Survey questions about party competence: insights from cognitive interviews

Autor(en)
Markus Wagner, Eva Zeglovits
Abstrakt

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(en)
Institut für Staatswissenschaft
Journal
Electoral Studies
Band
34
Seiten
280-290
Anzahl der Seiten
11
ISSN
0261-3794
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2013.09.005
Publikationsdatum
10-2013
Peer-reviewed
Ja
ÖFOS 2012
506014 Vergleichende Politikwissenschaft, 509 Andere Sozialwissenschaften
Schlagwörter
ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete
Political Science and International Relations
Link zum Portal
https://ucris.univie.ac.at/portal/de/publications/survey-questions-about-party-competence-insights-from-cognitive-interviews(4eeaabd6-dae7-4178-9dfe-2ee4cd0f1e10).html