Help: calculating poll results to decide on a new team name.

Soliloquy

New member
Joined
Jan 27, 2018
Messages
5
Hi! Please help me create the Excel formula we need to rank the results of a poll to decide on a new team name. I really appreciate it!!

We don't have the final results yet ... I'm just developing the Excel sheet to calculate the winner and realize I don't know how to properly weight the results.

Important details:
1. 3 separate polls have been sent out, with the exact same response options (SurveyMonkey capped the number of responses at 100 per poll).
2. Respondents have 4 possible team names to choose from and put them in order of preference (1st, 2nd, 3rd).
3. It is not mandatory to select 3 names, but they cannot choose more than 3 of the 6 and can only choose 1 for each position (1st, 2nd, 3rd).

Thanx in advance for your help!! Preliminary results are:

AngelsAngelsAngelsBravesBravesBravesGiantsGiantsGiantsRedsRedsReds
1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd
List 1301022200041
List 2000010111112
List 3030103111032
 
Testing theory

I posted a thread a few minutes ago, but it hasn't appeared in the form. Trying a test post to see if this one shows up before I spend all that time to re-create the first post.
 
Hi! Please help me create the Excel formula we need to rank the results of a poll to decide on a new team name. I really appreciate it!!

We don't have the final results yet ... I'm just developing the Excel sheet to calculate the winner and realize I don't know how to properly weight the results.

Important details:
1. 3 separate polls have been sent out, with the exact same response options (SurveyMonkey capped the number of responses at 100 per poll).
2. Respondents have 4 possible team names to choose from and put them in order of preference (1st, 2nd, 3rd).
3. It is not mandatory to select 3 names, but they cannot choose more than 3 of the 6 and can only choose 1 for each position (1st, 2nd, 3rd).

Thanx in advance for your help!! Preliminary results are:

AngelsAngelsAngelsBravesBravesBravesGiantsGiantsGiantsRedsRedsReds
1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd
List 1301022200041
List 2000010111112
List 3030103111032

What are your thoughts?

Please share your work with us ...even if you know it is wrong.

If you are stuck at the beginning tell us and we'll start with the definitions.

You need to read the rules of this forum. Please read the post titled "Read before Posting" at the following URL:

http://www.freemathhelp.com/forum/announcement.php?f=33
 
I posted a thread a few minutes ago, but it hasn't appeared in the form. Trying a test post to see if this one shows up before I spend all that time to re-create the first post.
Please read this announcement, on the Administrative Issues board.

Be sure to check out the forum guidelines, also, using the link Subhotosh provided. Also, if this is not schoolwork, we would appreciate knowing that. Some members may take an interest in your situation, while others have time only for students.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. Welcome to the boards. :cool:
 
Important [polling] details:
1. 3 separate polls have been sent out, with the exact same response options (SurveyMonkey capped the number of responses at 100 per poll).
2. Respondents have 4 possible team names to choose from and put them in order of preference (1st, 2nd, 3rd).
3. It is not mandatory to select 3 names, but they cannot choose more than 3 of the 6 and can only choose 1 for each position (1st, 2nd, 3rd).

Preliminary results are:

AngelsAngelsAngelsBravesBravesBravesGiantsGiantsGiantsRedsRedsReds
1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd
List 13
01022200041
List 2000010111112
List 3030103111032

I'm just developing the Excel sheet to calculate the winner and realize I don't know how to properly weight the results.
How has "properly weighted" been defined?

Would it be correct to interpret the numbers as the numbers of votes at that ranking level for that name? So, for instance, the first number (namely, the "3" in the third row and the second column) indicates that, in the first group of people who were polled, three picked "Angels" as their first choice for the new team name?

What have you learned about ranked-choice voting? Are you supposed to count first-choice votes, and then (if necessary) go to the instant run-off? (here?

Is there a reason to keep the three polls separate (as the "Lists"), rather than combining the results into one set of values?

When you reply, please include a clear listing of your efforts so far, so we can see where you're having difficulty. Thank you! ;)
 
Yes, the columns show the rankings of each possible team name with the number of votes for 1st, 2nd, or 3rd choice. I didn't think about adding the columns until after I posted this message. I had just collected the data from SurveyMonkey and plugged it into a spreadsheet when I realized I didn't know how to properly deal with it.

My first thought had been to give 3 points to each "1st" ranking, 2 to "2nd", and 1 to "3rd", but something inside told me that wouldn't really be the right math for this situation.

Thanx for the link to ranked-choice voting, but that wasn't what I had in mind.

Perhaps I should clarify ... I'm not a student. I'm a volunteer of my son's baseball association and trying to figure out how to use the results of our poll to find the most popular new team name. Perhaps we should have limited it to just one choice, but we thought it was a good idea to offer them as "Top 3" choices (especially since SurveyMonkey gave a "weighted average" option while I was designing the poll, but it turned out not to be useful). Now I'm realizing I don't know how to interpret the results of the poll, since I have no idea how to properly calculate them and a quick google search didn't help me.

Hence, my arrival at this board, hoping someone could give me the correct formula. Not that I'm against learning something new, but as a full-time-plus working single parent volunteering with the baseball association, I just don't have that much extra time and I have to get the results figured out. <sigh>

How has "properly weighted" been defined?

Would it be correct to interpret the numbers as the numbers of votes at that ranking level for that name? So, for instance, the first number (namely, the "3" in the third row and the second column) indicates that, in the first group of people who were polled, three picked "Angels" as their first choice for the new team name?

What have you learned about ranked-choice voting? Are you supposed to count first-choice votes, and then (if necessary) go to the instant run-off? (here?

Is there a reason to keep the three polls separate (as the "Lists"), rather than combining the results into one set of values?

When you reply, please include a clear listing of your efforts so far, so we can see where you're having difficulty. Thank you! ;)
 
Please read this announcement, on the Administrative Issues board.

Be sure to check out the forum guidelines, also, using the link Subhotosh provided. Also, if this is not schoolwork, we would appreciate knowing that. Some members may take an interest in your situation, while others have time only for students.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. Welcome to the boards. :cool:

Yes, sorry about that ... was distracted after I clicked "submit" for the first message and didn't read my email until after I posted the "test" message. I hoped I could delete it, but it didn't appear in my profile until after it was approved by the moderator ... and then I didn't log in to the board again until after you had already replied to it. <sigh> Sorry.
 
Solved it!! I think.

I found some instructions online and worked it out to this result:

Attachment.jpg

1. Percentages were calculated by dividing the total number of each name/choice by the total number of responses for that name (eg. Admirals 1st choice = 16/51 = 31.37%)
2. Each percentage was multiplied by its "value" (1st = 3, 2nd = 2, 3rd = 1) and summed together for each name (eg. Admirals ... (3*.3137)+(2*.2549)+(1*.4314) = 1.88)

Do you agree with my process/formulas?

 
I found some instructions online and worked it out to this result:

View attachment 9088

1. Percentages were calculated by dividing the total number of each name/choice by the total number of responses for that name (eg. Admirals 1st choice = 16/51 = 31.37%)
2. Each percentage was multiplied by its "value" (1st = 3, 2nd = 2, 3rd = 1) and summed together for each name (eg. Admirals ... (3*.3137)+(2*.2549)+(1*.4314) = 1.88)

Do you agree with my process/formulas?
As you saw when you investigated weighted voting, "the answer" depends upon "the rules". If your answer complies with your rules, then it is correct. ;)
 
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