Cross-national Comparative Research


Book Description

Cross-National Comparative Research is concerned with observing social phenomena across countries, and with developing explanations for their similarities and differences. This Special Issue focuses on the use of Cross-National Comparative Research to study the effects of national and sub-national contexts on behaviors and attitudes of individual actors. Moreover, it is of interest how behaviors and attitudes at the individual level lead to national and sub-national outcomes at the meso and macro levels. How do immigration policies affect migrants’ well-being? Does the number of divorcees in a country influence individual divorce risks? Are human values universal, or do they vary from one country to another? Under which conditions is political protest triggered, and when does it lead to revolutionary changes within society? These and other questions are typical of cross-national comparative analyses that seek to ascertain how upper-level (macro, meso) contexts influence micro-level phenomena, and how outcomes at the individual level are once more reflected at the meso and macro levels. Prof. Dr. Hans-Jürgen Andreß, Prof. Dr. Detlef Fetchenhauer and Prof. Dr. Heiner Meulemann teach sociology and social psychology at the University in Cologne, Germany.




Cross-National Comparative Survey Research


Book Description

Cross-National Comparative Survey Research: Theory and Practice contains the proceedings of the Roundtable Conference on Cross-National Comparative Survey Research held in Budapest, Hungary, on July 25-29, 1972. The papers focus on the theory and practice of cross-national comparative survey research. The organization and execution of cross-national survey research products are discussed, along with analysis and interpretation in cross-national survey research and the role of theory in the research process. This book is comprised of 12 chapters and begins with a discussion on the strategy of cross-national survey research for the development of social theory. The objectives and implications of cross-national surveys are also considered. Subsequent chapters explore cross-national comparative survey research in areas such as juvenile delinquency and development; time-budget and industrialization; and values in politics. The process of cross-national survey research is outlined, together with analysis and inference in such studies and the role of theory in the research process. The final chapter looks at ways of extending the global reach of survey research. This monograph will be of interest to social scientists, sociologists, and social science researchers.




Legitimacy and Urban Governance


Book Description

A fresh examination of the relationship between two key issues in the on-going debate on urban governance - leadership and community involvement. It explores the nature of the interaction between community involvement and political leadership in modern local governance by drawing on empirical data gathered from case-studies concerning cities in England, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, and Sweden. It presents both a country specific and cross-cutting analysis of the contributions that communities and leaders can make to more effective local governance. These country specific chapters are complemented by thematic, comparative chapters addressing alternative forms of community involvement, types and styles of leadership, multi-level governance, institutional restrictions and opportunities for leadership and involvement, institutional conditions underpinning leadership and involvement, and political culture in cities. This up-to-date survey of trends and developments in local governance moves the debate forward by analysing modern governance with reference to theories related to institutional theory, legitimation, and the way urban leadership and community involvement compliment one another. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of politics and urban governance, and to all those concerned with questions of local governance and democracy.




Advances in Comparative Survey Methods


Book Description

Covers the latest methodologies and research on international comparative surveys with contributions from noted experts in the field Advances in Comparative Survey Methodology examines the most recent advances in methodology and operations as well as the technical developments in international survey research. With contributions from a panel of international experts, the text includes information on the use of Big Data in concert with survey data, collecting biomarkers, the human subject regulatory environment, innovations in data collection methodology and sampling techniques, use of paradata across the survey lifecycle, metadata standards for dissemination, and new analytical techniques. This important resource: Contains contributions from key experts in their respective fields of study from around the globe Highlights innovative approaches in resource poor settings, and innovative approaches to combining survey and other data Includes material that is organized within the total survey error framework Presents extensive and up-to-date references throughout the book Written for students and academic survey researchers and market researchers engaged in comparative projects, this text represents a unique collaboration that features the latest methodologies and research on global comparative surveys.




