Politbarometer 1985 (Cumulated Data Set)

The Politbarometer has been conducted since 1977 on an almost monthly basis by the Forschungsgruppe Wahlen on behalf of the Second German Television (ZDF). Since 1990, this database has also been available for the new German states. The survey focuses on the opinions and attitudes of the voting-age population in the Federal Republic on current political issues, parties, politicians, and voting behavior. From 1990 to 1995 and from 1999 onward, the Politbarometer surveys were conducted separately both in the newly formed eastern and in the western German states (Politbarometer East and Politbarometer West). The separate monthly surveys of a year are integrated into a cumulative data set that includes all surveys of a year and all variables of the respective year. Starting in 2003, the Politbarometer short surveys, collected with varying frequency throughout the year, are integrated into the annual cumulation.<br>January: Intent to participate in the election; party
preference (first vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order
procedure); behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament
election; sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians;
satisfaction with the Federal Government and opposition parties; the
right people in leading positions; judgement on the pension increase;
knowledge about the significance of 8 May (end of war); attitude to an
official commemoration on this day and preferred content of such an
event; attitude to court divorce procedures; significance of reasons
for divorce for the right to support of a spouse; preferred conduct of
the Greens or the SPD in view of a government coalition; attitude to
the Greens in Federal Parliament; judgement on the situation of the
pensioners; assessment of the future security of pensions; pension
increases tied to wages; attitude to freeway tolls.

February: Intent to participate in the election; party preference
(first vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction
with the Federal Government and opposition parties; satisfaction with
the political system in the Federal Republic; judgement on economic
development in the Federal Republic; attitude to a man or a woman as
boss; assumed occupational equal opportunities for men and women;
attitude to employment of mothers with young children; assumed actual
parity of pay for men and women; attitude to parity of pay; attitude to
women in political positions of leadership; judgement on actual equal
status of men and women the Federal Republic; judgement on the driving
qualities of women in comparison to men; trust in a woman as pilot;
acceptance of the argument of the cold wave for increased unemployment
figures; expected development of unemployment; judgement on the
security of peace in Europe.

March: Intent to participate in the election; party preference (first
vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction
with the Federal Government and opposition parties; the right people in
leading positions; judgement on current and future economic situation
of the Federal Republic; judgement on development of political tasks
and problems since the last Federal Parliament election and issue
ability of the parties; satisfaction with one´s own weight; measures to
lose weight.

April: Intent to participate in the election; party preference (first
vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for parties and selected politicians; satisfaction with
the Federal Government and the opposition parties; satisfaction with
the political system in the Federal Republic; judgement on economic
development in the Federal Republic; attitude to more wage flexibility
in re-employment of unemployed; judgement on relations with the United
States; attitude to orientation of political decisions on the USA;
assessment of the readiness of the two superpowers to disarm; judgement
on German-Soviet relations; attitude to expansion of relations with the
Soviet Union; judgement on the reliability of the Soviet Union as
business partner; assumed military superiority of West or East;
personal feeling of threat; knowledge about the planned military
defense system in space and attitude to participation of the Federal
Republic in SDI; sympathy scale for Kohl, Mitterrand, Thatcher and
Reagan.

May: Intent to participate in the election; party preference (first
vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction
with the Federal Government and opposition parties; the right people in
leading positions; judgement on relations between the Federal Republic
and the USA; judgement on the visit of Ronald Reagan to the former
concentration camp Bergen-Belsen and the military cemetery in Bitburg;
attitude to the protests on the visit to the military cemetery;
judgement on relations with the Soviet Union and degree of familiarity
of Gorbachev; expectations of Gorbachev regarding German-Soviet
relations; sympathy scale for Reagan, Thatcher, Mitterrand and Kohl;
attitude to the familiar form of address.

