or positive impressions of a candidate or issue to sway the respondents' opinions before they are even asked for their views. For example, asking questions that subtly inject doubt about a candidate's integrity or qualifications can create or reinforce negative perceptions.
Implications of Push Polls
Push polls are not only seen as disingenuous but also corrosive to the democratic process because they use misinformation or manipulation rather than gathering honest feedback. This can paint inaccurate portrayals of public opinion and influence election outcomes based on skewed data. Therefore, push polls are widely criticized and not considered real polls because their intent is not to measure, but to mold opinion.
During the 2016 presidential primary, MoveOn conducted a push poll to favor Senator Elizabeth Warren over Hillary Clinton by preceding questions with positive statements about Warren. This was a clear use of biased polling to promote a particular outcome rather than to be informative.