Letter from WAPOR President (September 2024)

Video from the WAPOR President: https://youtu.be/jIfJvkqrizE

Note: This document was translated from English into many different languages. In case of any discrepancy or inconsistency between the English version and any other translation, the English version shall always prevail.

We continue to rock!

Last month, not long after we parted in Seoul, I cited 15 pieces of sharing gathered from members. After that, I received more ideas and feedback from many more colleagues, and I would like to share them with members and friends in this month’s President’s Letter and Video.

First, I will share a piece from our senior member, Frits Spangenberg, who has refined his previous ideas on how we can reach out to new members during conferences. I will then share a quote from a recipient of this year’s Janet Harkness Award, which will be released in full by Rico Neumann, our Publications Chair, as a new initiative. Finally, I will post a passage written by Kseniya Kizilova, our Executive Director, about our new membership platform. I can share a lot more, but I don’t want to bore you with too many words.

Here comes Frits’ ideas which I fully support, and which I hope will be further discussed on various platforms, like committees, WAPORnet and even personal chats:

When the Annual Conference has been successful as it was recently in Seoul we can lean back and feel happy, but we can also think of possible new challenges. Since we sell Conference attendance and one year membership as a package, we welcome a great many ‘First Time Attenders – Greenhorn Members’. The group of WAPOR members shows a considerable group of ‘Dinosaurs’ (like myself), a group of Professionals (still employed) and a group of mostly rather young ‘First Attenders’. I always try to get in touch with First Attenders, because I like to learn and get inspired by the youngest generations. This year we had a large group of First Attenders who mostly flocked together and were not always easy to get in touch with. My suggestion for future Conferences is to actively invite existing members to coach First Attenders, not just once to say ‘Hello’. For example, we can send to each First Attender 5 names of well-known and experienced WAPOR members who would be present at an event, so that they can get together during the breaks. The First Attenders will feel that their presence is appreciated and that it may be worthwhile to stay as members for longer than the package they bought. We give an excuse for people to step out of their bubbles.

WAPOR was founded shortly after the Second World War, just like the United Nations. Founding fathers and mothers were optimistic: no more war. Unfortunately, we see tensions and war at too many places in our world of today. We also know now that some colleagues are using their polling techniques at war time against specific groups in the public. Where do we want to go with WAPOR? Sometimes we are like a nice and friendly group of statisticians, that have fun in the challenge of data processing and coming to the podium with interesting stuff. If that is all, do we also take our responsibility for a conscientious society?

Within WAPOR we have a lot of knowledge, wisdom and experience, but it is not used in our organization as such. Some members observe at elections in order to control its quality and independence. Other members consult governments on a great many subjects. Other members invented instruments that can play a role in improving peace or other qualities in society. Of course, WAPOR is independent and not connected to any party or government, but we can play a more active role. We do have the authority in the house, but we hardly use it. I very much like the idea that papers, articles or presentations will be uploaded before a Conference starts, we had so many valuable documents in the past 77 years, most of them are gone in the mist. I think we should at least ask all presenters for an abstract, and have them available in our WAPOR Archive for anyone for free. What a rich database. I would love to start a debate on this subject and may be develop some scenarios.

Here comes an abridged version of Rico’s interview with Mao Li from the University of Michigan, who is one of the Harkness Award winners this year. The Award is given to the best student paper on multi-national, multi-regional or multi-cultural survey research. Rico plans to publish many more such interviews, roughly once every two months, after further discussions within the Publications Committee. The first article will be uploaded to our website soon.

Thank you to the WAPOR committee for this incredible honour and opportunity. I’m deeply grateful! I completed my undergraduate studies in Political Science at Nanjing University, and my passion for exploring advanced methodologies and algorithms in social science led me to Michigan’s Program in Survey and Data Science. My research focuses on applying machine learning in survey science and exploring high-performance computing with large-scale data. I’m particularly excited about how AI can enhance the work of survey researchers in various fields.

My paper examines the role of large language models (LLMs) in automating the coding of open-ended survey responses. LLMs can be used in many aspects of survey research, from translating survey questions and coding open-ended responses to designing questionnaires, testing questions, and even acting as AI interviewers. However, domain expertise is still essential, we need that knowledge to guide LLMs to perform tasks correctly and in alignment with our expectations. While LLMs hold immense potential for automating processes and improving efficiency, we must remain cautious. For instance, biases in training data can affect response accuracy, and LLMs may face challenges with cultural and linguistic nuances, especially in non-Western contexts. Still, I am optimistic about LLM’s role in advancing survey methodologies.

I first heard about WAPOR during my first year as a master’s student at Michigan. Since WAPOR is the leading conference in public opinion research, it’s difficult not to know about it when you’re involved in the field! This was my first WAPOR conference, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The organization was excellent, and I really appreciated the chance to network with both peers and senior researchers. The various networking opportunities, like the lunch and coffee breaks, and the award banquet, made it a truly memorable experience. When I think of Seoul, the WAPOR conference is the first thing that comes to mind! [Looking ahead,] WAPOR could organize specific networking events that bring students and senior researchers together. Additionally, since WAPOR is a global organization, it would be beneficial to offer information about exchange programs for public opinion research across different regions.

Finally, here comes the short piece written by Kseniya about our new membership platform, which our new vendor started to build after our Seoul Conference:

The WAPOR membership system has been upgraded to offer an improved and streamlined experience for all members. The new platform provides easier access to essential membership services, including the ability to view and update account data, manage membership details, and search the directory of other WAPOR members. A new feature includes a dedicated donation portal, simplifying the process of making contributions. Members can also subscribe to WAPOR communications and access the International Journal of Public Opinion Research (IJPOR) through the system. Addressing previous concerns such as slow loading times and regional access issues, the platform is now faster and more reliable, ensuring a smoother user experience. All member records have been successfully transferred to the new system. For security reasons, members are required to set up a new password when accessing the system for the first time by following the password reset instructions available on the homepage. While the transition to the new system has been carefully managed, minor errors during data transfer may occur. Members are encouraged to log in, review their account details, and update any incorrect information directly. Any issues with WAPOR or chapter membership records can be resolved by contacting the WAPOR Secretariat for assistance. We also use this occasion to remind you that the period of WAPOR membership renewal for 2025 opens on October 1.  Membership purchases made before this date will apply to the current year. The new membership system can be accessed here: https://access.wapor.org/.

I hope all of you have enjoyed reading these pieces, I now go to the most important matter of WAPOR development. Our annual election cycle is about to begin, and according to our Constitution, we will be electing our next Vice President and President-Elect, elect or re-elect our Chair of Conference Committee, Chair of the Education Committee, and Chair of the Professional Standards Committee according to this schedule: Nomination starts no later than September 15 ending no later than October 15, voting starts no later than November 1 for 4 weeks, and the result to be announced on December 1. Our Constitution requires our Electoral Committee to give “first consideration to the suggestions by individual membership and taking into account the eligibility, availability, and qualifications of the candidates suggested and the necessary geographical distribution [and then] prepare a slate of nominations from the individual membership, presenting two or more candidates for each office. These shall include all qualified nominees from the individual members with twenty or more votes on the nomination canvass. All candidates must be members in good standing.” There are other constitutional provisions preventing anyone holding more than one elected office at one time, preventing the President and Vice President coming from the same country, and so on. I encourage members to do their own reading.

Let me just say that election is a sacred matter, and all of us WAPOR members should practice what we preach.

Humbly yours,

Robert Chung

WAPOR President