Survey questions about party competence: insights from cognitive interviews
- Author(s)
- Markus Wagner, Eva Zeglovits
- Abstract
Voter assessments of party competence have become a key explanation of electoral decision-making. However, there are at least three important aspects to understanding responses to questions on issue-specific party competence: comprehension difficulties; a lack of well-formed attitudes and relevant information; and the use of response heuristics. We used 20 cognitive interviews carried out in Austria in 2011 to test competence questions. The interviews show us how respondents explain their responses. We find evidence that many people (1) may hold only weak opinions and have little information on issue-specific party competence and (2) may make use of distinct but related concepts, particularly salience and position, when answering questions about competence. We provide recommendations for researchers and survey designers based on our findings.
- Organisation(s)
- Department of Government
- Journal
- Electoral Studies
- Volume
- 34
- Pages
- 280-290
- No. of pages
- 11
- ISSN
- 0261-3794
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2013.09.005
- Publication date
- 10-2013
- Peer reviewed
- Yes
- Austrian Fields of Science 2012
- 506014 Comparative politics, 509 Other Social Sciences
- Keywords
- ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Political Science and International Relations
- Portal url
- https://ucris.univie.ac.at/portal/en/publications/survey-questions-about-party-competence-insights-from-cognitive-interviews(4eeaabd6-dae7-4178-9dfe-2ee4cd0f1e10).html