Cooper Negen and Muskan Mehta present the IPOL poster at SURF 2026

IPOL Students Present at the 2026 Spring Undergraduate Research Festival

Thursday, April 30, 2026

Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab

Students from IPOL presented a poster reporting some of our findings from Iowa Poll #248 from 1981 in Chicago at the at the Spring Undergraduate Research Festival sponsored by the Office of Undergraduate Research. Muskan Mehta and Cooper Negen discussed our findings with UI faculty, students, and staff. Iowa Poll #248 asked about many topics that are once again prominent; our poster focused on questions related to Presidential assassination attempts, handgun laws, a possible invasion of Poland by Russia, and school funding in Iowa.

IPOL Restoring Iowa Poll #248 from 1981

Friday, January 30, 2026

Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab

Starting in fall 2022, IPOL has been working to enter and analyze data from some recently unearthed Iowa Polls from the 1940s through the 1980s. This academic year we are working with Iowa Poll #248 from 1981. Keep an eye out for our news releases and full report this spring.

Iowans Preferred Non-Military Support in Response to a Possible Russian Invasion of Poland in 1981

Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab

Data restored from a 1981 Iowa Poll shows that Iowans generally favored diplomatic solutions and providing aid over direct military action or nuclear threats if Russia were to invade Poland. These data come from Iowa Poll #248, a random sample survey of 1011 Iowans from April of 1981, which has been restored as part of a larger project to recover lost data from past Iowa polls.

Following the 1981 Assassination Attempt on President Reagan, Iowans Strongly Favored Keeping Presidents in Contact with the People

Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab

Data restored from a 1981 Iowa Poll shows that Iowans broadly favored keeping the President in contact with the people in spite of the risk of assassination. These data come from Iowa Poll #248, a random sample survey of 1011 Iowans from April of 1981, which has been restored as part of a larger project to recover lost data from past Iowa polls.

Iowans Slightly Favored Holding Down School Funding in 1981 even Though a Majority Thought it Would Harm Public Schools

Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab

Data restored from a 1981 Iowa Poll indicate that a bare majority of Iowans approved of the legislature’s decision to hold down school funding while at the same time a majority thought doing so would harm Iowa’s public schools. These data come from Iowa Poll #248, a random sample survey of 1011 Iowans from April of 1981, which has been restored as part of a larger project to recover lost data from past Iowa polls.

Iowans Strongly Favored Legal Handgun Ownership in 1981, but were Split on Handgun Control Laws

Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Iowa Policy and Opinion Lab

Data restored from a 1981 Iowa Poll revealed that most Iowans approved of a strict federal handgun control law but were less likely to approve of banning handguns for private citizens. These data come from Iowa Poll #248, a random sample survey of 1011 Iowans from April of 1981, which has been restored as part of a larger project to recover lost data from past Iowa polls.