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Data & Statistics: Public opinion polls

Sources of aggregate statistics and microdata for use in a wide variety of subject areas

Introduction

The resources listed below provide varying levels of access to both the results of public opinion polls and the polls themselves. In addition, the results of public opinion polls are often reported in the popular media. See the Find newspaper articles for newspaper databases (e.g., Canadian Newsstand, CBCA Complete, Factiva) to search for related articles.

Sources

Last updated 2022.04.11

  • Canadian Opinion Research Archive (CORA) (established: 1992)
    Based at Queen's University, CORA's Web site provides access to information about hundreds of surveys, many of which were conducted by the organizations listed below. "Recently" released surveys (back to 2002) are conveniently listed separately.
  • Canadian Public Opinion Polls Collection
    In terms of geographic coverage, the main focus in this collection is Canada and Canadians. Every Canadian province and territory is accounted for in the collection. There are also polls that report on the opinions of people living in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe. Includes data from Gallup, Environics, CROP, CORA, and Decima Quarterly polls.
  • Public Opinion Poll Data via Carleton University Libraries
    This resource has microdata available for selected public opinion polls from Angus Reid, Canadian Millennium Scholarship Foundation, Centre for Research & Innovation on Canada, Gallup Polls, Government of Canada Public Opinion Research Reports, Listening to Canadians (CIO), POLLARA, and Voice of the People
  • Gallup Polls
    • Gallup Canada polls available via <odesi>
    • Gallup Poll Briefing
      Provides a daily overview of major polls. Online access to this periodical includes indexing back to 1996 and full-text articles back to 2002. It continues the publications Gallup Poll Tuesday Briefing, Gallup Poll Monthly and the Gallup Report.
    • Ipsos Canadian Public Affairs Dataverse
      The Ipsos Canadian Public Affairs Dataverse is a repository of over 60 Ipsos Canada surveys that shed light on Canadian culture, politics, and society. All data are open access.

  • Public Opinion Research Reports (Government of Canada)
    Public opinion research conducted by departments of the Government of Canada deposit their research reports on this website. Each report contains an executive summary of the study, as well as research findings in a textual, graphical or tabular format. The appendices of the reports are also a rich source of data.

  • Public Opinion Poll Data via Carleton University Libraries
    This resource has microdata available for selected public opinion polls from Angus Reid, Canadian Millennium Scholarship Foundation, Centre for Research & Innovation on Canada, Gallup Polls, Government of Canada Public Opinion Research Reports, Listening to Canadians (CIO), POLLARA, and Voice of the People

To learn more about public opinion polling in Canada, please see the Library of Parliament's Parliamentary Research Branch publication Public Opinion Polling in Canada and the annual publication Public Opinion Research in the Government of Canada, prepared by Communication Canada.

Last updated 2022.04.11

  • European Commission: Public Opinion (established: 1973)
    Provides access to information about and produced from surveys and studies addressing major topics concerning European citizenship: enlargement, social situation, health, culture, information technology, environment, the Euro, defence, etc.
  • Gallup Organization (established: 1935)
    The Gallup Organization has wholly owned or majority-owned subsidiaries in more than 25 countries around the world.
    • Gallup Poll Briefing provides a daily overview of major polls. Online access to this periodical includes indexing back to 1996 and full-text articles back to 2002. It continues the publications Gallup Poll Tuesday Briefing, Gallup Poll Monthly and the Gallup Report.
    • Gallup Poll Monthly (print version) . This periodical provides summaries of Gallup polls conducted in the United States. Use this in conjunction with the Gallup Poll Cumulative Index (print version); this index lists polls conducted between 1935-1997 in the United States.
  • Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) (established: 1962)
    ICPSR provides access to the world's largest archive of computer- based research and instructional data for the social sciences. ICPSR holdings include over 1000 public opinion polls from around the world (including Canada). Use the search engine to find information about specific polls.
  • Index to International Public Opinion This annual publication provides sample results from national and multinational surveys. Contributors include international Gallup offices, foreign government agencies, and research firms representing over 93 countries and geographical areas. Library holdings begin in 1978, call # HM 261 I55
  • International Journal of Public Opinion Research
    Articles in this quarterly, scholarly journal focus primarily on the study of public opinion theory and methodology. However, results of public opinion surveys on current issues are also included.
  • Ipsos-Reid Corporation (established: 1979)
    Founded by Dr. Angus Reid, the Vancouver-based Angus Reid Group merged with Paris-based Ipsos Group in 2000. Current activities include market and social research in 80 countries and 40 languages. Press releases containing poll results are available via the Polls section of the Ipsos-Reid website.
  • Public Opinion Poll Question Database
    The Odum Institute for Research in Social Sciences at the University of North Carolina is the repository for all Louis Harris public opinion data and Roper Center nonproprietary poll data, and the headquarters for the National Network of State Polls. The online poll question database (linked above) allows you to search questions from over 2800 surveys. Catalogue records may include links to survey results and supporting files.

Can't find what you're looking for? Want more? Try the C&RL News article Guide to Public Opinion Poll Web Sites: Polling Data From Around the World (PDF).

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