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Further information for Survey Respondents for the 2011 New Zealand Election Study
The principal researchers are:
Welcome to the survey respondents' page of the 2011 New Zealand Election Study. If you have already filled out and returned your questionnaire, thank you for doing so. If you are yet to do, you can find more information about the NZES here and on other pages on our site. Our study is an opportunity for you to help put on record what New Zealanders think, and what they expect from their political leaders. We would therefore greatly value learning about your opinions, even if you are not greatly interested in politics, and even if you did not vote! Remember also that if you would prefer to fill out an internet version of the questionnaire, you can find details on your letter or postcard. Our research is completely independent of any political party or lobby group. It is funded by the University of Auckland (mainly by COMPASS, one of its research centres, the New Zealand Electoral Commission, and the McDougall Trust, a British Charity that funds research into elections and electoral systems. The NZES was established in 1990, and has undertaken research at every New Zealand election since. We have published a series of articles, book chapters, and articles using the data. NZES data from previous elections has been widely used by political science researchers all over the world, as well as by some New Zealand government departments. The NZES also includes questions designed by the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES) that brings together data and researchers from over forty different countries around the world. More Background The 2011 NZES is the continuation of a well-established programme of research. As at previous elections since 1990, the NZES is conducting a post-election survey of a random sample of New Zealanders on the electoral rolls. The rolls normally cover at least 94 per cent of the eligible population. The data generated covers turnout, public understanding of the electoral system, opinions about the electoral system, attitudes and expectations about referendums, and other related matters. Questions also probe more deeply into the election itself. You can find references to various publications on links to the left of this page. NZES data is used by scholars around the world who have an interest in aspects of New Zealand's politics and elections. Between 1993 and 1996 the NZES was supported by New Zealand's biggest science funder, the Foundation for Research, Science, and Technology (FRST), but after the 2002 election electoral research dropped off the FRST's list of priorities. Recognizing the value of the NZES, the New Zealand Electoral Commission part-funded the NZES' 2005 and 2008 studies: their contribution for each election was NZ$15,000. The Electoral Commission has recently agreed to help fund the 2011 Study to the tune of NZ$20,000. Among other sources, the University of Auckland provides another significant 'slice', most of it from COMPASS (the Centre of Methods and Policy Applications in the Social Sciences). The NZES has received a certain amount of recognition in the electoral policy and administrative process in New Zealand: The NZES is based on a self-completion postal survey sent to a sample of those on the electoral rolls. |