- 17 Aug 2015
The Arab Barometer and Public Opinion Research in the MENA Region: An Informal Discussion
Abstract
Until fairly recently, systematic public opinion research had been the missing dimension in the study of Arab politics. Although there were occasional political attitude surveys by Arab and Western social scientists, these tended to be limited not only in terms of frequency but also, on the whole, with respect to the samples that were drawn, the questions that were asked, and the populations that were studied. Beginning in 2006, the first wave of the Arab Barometer broke new ground with nationally representative politically-focused surveys in seven countries; and by early2014 this and two subsequent waves of the Barometer had carried out a total of 29 surveys in 14 countries and interviewed more than 35,000 ordinary citizens. Scores of papers have been written using Arab Barometer data, which have been placed in the public domain for use by others and can be downloaded from the Arab Barometer website. To kick off a general discussion, Mark Tessler, one of the founders and co-directors of the Arab Barometer, will briefly describe the Barometer and discuss other issues and projects pertinent to public opinion research in the MENA region.
About the Speakers
Political Science Department
University of Michigan
MARK TESSLER is Samuel J. Eldersveld Collegiate Professor of Political Science at the University of Michigan. Professor Tessler has conducted research in Tunisia, Israel, Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, and Palestine. His areas of specialization include public opinion in the Arab world and he is the co-director of the Arab Democracy Barometer Survey Project, which has carried out 29 surveys in fourteen Arab countries over three waves. Professor Tessler is the author, coauthor, or editor of fourteen books. These include Public Opinion in the Middle East: Survey Research and the Political Orientations of Ordinary Citizens (2011); and his new book, supported by a Carnegie Islamic Scholar award, entitled Islam and Politics in the Middle East: Explaining the Views of Ordinary Citizens. Among his earlier books are Islam, Democracy and the State in Algeria (2005); and Area Studies and Social Science: Strategies for Understanding Middle East Politics (1999). Prof. Tessler has also conducted research and written extensively on the Israel–Palestine conflict. He is the author of A History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (2009, 2nd edition), which has won national awards.
