Learning Objectives
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
- Remember the definition of comparative public opinion
- Understand how public opinion is studied in a comparative context
- Apply principles of public opinion across countries
- Analyze how comparative public opinion differs from American public opinion
- Evaluate research in comparative public opinion
Introduction
Comparative public opinion is the research and analysis of public opinion across two or more countries. In addition to the various regional and continental public opinion surveys, known generally as barometers and are discussed later, scholars of public opinion have been organized at the global level since the 1950s.
For example, the World Association for Public Opinion Research, WAPOR, has “promoted the highest professional standards, ethics and techniques for polling around the world. Their international membership represents the industry’s most respected names in the survey and public opinion research field. Through publications, seminars, meetings and educational initiatives, WAPOR engages in a rich ongoing conversation about how best to collect data and maintain data quality not just in advanced democracies, but also in emerging democracies.”
In September 2020, WAPOR hosted a webinar on Advances in Comparative Survey Methods and discussed the continuing development of Multinational, Multiregional, and Multicultural (3MC) survey research methodology. Their goal is to expand worldwide as a field of inquiry and students from around the world are invited to learn more and participate in the development of this emerging field of study and practice.
How is public opinion studied in a comparative context?
Public opinion is studied in the comparative context at three levels: conceptual, operational, and measurement. In addition to these abstract levels, public opinion is also studied at the geographic level. This means public opinion between countries, regions of countries, and continents.
How are principles of public opinion applied across countries?
Public opinion is the scientific use of survey questions and instruments to gauge the explicit and implicit opinions individuals have about political issues and policy topics. Principles of public opinion are applied across countries by researchers and practitioners who are trained in survey methodology.
In addition to survey methodologists, there are also interpreters of public opinion survey data. Interpreters of this data can be elected and appointed officials, the media, interest groups and non-profit organizations, community leaders, and individual members of the general public. Interpretation of public opinion survey data can haphazardly occur, especially by individuals who are not trained in analyzing such data.
How does comparative public opinion differ from American public opinion?
Comparative public opinion differs from American public opinion in three ways. First, comparative public opinion is interested in how the public thinks and believes in particular policy and political issues across at least two different countries. When we look at American public opinion, we are typically interested in what the national sentiment is around particular policy and political issues, or we are interested in the opinions of individuals within particular regions of the countries or specific states. By only surveying people in the United States, this means it is not comparative.
Second, American public opinion has a longer history than comparative public opinion, largely because surveys and polling have been used by the media, pollsters, and political scientists since the 1950s. Most comparative public opinion surveys, or non-American surveys, were consistently developed after 2000. Third, comparative public opinion typically encompasses multiple countries, such as the Afrobarometer which is led by social and political scientists who live and work on the continent. For example, of the 54 countries that make up the African continent, people in 37 countries were recently surveyed in Round 6 of the Afrobarometer. In contrast, American public opinion, again, is only focused on the opinion of people in the United States.
How can we evaluate research in comparative public opinion?
Evaluating research in comparative public opinion is both exciting and challenging. It is exciting because we can see how individuals across different countries think about similar concepts and their operationalization. For example, we may be interested in how people view housing availability across two different countries and realize that the notion of housing is conceptualized differently by people across these two countries. In some countries we find that public housing is largely available to individuals, while in other countries the government plays no role or little role in the process of providing housing. What this means is that if you ask the survey question “what role should the government play in providing housing to individuals in need?” you may find that people don't even associate their government with providing this type of good because it's not a part of the political institutions, culture, and expectations of people within a country.
Evaluating research in public opinion is also challenging because it involves grappling with the conceptual, the operational, and the measurement level of ideas, things, and people that may not directly translate between countries. Moreover, you find this because different languages are spoken in different parts of the world that unless you're fluent in the languages, and also in their culture, of other countries you may find it difficult to see the comparison between two countries given their stark political, social, linguistic, and cultural uniqueness.