June: Intent to participate in the election; party preference (first
vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction
with the Federal Government and opposition parties; satisfaction with
the political system in the Federal Republic; preferred top candidate
of the CDU/ CSU; attitude to criticism of Kohl by Strauss; judgement on
economic development of the FRG; assessment of the possibilities for
action by trade unions, government and entrepreneurs to eliminate
unemployment; judgement on selected recommendations to eliminate
unemployment; issue ability of the government coalition or an SPD-led
Federal Government regarding unemployment.

August: Intent to participate in the election; party preference (first
vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction
with the Federal Government and opposition parties; the right people in
leading positions; characteristics of Helmut Kohl, Johannes Rau and an
ideal federal chancellor (semantic differential); wine consumption;
influence of the wine scandal on one´s own drinking habits;
political-spatial association with the terms Germany and Berlin;
assessment of probability and attitude to reunification of Germany;
preferred capital city of a reunited Germany; judgement on the
development of German-German relations since the last Federal
Parliament election; personal visits in East Berlin and in the GDR;
expected influence of easing of travel restrictions on one´s own
frequency of visits; social contacts in the GDR; attitude to Federal
German loans for the GDR; satisfaction with relief for the people in
connection with providing loans; attitude to Berlin aid; assumed
attitude of West Germans to Berlin; questions on security of Berlin and
the Berlin guarantee of the western powers; preferred conduct of the
Greens and the SPD in view of a common government coalition.

September: Intent to participate in the election; party preference
(first vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction
with the Federal Government and opposition parties; satisfaction with
the political system; judgement on development of political tasks and
goals since the last Federal Parliament election; issue ability of the
parties and possible coalitions; judgement on economic development in
the FRG; judgement on the measures of the Federal Government against
unemployment; attitude to demonstrations by the trade unions against
the government; assumed winner of the next Federal Parliament election.

October: Intent to participate in the election; party preference
(first vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction
with the Federal Government and opposition parties; the right people in
leading positions; judgement on current and future personal as well as
general economic development; issue ability of the government coalition
or the SPD in economic questions; judgement on the seriousness of the
disarmament efforts of the superpowers; knowledge about the planned
military defence system in space and attitude to participation of the
Federal Republic in SDI; attitude to sales of weapons to
non-NATO-countries, China and Saudi Arabia, also considering the
securing of jobs and Israeli protests; assumed winner of the next
Federal Parliament election.

November: Intent to participate in the election; party preference
(first vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behaviour at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election;
sympathy scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction
with the Federal Government and opposition parties; satisfaction with
the political system in the Federal Republic; sympathy scale for Erich
Honecker; attitude to a visit by Honecker in the Federal Republic;
judgement on economic development in the Federal Republic; attitude to
the SPD/Greens coalition in Hessen; attitude to strikes and lock-outs;
judgement on support by the employment office for workers indirectly
affected by a strike (paragraph 116 AFG); assumed winner of the next
Federal Parliament election; possession of an Advent wreath; spending
the Christmas holidays at home.

December: Intent to participate in the election; party preference
(first vote and second vote, ballot procedure, rank order procedure);
behavior at the polls in the last Federal Parliament election; sympathy
scale for the parties and selected politicians; satisfaction with the
Federal Government and opposition parties; the right people in leading
positions; attitude to economic development in the Federal Republic;
attitude to the SPD/Greens coalition in Hesse; knowledge about the
planned military defense system in space and attitude to participation
of the Federal Republic in SDI; assumed securing of peace through the
summit meeting of Reagan and Gorbachev in Geneva; general judgement on
the year ending as well as personal expectations of the new year;
assumed winner in the next Federal Parliament election.

Demography: year of birth; month of birth; sex; marital status;
religious denomination; frequency of church attendance; school
education; occupational position; employment; size of household;
composition of household; respondent is head of household;
characteristics of head of household; party inclination; party
identification; social origins; union membership, characterization of
residential surroundings according to occupational groups; city size;
Bundesland.

Additionally encoded: Kreiskennziffer; weighting factors.