Australian Survey of Social Attitudes, 2016

Abstract

The Australian Survey of Social Attitudes (AuSSA) is Australia’s main source of data for the scientific study of the social attitudes, beliefs and opinions of Australians, how they change over time, and how they compare with other societies. The survey is used to help researchers better understand how Australians think and feel about their lives. It produces important information about the changing views and attitudes of Australians as we move through the 21st century. Similar surveys are run in other countries, so data from the AuSSA also allows us to compare Australia with countries all over the world. The aims of the survey are to discover: the range of Australians’ views on topics that are important to all of us; how these views differ for people in different circumstances; how they have changed over the past quarter century; and how they compare with people in other countries. AuSSA is also the Australian component of the International Social Survey Project (ISSP). The ISSP is a cross-national collaboration on surveys covering important topics. Each year, survey researchers in some 40 countries each do a national survey using the same questions. The ISSP focuses on a special topic each year, repeating that topic from time to time. The topic for 2016 is "Role of Government". This is the fifth time this has been the topic of the survey, having previously been the theme for the survey in 1985, 1990, 1996, and 2006.