Since 1977, Vox surveys have been conducted after each federal vote. These opinion surveys are conducted with representative samples of roughly 1,000 eligible voters (700 voters until 1987) and take place during the two or three weeks following the vote. In brief, the focus of these surveys is the interest, motivation, and competence of the citizens in matters relating to voting and politics in general. The principal points covered during interviews include: general political opinions and habits, political and social affinities, degree of understanding of the items put to vote, the various aspects relating to the decision on how to vote on these items, how the individual’s opinion was formed and, finally, the individual’s evaluation of the importance of what is at stake with each item.
If you speak German, French, or Italian, consulting a questionnaire is a good way to get a clearer and more detailed idea of what the Vox surveys are. For example, you could examine the questionnaire concerning the February 8, 2004 vote: Questionnaire Vox 82 : french, german, italian.
In addition, the technical manual accompanying the same survey is also a good source of complementary information, first of all for this particular survey, but also for the Voxes in general (at least for the latest ones). This document is however only available in German: Technischer Bericht Vox 82.
The data of the original Voxes are archived at FORS and can be ordered under the usual conditions. As the data of the first 14 surveys are no longer readable by current softwares, available surveys start with the Vox 15, dedicated to the vote of 14 june 1981, and cover almost all the votes that follow (list of available Voxes: french, german). It should be noted however that these data are embargoed for one year from the date of the vote. On the other hand, documentation is often rudimentary since it is often limited to the questionnaire. Beginning with Vox 71, a technical manual completes the documentation.
Because the Voxes have not yet been systematically assessed, FORS disclaims any liability for errors that could be present in this material.
