Erhebung zur europäischen Integration, allgemeine politische Fragen, nationale Identität, Familie und Partnerschaft - 2003

The European Commission's Eurobarometer surveys provide important data for social sciences in the broadest sense. Originally conceived as an opinion barometer on European integration, Eurobarometers are now large-scale surveys that regularly cover important public life issues in addition to a core of standard issues. In this way, a set of comparable data is produced in Europe.

The International Social Survey Program (ISSP) consists of a basic module, which is selected from a group of about ten thematic areas. The environment, social networks, religion, social inequalities and the role of government are the main themes of the latest surveys. Until 1999, Swiss participation in the ISSP was ensured by various research teams; since 2000, SIDOS has been a member of the ISSP and thus responsible for conducting this study in Switzerland. Meanwhile more than 35 nations participate in the ISSP survey.

The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) has commissioned SIDOS to conduct the Eurobarometer survey of the European Union Commission and the ISSP survey in Switzerland once a year as part of the "Switzerland towards the future" priority programme. The first "Eurobaometer in Switzerland" survey was launched in autumn 1999. From 2000, questions from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) were added to the Eurobarometer in Switzerland questionnaire.

Since the data are collected regularly, Switzerland can be analysed in a combined cross-cutting comparison. In this way, peculiarities as well as similarities of Switzerland would become systematically identifiable.

This year's representative survey of the Swiss resident population contains questions on the following topic groups: Family and partnership, relations with Switzerland and its institutions, national identity, immigration.