Spring Study 1980

Judgement on parties and politicians. Political attitudes.

Topics: 1. Judgement on the economic situation in the Federal Republic
and assessment of economic development of personal household; political
interest; most important political events in the last year; behavior at
the polls in the Federal Parliament election 1976; agreement of one´s
own political opinion with the parties and selected top politicians;
party preference (ballot procedure) and Sunday question regarding the
state parliament; certainty of one´s voting decision; party affiliation
or personality as primary criteria for the preference for federal
chancellor; most important characteristics of a good chancellor and a
preferred party; attitudes to government, politicians and political
participation (scale); issue relevance; issue ability of the parties
and the candidates for chancellor Schmidt and Strauss; satisfaction
with the job of the government coalition and opposition;
characteristics of a desirable society and degree of realization of
this social system in the Federal Republic; satisfaction with democracy
in the Federal Republic; attitude to the Greens and assessment of their
chances to take seats in Federal Parliament; party inclination and
party identification for a first and second party preference;
underprivileged groups in society and social institutions that should
be the first to make an effort for these groups; attitude to more
social security and assumed positions of the parties; attitude to
securing energy needs through nuclear energy and assumed positions of
the parties and candidates for chancellor; judgement on the energy
crisis (scale); judgement on securing of peace in the Federal Republic;
assessment of the contribution of treaties as well as negotiations to
the securing of peace; assumed sincerity in disarmament discussions on
the part of the East Bloc as well as the NATO; judgement on the
invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet military forces (scale); attitude
to privatization of radio and television broadcasts; date of birth;
religiousness; self-assessment of social class.

2. The following additional questions were posed in
Schleswig-Holstein: satisfaction with the job of the state government
and state opposition; judgement on future development of the Greens as
state party; trust in political state institutions; satisfaction with
state school policies; comparison of the school system with that in
other states; attitude to the planned reform of programming at the
North German Radio (NDR); most important political tasks in the
municipality and for the state.

3. The following additional questions were posed in Lower Saxony:
satisfaction with the state government and state opposition; behavior
at the polls in the last state parliament election; judgement on the
future development of the Greens in Lower Saxony; satisfaction with
party politicians at municipal, state and federal level; satisfaction
with program structuring of the NDR; tasks in the municipality;
satisfaction with the 2 party system in state parliament; desired
additional parties in state parliament; attitude to free provision of
schoolbooks and general attitude to free provision of schoolbooks and
equipment; assumed attitude of top politicians of the CDU as well as
CSU to the problem of relieving the parents of school-age children from
these costs.

4. The following additional questions were posed in North
Rhine-Westphalia: agreement of personal political position with leading
politicians and state parties; satisfaction with the state government
and state opposition; judgement on future development of the Greens in
North Rhine-Westphalia; assignment of responsibility for the high
unemployment figures in the state; federal or municipal political
points of view as primary criteria in personal decision for the state
parliament election; judgement on advertising effectiveness of selected
forms of election campaigning; preferred sources of information before
the election; most important political tasks at municipal and state
level; judgement on advertising slogans and assignment of these slogans
to the parties.

Interviewer rating: city size; date of interview; length of interview.