Emily Thorson
@emilythorson.bsky.social
Political science, Syracuse University
Information effects, misperceptions, egg sandwiches
My book is "The Invented State: Policy Misperceptions in the American Public"
Information effects, misperceptions, egg sandwiches
My book is "The Invented State: Policy Misperceptions in the American Public"
Love a concise Amazon review.
November 10, 2025 at 7:23 PM
Love a concise Amazon review.
Guys today is a red-letter day for bad survey questions. Look at this lovely double negative that just rolled in!
August 20, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Guys today is a red-letter day for bad survey questions. Look at this lovely double negative that just rolled in!
for everyone teaching survey design this fall, great news: a new terrible question example just dropped! (this is from a real survey I just took) 😱
August 20, 2025 at 2:08 PM
for everyone teaching survey design this fall, great news: a new terrible question example just dropped! (this is from a real survey I just took) 😱
From a Washington Post reader survey I just took. What a bizarre list of job titles. Also I love the idea that it's critically important to distinguish between the Presidents and Vice Presidents among their readership. TOTALLY different news preferences.
July 16, 2025 at 7:19 PM
From a Washington Post reader survey I just took. What a bizarre list of job titles. Also I love the idea that it's critically important to distinguish between the Presidents and Vice Presidents among their readership. TOTALLY different news preferences.
Pretty horrifying how well the "need for chaos" survey battery describes the Trump/Musk administration's current approach to governing. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
April 1, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Pretty horrifying how well the "need for chaos" survey battery describes the Trump/Musk administration's current approach to governing. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
This, a Facebook post from a friend, does a better job at summing things up than 90% of the news coverage I've read.
February 3, 2025 at 1:17 PM
This, a Facebook post from a friend, does a better job at summing things up than 90% of the news coverage I've read.
Sadly most people spouting off about this don't bother thinking through it beforehand. They should all do the Pollock conceptual definition exercise I make all my undergrads do!
January 23, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Sadly most people spouting off about this don't bother thinking through it beforehand. They should all do the Pollock conceptual definition exercise I make all my undergrads do!
Not to be the person who screenshots their own book to contribute to a debate but, well, looks like I am indeed that person.
January 14, 2025 at 7:44 PM
Not to be the person who screenshots their own book to contribute to a debate but, well, looks like I am indeed that person.
Watching @dannagal.bsky.social explain how our need for community, control, and comprehension creates a demand for misinformation (at the interdisciplinary Knowledge Resistance conf in Stockholm — I present on Saturday). knowledge-resistance.com/wp-content/u...
November 21, 2024 at 2:59 PM
Watching @dannagal.bsky.social explain how our need for community, control, and comprehension creates a demand for misinformation (at the interdisciplinary Knowledge Resistance conf in Stockholm — I present on Saturday). knowledge-resistance.com/wp-content/u...
And here are four specific Trump proposals that fewer than 30% of Americans support.
October 28, 2024 at 1:42 PM
And here are four specific Trump proposals that fewer than 30% of Americans support.
For example, here are four specific Harris proposals that more than 80% of Americans support.
October 28, 2024 at 1:40 PM
For example, here are four specific Harris proposals that more than 80% of Americans support.
More Americans identify as feminists than as MAGA. Also, who knew so many "realists" walked among us? d3nkl3psvxxpe9.cloudfront.net/documents/cr... (and if you want an academic take on ideologies beyond lib/cons, check out @atrexler.com & Johnston link.springer.com/article/10.1...)
October 18, 2024 at 3:10 PM
More Americans identify as feminists than as MAGA. Also, who knew so many "realists" walked among us? d3nkl3psvxxpe9.cloudfront.net/documents/cr... (and if you want an academic take on ideologies beyond lib/cons, check out @atrexler.com & Johnston link.springer.com/article/10.1...)
Nope, I am only responsible for purchasing the really crappy jewelry (but seriously I question the premise here that fine jewelry is being purchased in the first place. Wouldn't a "my household does not purchase fine jewelry" option be appropriate here?)
October 17, 2024 at 3:19 PM
Nope, I am only responsible for purchasing the really crappy jewelry (but seriously I question the premise here that fine jewelry is being purchased in the first place. Wouldn't a "my household does not purchase fine jewelry" option be appropriate here?)
This double negative is giving me a headache and despite thinking about it, screenshotting it, then thinking about it some more I remain slightly worried that I answered it incorrectly.
October 16, 2024 at 7:13 PM
This double negative is giving me a headache and despite thinking about it, screenshotting it, then thinking about it some more I remain slightly worried that I answered it incorrectly.
A survey and experiment that asks a really important question: how do people think about conflicts between state and federal laws? Interestingly, even though people say states shouldn't block federal legislation, they're NOT less likely to support state policies that challenge national mandates.
October 10, 2024 at 3:54 PM
A survey and experiment that asks a really important question: how do people think about conflicts between state and federal laws? Interestingly, even though people say states shouldn't block federal legislation, they're NOT less likely to support state policies that challenge national mandates.
One of the more striking descriptive figures from the book shows how the media shifted its terminology from "fake news" to "misinformation" over a seven-year period.
September 27, 2024 at 4:50 PM
One of the more striking descriptive figures from the book shows how the media shifted its terminology from "fake news" to "misinformation" over a seven-year period.
The book is called "How News Coverage of Misinformation Shapes Perceptions and Trust," and here's the argument in a nutshell.
September 27, 2024 at 4:48 PM
The book is called "How News Coverage of Misinformation Shapes Perceptions and Trust," and here's the argument in a nutshell.
These days, the internet's hottest liberal website is....Google Docs! (via YouGov's "Bipartisan Brand Rankings 2024"). commercial.yougov.com/rs/464-VHH-9...
September 27, 2024 at 1:22 AM
These days, the internet's hottest liberal website is....Google Docs! (via YouGov's "Bipartisan Brand Rankings 2024"). commercial.yougov.com/rs/464-VHH-9...
The small "d" in the "very democratic" option is throwing me off. That word means something different without a capital letter. Proof your surveys carefully, everyone!
September 26, 2024 at 4:27 PM
The small "d" in the "very democratic" option is throwing me off. That word means something different without a capital letter. Proof your surveys carefully, everyone!
New acquiescence bias example just dropped! (from www.nytimes.com/2024/09/17/o...)
September 17, 2024 at 4:23 PM
New acquiescence bias example just dropped! (from www.nytimes.com/2024/09/17/o...)
The readings for the "Measuring public opinion" week in my grad public opinion course fit together especially well this year. Always tough to choose between all the great research out there (and I'm glad to also be able to teach a separate survey design course!).
September 16, 2024 at 5:59 PM
The readings for the "Measuring public opinion" week in my grad public opinion course fit together especially well this year. Always tough to choose between all the great research out there (and I'm glad to also be able to teach a separate survey design course!).
Here is another student-submitted real survey question as a palate cleanser after the last one. I find the capitalization oddly charming.
September 10, 2024 at 5:37 PM
Here is another student-submitted real survey question as a palate cleanser after the last one. I find the capitalization oddly charming.
asked my students to send me some examples of problematic survey questions for our class discussion today and oh wow did they deliver.
September 10, 2024 at 5:10 PM
asked my students to send me some examples of problematic survey questions for our class discussion today and oh wow did they deliver.
Very tempted to bring the kids’ visual timer for the next time I chair a conference panel…
September 6, 2024 at 1:53 PM
Very tempted to bring the kids’ visual timer for the next time I chair a conference panel…
Me! I’m so close to 100k!
September 4, 2024 at 2:19 PM
Me! I’m so close to 100k!