Time polling firm CEO's position on polling

[JPJones]

http://www.srbi.com/award_speech04.html

Dr. Schulman asked. "To do this, we need to teach research methods not as a recipe book exercise or a collection of arcane statistical methods, but as a way to think about and uncover realities to support better policy decisions."

Schulman urged that the next generation of researchers understand the "awesome power of research in providing deep insights into decision-making." He cautioned that that too many university methods classes "have become just one of those dreaded rights of passage" to advance degrees, without instilling an understanding of how research improves society and business.

He suggested that training programs focus more on applying methods to real-world problem identification and that students need to view research methods as a way to solve real world public policy and marketing problems. Criticizing those who believe that research should be used mainly to reduce behavior to mechanistic formulae rather than being concerned with real-world problems, he said, "I would like us to view our mission as physicians diagnosing patients and curing patient ills rather than viewing human behavior as if it were molecular theory."