A vital element of any democracy is that government action responds to the preferences of its citizens. However, policy responsiveness varies across issues, time and countries.

The EU-funded POLEVPOP project will investigate why this occurs, beginning from the assumption that politicians evaluate public opinion, letting their actions depend on their appraisal.

Drawing on a comparative study in Australia, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Israel, Portugal, Switzerland and Sweden, the project will identify the criteria politicians use to appraise public opinion and explore how (depending on this opinion and the channel through which it is conveyed) these help shape their decisions.

ICS is the academic partner chosen by the University of Antwerp to conduct survey-interviews with politicians in Portugal.