Straight from the horse's mouth:
Quote:
ABOUT THE SURVEY
Results for this survey are based on telephone interviews conducted under the direction of Princeton Survey Research Associates International among a national sample of 3,003 adults living in the continental United States, 18 years of age or older, from July 21-August 5, 2010 (2,002 respondents were interviewed on a landline telephone, and 1,001 were interviewed on a cell phone, including 431 who had no landline telephone). Both the landline and cell phone samples were provided by Survey Sampling International. Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish. For detailed information about our survey methodology, see Methodology - Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.
The combined landline and cell phone sample are weighted using an iterative technique that matches gender, age, education, race/ethnicity, region, and population density to parameters from the March 2009 Census Bureau's Current Population Survey. The sample is also weighted to match current patterns of telephone status and relative usage of landline and cell phones (for those with both), based on extrapolations from the 2009 National Health Interview Survey. The weighting procedure also accounts for the fact that respondents with both landline and cell phones have a greater probability of being included in the combined sample and adjusts for household size within the landline sample. Sampling errors and statistical tests of significance take into account the effect of weighting.
The following table shows the error attributable to sampling that would be expected at the 95% level of confidence for different groups in the survey:
[See webpage for chart]
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.
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Growing Number of Americans Say Obama is a Muslim: ABOUT THE SURVEY - Pew Research Center for the People & the Press
See also:
Methodology - Pew Research Center for the People & the Press
Although it's difficult to wrap your mind around a "small" sample as a way of gauging the opinions of millions, there is a scientific methodology behind polling—ruling out the "polls" found on news websites for users to click on for instant results.
Of course it's not going to be dead-on with accuracy, but there is something to be said when you find results of a sizable proportion when you apply generally accepted principles of research statistics.