Politisk information og politiske holdninger: Hvordan influerer opinionsmålinger vælgernes partipræference?

Abstract

Political Information and Political Opinions: The Impact of Opinion Polls on Voters’ Party Preferences.

In the efforts to explain election outcomes, the interest in the effects of political communication, information and media coverage on political opinions has increased. This includes the effects of political opinion polls in the media. Especially after 1980, numerous studies about the effects of opinion polls on voters' party preference have been published. However, it seems as if many studies approach the issue with ad hoc constructed models not or only partly guided by the existing literature. Research is little cumulative. One of the reasons for this is probably that no recent comprehensive and systematic overview has been published. This article fills this gap: It presents and systematizes approaches in studies analyzing the effects of opinion polls on voters' party preferences. By discussing theoretical and empirical gains and weaknesses, important questions for future research are highlighted.