Cumulative response as trust metric

Polls should treat the cumulative recruitment/attrition rate as a standard, headline statistic for every panel survey because it signals how much of the final sample reflects original random recruitment versus long-term attrition. Publishing that rate (and explaining its impact) lets reporters and consumers weigh margin-of-error claims and subgroup oversamples against potential selection bias. — Making cumulative response rates a routine public metric would improve the transparency and credibility of polls that shape political and policy debates.