AUSTRALIAN CANDIDATE STUDY, 2001
USER'S GUIDE FOR THE MACHINE-READABLE DATA FILE (SSDA STUDY NO. 1049)

Copyright © 2002, The Australian National University

Permission is given to copy material for which the Australian National University holds copyright, provided credit is given, and the copies are not intended for sale.

Australian Candidate Study, 2001 : attitudinal responses and data user's guide

ISBN 0 7315 3341 0.

1. Australia Parliament - Elections, 2001 - Data processing - Handbooks, manuals, etc. 2. Australian candidate study, 2001 (Computer file). 3. Electoral candidates - Australia - Data processing - Handbooks, manuals, etc. 4. Computer files - Handbooks, manuals, etc. I. Gibson, Rachel Kay. II. Australian National University. Social Science Data Archives. (Series: SSDA study : no. 1049).

025.0632499407

SSDA Study Series (User's guide only)       ISSN 0728-9766

Australian Candidate Study, 2001 [computer file] / Principal investigators Rachel Gibson, David Gow, Clive Bean and Ian McAllister. Canberra: Social Science Data Archives, The Australian National University [distributor], 2002. 1 data file (477 logical records) + accompanying user's guide.

Summary: The 2001 Australian Candidate Study is the sixth in a series of election studies on federal election candidates. In 2001, candidates from the following parties were surveyed - Labor, Liberal, National, Democrat, the Greens and One Nation.

The study examined the prominent election issues, including attitudes to particular economic issues, and opinions on which are the most critical problems facing Australia. Opinions on other political issues such as security relations with other countries, assistance for Aborigines and women, and social issues such as abortion and pornography were also sought. A section on political and social institutions includes questions on the Australian democratic system, the role of the Monarchy, immigration and racism.

In addition, the survey asked questions relating to the candidate’s political background, such as electoral history, party political involvement and membership of community organisations. A section on campaigning asked for the amount of time candidates spent on campaign activities and the amount of support received from various sources. ALP candidates were also asked a series of questions on ALP factions.

Background variables include age, country of birth, age when left school, number of years of tertiary study, religion, frequency of attending religious services, marital status, House contested and party affiliation of candidate. Some of these variables have been grouped to ensure confidentiality for the candidates.

The Australian Election Study Survey is an ongoing series designed to provide a long-term perspective on the stability and change in the political attitudes and behaviour of the Australian electorate, and to examine the views of all major party candidates standing for election. The survey is composed of two primary studies, the Australian Election Study and the Australian Candidate Study, and is timed to coincide with Australian Federal Elections. So far, six surveys have been conducted, in 1987, 1990, 1993, 1996, 1998 and 2001.

The AES series has four long-term aims:

to provide a long-term perspective on stability and change in the political attitudes and behaviour of the Australian Electorate;

to analyse the changing social bases of Australian politics as the economy and society modernise and change character;

to examine the political issues prevalent in the election and assess their importance for the election result; and

to make quickly available to other scholars and interested persons the comprehensive AES data sets.

Data is not only available for voters, but also for major party election candidates, among whom we typically have around 100 elected representatives. This enables an examination not only how voters evaluated election issues, but the perspectives that party elites brought to bear on them and, most important of all for public policy outcomes, the view of federal elected representatives.

The Australian Election Study is comprised of a series of standard questions relating to the role of media and media exposure; general political interest and knowledge; perceptions of the campaign; party identification and prior voting history; parents’ and partner partisanship; vote in the election and explanations given for it; party images; perceptions of the major party leaders and the content of their public images; election issues; social policy issues; and a range of sociodemographic measures including education, occupation, religious behaviour, family circumstances, and income. A set of questions relating to the primary theme of the survey are also included in the survey. The themes for the last 6 surveys have been:

1987: The role of the economy
1990: The environment and environmentalism
1993: Political culture
1996: National identity
1998: Constitution rights and minorities
2001: Political and social institutions

Many of the questions found in the voters survey are replicated in the Australian Candidate Study, providing a comparison between the attitudes of the candidates and those of the electorate. In addition, the survey asks questions relating to political background, campaigning, and the role of the representative as well as general sociodemographic variables including age, country of birth, religion and marital status.

The AES surveys have been widely used by the academic community for both research and teaching and mirrors the election studies conducted in other countries, such as the United States and Britain. The AES surveys make a major contribution to understanding electoral dynamics within a liberal democracy and by providing continuity with Don Aitkin’s pioneering 1967 and 1979 national surveys, provides Australian scholars with a substantial database of public opinion towards a wide range of political issues, stretching back over a quarter of a century.

Additional to the 2001 survey, the Social Science Data Archives also holds five previous AES surveys - Australian Election Study, 1987 (SSDA No. 445), the Australian Candidate Study, 1987 (SSDA No. 479), the Australian Election Study, 1990 (SSDA No. 570), the Australian Candidate Study, 1990 (SSDA No. 571), the Australian Election Study, 1993 (SSDA No. 763), the Australian Candidate Study, 1993 (SSDA No. 764), the Australian Election Study, 1996 (SSDA No. 944), and the Australian Election Study, 1998 (SSDA No. 1001).

All manuscripts based in whole or in part on these data should:

(i) identify the data, original investigators and data distributors by including the bibliographic reference for the data file given below:

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