Advances in Questionnaire Design, Development, Evaluation and Testing


Book Description

A new and updated definitive resource for survey questionnaire testing and evaluation Building on the success of the first Questionnaire Development, Evaluation, and Testing (QDET) conference in 2002, this book brings together leading papers from the Second International Conference on Questionnaire Design, Development, Evaluation, and Testing (QDET2) held in 2016. The volume assesses the current state of the art and science of QDET; examines the importance of methodological attention to the questionnaire in the present world of information collection; and ponders how the QDET field can anticipate new trends and directions as information needs and data collection methods continue to evolve. Featuring contributions from international experts in survey methodology, Advances in Questionnaire Design, Development, Evaluation and Testing includes latest insights on question characteristics, usability testing, web probing, and other pretesting approaches, as well as: Recent developments in the design and evaluation of digital and self-administered surveys Strategies for comparing and combining questionnaire evaluation methods Approaches for cross-cultural and cross-national questionnaire development New data sources and methodological innovations during the last 15 years Case studies and practical applications Advances in Questionnaire Design, Development, Evaluation and Testing serves as a forum to prepare researchers to meet the next generation of challenges, making it an excellent resource for researchers and practitioners in government, academia, and the private sector.




Survey Methods in Multinational, Multiregional, and Multicultural Contexts


Book Description

A unique collaboration featuring the latest methodologies and research on multi- and cross-national surveys Over the past two decades, the relevance of cross-national and cross-cultural methodologies has heightened across various fields of study. Responding to increasing cultural diversity and rapid changes in how research is conducted, Survey Methods in Multinational, Multiregional, and Multicultural Contexts addresses the need for refined tools and improved procedures in cross-cultural and cross-national studies worldwide. Based on research submitted to the International Conference on Multinational, Multicultural, and Multiregional Survey Methods (3MC), this book identifies important changes in comparative methodology approaches, outlines new findings, and provides insight into future developments in the field. Some of the world's leading survey researchers gather in this volume to address the need for a standard framework that promotes quality assurance and quality control in survey research, and its impact on various stages of the survey life cycle, including study design and organization, cross-national sampling, testing and pretesting, data collection, and input and output variable harmonization. Self-contained chapters feature coverage of various topics, such as: Question and questionnaire design, from both global and study-specific perspectives The construction and evaluation of survey translations and instrument adaptations The effects of cultural difference on the perception of question and response categories Non-response issues Analysis in comparative contexts, featuring discussion of polytomous item response theory, categorization problems, and Multi-Trait-Multi-Methods (MTMM) The significance of evolving methodologies for current international survey programs, including the European Social Survey, the International Social Survey Programme, and the Gallup World Poll Survey Methods in Multinational, Multiregional, and Multicultural Contexts is a valuable supplement for courses on comparative survey methods at the upper-undergraduate and graduate levels. It also serves as an insightful reference for professionals who design, implement, and analyze comparative research in the areas of business, public health, and the social and behavioral sciences.




Cross-Cultural Survey Methods


Book Description

Table of contents




Harmonising Demographic and Socio-Economic Variables for Cross-National Comparative Survey Research


Book Description

This book explains harmonisation techniques that can be used in survey research to align national systems of categories and definitions in such a way that comparison is possible across countries and cultures. It provides an introduction to instruments for collecting internationally comparable data of interest to survey researchers. It shows how seven key demographic and socio-economic variables can be harmonised and employed in European comparative surveys. The seven key variables discussed in detail are: education, occupation, income, activity status, private household, ethnicity, and family. These demographic and socio-economic variables are background variables that no survey can do without. They frequently have the greatest explanatory capacity to analyse social structures, and are a mirror image of the way societies are organised nationally. This becomes readily apparent when one attempts, for example, to compare national education systems. Moreover, a comparison of the national definitions of concepts such as "private household" reveals several different historically and culturally shaped underlying concepts. Indeed, some European countries do not even have a word for "private household". Hence such national definitions and categories cannot simply be translated from one culture to another. They must be harmonised. ​




Inside Countries


Book Description

Offers a groundbreaking analysis of the distinctive substantive, theoretical and methodological contributions of subnational research in the field of comparative politics.




Comparison and History


Book Description

First published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.