Project Summary

The Arab Barometer was established in 2005 by the Institute for Social Research of the University of Michigan in close collaboration with institutions and scholars in the Arab world. The project is a multi-country survey project that provides data for theory-driven scholarly inquiry and for dissemination and outreach activities that are useful for political development. Among the many topics covered in the Arab Barometer survey instrument are conceptions of governance and attitudes about democracy; tolerance and respect for diversity; civic engagement and political participation; inter-personal and political trust; attitudes toward status of women and gender equality; religiosity and religious attachments; support for terrorism and radical ideologies, and views of international relations and other countries. Data from the first wave of surveys, carried out in eight Arab countries between 2006 and 2009, may be found on the project's website or obtained through the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. In 2010, based on its first wave of surveys, the Arab Barometer received the prize for the best new data set in comparative politics from the American Political Science Association. The second wave of Arab Barometer surveys is currently under way.