ARD-DeutschlandTrend 2006

Since 1997 the ARD-DeutschlandTREND is being conducted on behalf of the ARD (Arbeitsgemeinschaft der öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunkanstalten der Bundesrepublik Deutschland - First German Public Broadcasting Association) as well as various print media by Infratest dimap. The monthly telephone survey with approx. 1,000 respondents (for party preferences approx. 1,500 respondents) per wave is based on representative samples and measures attitudes of the voting-age population in the Federal Republic of Germany toward parties, politicians, and current political issues. Some topics are asked repeatedly in an identical manner over time, while other topics are included in one or several surveys only. The DeutschlandTREND is available as an annual cumulation for the years from 1998 onwards.<br>Party preference in the next Bundestag election (Sunday question); satisfaction with selected top politicians (Christian Wulff, Dieter Althaus, Edmund Stoiber, Franz Josef Jung, Fritz Kuhn, Franz Müntefering, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Georg Milbradt, Günther Oettinger, Gregor Gysi, Peter Harry Carstensen, Harald Ringstorff, Horst Seehofer, Jens Böhrnsen, Jürgen Rüttgers, Kurt Beck, Horst Köhler, Klaus Wowereit, Angela Merkel, Michael Glos, Matthias Platzeck, Oskar Lafontaine, Ole von Beust, Peter Müller, Roland Koch, Renate Künast, Sigmar Gabriel, Peer Steinbrück, Ulla Schmidt, Ursula von der Leyen, Wolfgang Böhmer, Guido Westerwelle and Wolfgang Schäuble); Chancellor preference for Angela Merkel or Kurt Beck or for Angela Merkel or Matthias Platzeck, or for Angela Merkel or Franz Müntefering; assessment of justice in Germany; more successful work of Angela Merkel and the CDU/CSU ministers or of Franz Müntefering and the SPD ministers; satisfaction with democracy; self-assessment as winner or loser of social development; perception of the SPD, Green, CDU/CSU, FDP and Left Party. PDS as united or divided; expected continuation of the incumbent grand coalition of CDU/CSU and SPD until 2009; agreement with various statements on the grand coalition in Berlin; trust in institutions (Federal Government, Bundestag, churches, political parties, large companies, unions, Federal Constitutional Court, Federal President, Federal Armed Forces, police, press, television, Chancellor); Angela Merkel a good chancellor; party competence: most competent party to solve selected political tasks (securing old-age pensions, securing jobs and creating new ones, reliable foreign policy, family policy, social justice, health policy, representing Germany´s interests abroad, integrating immigrants, tax policy, advancing the economy, Germany´s future problems in Germany in one year; expected soccer world champion; evaluation of various government coalitions in terms of their suitability for Germany (continuation of the grand coalition of CDU/CSU and SPD, coalition of SPD, Left Party and Greens, of SPD, FDP and Greens, and of CDU/CSU, FDP and Greens); satisfaction with the work of the Federal Government; confidence in the grand coalition with regard to its goals (reducing unemployment, getting a grip on the budget, economic growth, making necessary cuts in a socially just manner, securing pensions, agreeing on a better system of statutory health insurance, representing Germany appropriately in the world); opinion on the influence of the CSU in federal politics; Edmund Stoiber remaining as Minister President until the next state elections in Bavaria; Russia a reliable gas supplier for Germany; feared shortages in gas supply for Germany due to the gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine; preferred energy sources for a more independent energy supply for Germany (coal, nuclear power or renewable energies such as wind power and solar energy); Gerhard Schröder should mediate in the dispute between Russia and Ukraine; expectations for the new year 2006 (falling unemployment, improving economy, Federal Government gets budget under control); plans for summer vacation; Federal Government´s share in improved economic development; grand coalition: rather similar or rather different positions of CDU/CSU and SPD in selected policy areas; approval of significantly earlier increase in retirement age to 67 than planned; willingness to work until 67 (only to non-pensioners/retirees); justified strikes by blue- and white-collar workers in the public sector against the introduction of the 40-hour week instead of 38.5 hours without wage compensation; justified strikes due to IG-Metall demands for up to 5 percent more pay; everything necessary done to prevent mass spread of avian flu to birds and poultry flocks in Germany; everything necessary done to prevent transmission of avian flu to humans; opinion on freezing the employer´s contribution to health insurance; expected joint and viable solutions by the grand coalition on controversial issues; significant wage increases in the metal industry justified versus IG-Metall should be more restrained in wage demands; approval of dissolution of Hauptschulen in favor of Real- and Gesamtschulen due to increasing student violence; reasons for increasing student violence at Hauptschulen; Kurt Beck good SPD party chairman; agreement with the opinion of politicians that the state needs more money to fulfill state tasks in education, family support and maintenance of infrastructure; opinion on the scope of future state tasks; opinion on the influence of the government after the introduction of parental allowance for working parents; appropriate measures for more children (parental allowance, free kindergarten places, better all-day care for children); advocacy of a uniform nationwide regulation for the language test for foreigners seeking naturalization; testing of further skills necessary versus testing of language skills sufficient; government should work harder for a society in which performance or solidarity counts more; Congo deployment of the Bundeswehr makes sense; World Cup: expected performance of German national soccer team; German national soccer team will reach final; Jürgen Klinsmann a good national soccer coach; everything necessary done to prevent acts of violence at major World Cup events; accepted restrictions to improve security at broadcast soccer matches (restriction of alcohol consumption, stronger access controls also in public places); comparison of Angela Merkel and Gerhard Schröder in the office of Chancellor; satisfaction with the individual political parties in the Federal Government (SPD, CDU/CSU, Greens, FDP, Left Party. PDS); agreement with various statements on the FDP; agreement with various statements on current politics in Germany; health care reform: decision on health fund goes in the right direction; fulfilled or disappointed expectations of party according to recall question since 2005 Bundestag election; renewed decision in favor of this party; reasons for disappointment (maximum of four open mentions); support for Germany´s participation in UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon; more money for Bundeswehr in case of further international peacekeeping missions; health reform: limitation of additional contributions to 1% correct versus health insurers should also be allowed to levy higher additional contributions; preferred use of additional tax revenues: stabilization of health insurance contributions versus debt reduction; comparison of the grand coalition with the previous red-green government in terms of better government work; comparison of Angela Merkel with Gerhard Schröder in terms of better work in the office of chancellor; general approval of military missions abroad by the Bundeswehr to secure peace; number of Bundeswehr missions abroad should be reduced versus maintained; sense of upward trend in Germany since summer; share of World Cup in economic upswing in Germany; organizations and groups benefiting from economic upswing (businesses, employees, state, shareholders, taxpayers, unemployed); assessment of justice in Germany in various areas (tax system, society´s treatment of the weak, of the elderly and of families, pension system, wages, level of salaries of successful company heads and managers, protection in the event of unemployment, companies´ treatment of their employees, distribution of burdens between young and old); lower unemployment figures also a merit of politics versus politics has only limited influence on the labor market; turnaround in the labor market more a merit of the red-green government under Gerhard Schröder or the grand coalition under Angela Merkel; employee participation in company success: opinion on payment of expected wage increases not in cash but in the form of shares in the company; opinion on the effects of the VAT increase to 19 percent (continued upswing in 2007 versus stalling of the economy due to the VAT increase).

Demography: sex; age; employment; occupational status; highest level of schooling; household net income.

Additionally coded were: record or pagination number; wave identifier; region (east/west); federal state; BIK community type; weighting factor.