The Austrian Democracy Lab (ADL) analyzes the state of democracy in Austria and develops proposals for reform for its further development. In his work, the lab uses a variety of quantitative and qualitative methods.
The focus is on the Democratadar, a new population study on the topics of democracy and politics in Austria. In this large-scale population survey, around 4.500 people are interviewed both by telephone and via an online questionnaire every six months. The study makes it possible to accurately trace developments and to show changes in attitudes also for different regional levels.
In addition to general questions, the Democratadar also always deals with a current priority issue such as the topic of trust in politics or the vision of Europe. The study is evaluated scientifically, presented at press conferences and symposia and prepared for publication in national and international journals. In addition, qualitative methods such as the use of storytelling interviews make it easier to understand the attitudes of the population.
The ADL benefits from the combination of different methods, as the results of one perspective can each enrich the conception of the other perspective. On the basis of the analyzes, reform proposals for the further development of the system are finally presented and subsequently discussed with political actors. After all, the democratic discourse is a major concern of the ADL. For an active and lively public debate, the Lab's team publishes a weekly blog on current domestic issues. Other forms of social media are also used to increase communication of scientific expertise to the outside world.
Tags
