The British Election Study team is pleased to announce the appointment of the fieldwork agency for the face-to-face fieldwork for the 2015 British Election Study.
Gfk NOP were appointed following a competitive tender process and the completion of interviews with all shortlisted agencies on 12th May 2014.
Gfk NOP are responsible for administering the in-person 2015 BES survey instrument, which will be via random probability sampling of registered voters in England, Scotland and Wales, and will comprise a 50 minute questionnaire to analyse party preferences, turnout and voting choices in the 2015 general election. The in-person survey will also achieve five specific goals; to ensure long-term comparability with previous in-person post-election BES surveys running as far back as 1964; to ensure that BES research is conducted among voters who are traditionally less likely to take part in social science surveys – particularly to study issues around disengagement with British politics and elections; to provide for data linking to analyse all-important registration and turnout in the 2015 general election; to make possible the testing of ‘mode effects’ which may arise in survey responses across in-person and online survey platforms (for comparison to the BES 2015 online panel study); and to field the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems survey via random probability sample so that British CSES data is used internationally for maximum comparative analysis.
Work has begun with Gfk NOP to develop a detailed delivery plan and on the design of the sample. Survey content decisions will begin this summer, with consultation commencing at the 2014 Elections, Public Opinion and Parties (EPOP) annual conference held this year in Edinburgh.