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Survey research

Research method that measures attitudes and behaviour by administering structured questionnaires to representative population samples.

Current stories

scienceConfirmed2 publishers

Believers who put reason above church teaching are about twice as likely to lean toward magic

In a 2025 survey of 1,812 US adults, 40% of God-believers who trust reason over church teaching lean toward magic, versus 19% of believers who do not. The link holds only where a religious tie remains, and one survey wave cannot show which way anyone is moving.

Reality

Evidence58
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+12
Incentives
Not scored
Confidence60
scienceOne report1 publisher

UK and Swedish respondents rated businesspeople and advocates above scientists on health and education

Manchester and KTH researchers found 6,198 UK and Swedish adults rated scientists above government officials but no higher than businesspeople or advocates. Credibility on technology's consequences did not carry over to health, education or employment.

Publishers:phys.org

Reality

Evidence58
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap−10
Incentives
Not scored
Confidence55
leadershipOne report1 publisher

Just 2.5% of 3,935 UK adults say they do their best thinking at work

A survey of 3,935 UK adults found 2.5% do their best thinking at work, against 61.6% who said it happens between 5pm and 9am. The data are self-reported and come from one published account, so employers get a prompt to examine meeting and message load but no measured effect on output.

Reality

Evidence30
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+25
Incentives55
Confidence65
investOne report1 publisher

Fidelity finds 51% of clients with completed financial plans still anxious about the future

Fidelity's survey found confidence rises with how much detail older clients share with their children. Just 27% have explained their plan's details to their kids, and 35% keep them posted on changes.

Reality

Evidence42
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+22
Incentives72
Confidence52
scienceOne report1 publisher

Asked what else goes in the 72-hour go-bag, 1,000 UK adults named teddy bears and pet ashes

The After the End project surveyed 1,000 UK adults in April 2026 and found four who called themselves fully prepared. The write-in answers about what else they would take were full of keepsakes, photographs and pets.

Publishers:phys.org

Reality

Evidence40
Adoption14
Hype gap+28
Incentives55
Confidence45
scienceOne report1 publisher

Employers introduced only 55 percent of the AI tools their staff use most often

The third wave of the Konstanz AI study surveyed 1,105 employees in May 2026 and put workplace AI use at 38 percent, a three-point rise that sits inside the sample's own error bar. Just over half of the tools those users reach for came in through the employer.

Publishers:phys.org

Reality

Evidence60
Adoption45
Hype gap+15
Incentives40
Confidence55
leadershipOne report1 publisher

Gallup and Pivotal find 42 percent of women reporting health damage to their careers

A new Gallup and Pivotal survey measures how women's healthcare experiences carry into work, family and civic life. The work figure is the one benefits teams will reach for, though the survey put its questions to women only.

Publishers:vox.com

Reality

Evidence45
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+20
Incentives70
Confidence50
scienceOne report1 publisher

Science's credibility trails its perceived value by at least 17 points in a national survey

NC State researchers surveyed 1,854 Americans and found 60% or more interested in science or convinced it benefits society, 43% calling it credible and 39% feeling they belong in it. The fix they propose rests on about 260 self-selected participants.

Publishers:phys.org

Reality

Evidence58
Adoption25
Hype gap+18
Incentives45
Confidence55
investOne report1 publisher

Retirement dread now polls 23 points above the share of over-65s actually working

WalletHub finds 43% of Americans expect to work until they die and 29% are counting on relatives. The one measured labor-supply figure in the file, employment among the over-65s, has climbed about 0.3 points a year.

Publishers:fortune.com

Reality

Evidence58
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+30
Incentives70
Confidence60
scienceOne report1 publisher

Hierarchical worldviews track climate policy support in Japan more closely than conservation support

Aya Takagi and Ryosuke Nakadai surveyed 1,133 people in June 2025 and found the worldview gap widest on climate measures. The authors warn the result does not license rebranding a climate policy as conservation.

Publishers:phys.org

Reality

Evidence40
Adoption
Not scored
Hype gap+15
Incentives40
Confidence48