Politbarometer West 1993 (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>Judgement on parties and attitude to current political questions.
Topics: Most important problems in Germany; party preference (Federal
Parliament election, state parliament election, Sunday question and
rank order procedure); behavior at the polls in the last Federal
Parliament election and the last state parliament election; sympathy
scale for the parties, coalition, opposition, state government and
selected federal politicians; self-classification on a left-right
continuum; personal job security; ability of the government or
opposition in solving economic problems in Eastern Germany; union
membership; religiousness; party inclination and party identification;
living together with a partner. Also encoded was: day of survey. Beyond
this common part for all survey months of 1993 the following questions
were also posed in at least one further survey month: assessment of the
disagreement of the federal parties; most important politicians in the
country; preference for federal chancellor; satisfaction with
democracy; sense of well-being in Germany and interest in emigrating;
the right people in leading positions; interest in politics; general
judgement on the condition of society as well as comparison with other
western societies; general judgement on the unification of Germany and
fulfilled personal expectations in unification; general judgement on
the economic development in Germany and one´s own economic situation;
desire for separation of the two German nations; satisfaction with
achievement of equivalent living conditions in east and west; adequate
activities of the Federal Government for such an equalization; adequate
effort of West German economy and East German population to develop
Eastern Germany; too much complaining in the public opinion; judgement
on the job of the trust-company; ability of the government or
opposition regarding stability of monetary value, national debt and
securing prosperity; perceived threat from crime; necessity of tax
increases to finance German unity; knowledge about the solidarity pact
between the Federal Government, SPD opposition and states as well as
judgement on the solidarity pact; attitude to reintroduction of the
solidarity tax and preferred point in time for this; attitude to
reduction in social services and a job market tax for civil servants,
self-employed and higher earners; preferred savings recommendations for
social services; judgement on the reductions in the social area
introduced by the Federal Government; attitude to reduction of the
earnings-related unemployment benefit; assumed extent of abuse of
social services; expected outcome of the government program to combat
abuse; attitude to sale of government assets to avoid tax increases;
judgement on the disputes in important questions; advantageousness of
EC membership for the German population; judgement on the speed of
European unification and preference for deepening the tie between
current EC countries or for admission of new countries; preference for
independence of Germany or for a stronger merger into a European
nation; advantageousness of the European domestic market and attitude
to a European currency; comparison of stability of a European currency
and the DM; personal voting in case of a vote on the Maastricht Treaty;
preferred countries for new admission into the EC; too many foreigners
in Germany; attitude to the right to vote in municipal elections for
foreigners and making acquisition of German citizenship easier;
attitude to dual citizenship; assumed abuse of the right to asylum;
party most able to solve the problem of applicants for asylum; expected
effectiveness of change in the right to asylum after the compromise
between government and opposition; attitude to immediate deportation of
applicants for political asylum from countries in which there is no
political persecution; proximity to accomodations for applicants for
political asylum; problems experienced with applicants for political
asylum; attitude to increase or reduction in admission of applicants
for political asylum; understanding for violent demonstrations against
applicants for political asylum; being ashamed due to these acts of
violence; attitude to use of infrared and radar facilities to combat
illegal immigration; necessity of stricter laws to combat right-wing
extremism; attitude to designation of Republicans as new Nazis;
dedicated supporters or protest voters in the elections; attitude to
acceptance of increased responsibility in world politics by united
Germany; attitude to combat missions of the Federal German Armed Forces
in the framework of the UN; attitude to bombardment of military targets
in Irak by the Americans, French and English; attitude to participation
of German soldiers in AWACS air surveillance to enforce the flight
prohibition over Bosnia and Herzegovina; consent with military actions
of the UN against Serbia as well as attitude to participation of
Federal German Armed Forces; attitude to Federal German Armed Forces
missions in Somalia; judgement on the decision of the Federal
Constitutional Court on the Somalia mission of the Federal German Armed
Forces; attitude to membership of Germany in the UN Security Council;
increased use of men in community service with an excess of persons
liable for military service; community service for women; attitude to a
conscript army or preference for professional soldiers; attitude to a
reduction in Federal German Armed Forces; assessment of the jeopardy to
peace in Europe; demand for higher moral standards among politicians;
personal desire to become a politician; judgement on reporting by the
media on political affairs; judgement on the job of the Federal
Government and expected improvement in case of an SPD government;
expected winner in the next Federal Parliament election; preference for
a male or female federal chancellor; judgement on Bjoern Engholm as
candidate for chancellor of the SPD; knowledge about the transfer of
money by former SPD state chairman in Schleswig-Holstein, Guenther
Jansen, to Rainer Pfeiffer as well as judgement on the credibility of
Jansen not to have received any reciprocation; judgement on the
resignation of Traffic Minister Krause as well as the resignation of
Bjoern Engholm; assessment of the extent to which informed of the SPD
in the Barschel affair; judgement on Seiters´ resignation; preferred
candidate for chancellor for the SPD; attitude to the member survey of
the SPD on the future party chairman; attitude to bugging of
conversations in private areas to combat organized crime; preference
for or against police units such as GSG-9; basic attitude to the idea
of socialism; attitude to abortion and party representing the interests
of respondent on the abortion question; judgement on the decision of
the Federal Constitutional Court on new regulation of the abortion law;
attitude to elimination of bearing the costs of an abortion by health
insurance companies; preference for an East German or West German
candidate for the office of Federal President; Federal President
preference; importance of the office of Federal President; judgement on
the discontinuation of the proceedings against Erich Honecker; attitude
to increased road construction to reduce traffic jams; expected
increase in the cost of driving a car; attitude to introduction of
freeway tolls; preference for petroleum tax increase or freeway toll;
attitude to privatization of freeways; attitude to nuclear power
plants; attitude to reduction of time in school at high schools to 12
years; attitude to introduction of nursing care insurance; preference
for division of the nursing care costs among government, workers and
employers; preference for introduction of a day without compensation,
elimination of a day of vacation or government holiday to finance
nursing care insurance; attitude to a reduced wage increase in the west
to equalize wages; desired wage increase above or below the inflation
rate; assessment of wage increase in Eastern Germany measured on the
economic situation; attitude to giving up wage increases to secure
preservation of jobs; attitude to the recommendation of Lafontaine for
reduced increase of wages in Eastern Germany; justified wage
differences between East and West Germany; expected wage level for the
future; attitude to a limited reduction in wages in case of a difficult
economic situation of the company; attitude to a four-day week with
reduction in wages; preference for full-time employment or part-time
employment; attitude to reduced entry-level wages for unemployed;
attitude to different payment of the politicians in East and West
Germany; judgement on the 26% wage increase scheduled for 1993 in the
East German metal industry; assessment of the ability of companies to
handle such an increase; attitude to a strike due to cancellation of
the metal wage agreement; feared loss of job through the 26% wage
increase; attitude to a return to the 40-hour week with or without full
wage compensation; attitude to longer working hours for civil servants
without salary increase; preference for elimination of the church tax;
attitude to increased financial support for Russia; attitude to the
Federal Government taking sides with Boris Yeltsin; assumed result of
the Russian plebiscite regarding Boris Yeltsin; expected disadvantages
for the Germans from the political problems in the former Soviet Union;
earlier living in the GDR and time of moving; military threat to
Germany from the problems in the former Soviet Union; attitude to the
move of the government to Berlin and preferred speed; satisfaction with
housing; tenant status; judgement on the current rent; attitude to
application for selection as Olympic site by Berlin and to change of
store closing laws; retrospect on the last year and prospect for the
future year.