Cressman and 37 percent supported candidate Denis Westberry. The poll had a plus or minus margin of error of 1.4 percent and was evaluated at the 95 percent confidence level. The confidence level is a bit more complicated to understand, but goes to the heart of accurate reporting. Another issue in reporting polls is the confidence level, which is a bit more complicated to understand, but goes to the heart of accurate reporting. By definition confidence level is viewed as the probability of obtaining a given result by chance.
Researchers select the confidence level in advance based on pre-testing and previous research.
The purpose is to prevent the researcher from being tempted to tweak the results for a more favorable result. The confidence level figure is part of the same chart as the margin of error chart. The confidence level should always be reported as part of the story because it gives the reader a chance to assess the results. Just because someone does a survey does not mean it has validity. The credibility of the polling organization goes to the heart of interpreting the accuracy of the results.