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Opinion Polls across Boundaries : The Early History of Northwestern European Opinion Polling beyond National Borders and Disciplinary Frameworks

Ploeg, Solange LU and Vesterlund, Eskil LU (2025) In Contemporary European History p.1-18
Abstract
This article focuses on the early history of Northwestern European opinion polling (1940s–1950s), specifically the cases of the Netherlands and Sweden. The evolution of opinion polling and its influence on post-war politics and society should be understood in light of processes of international transfer and entanglement. The Dutch-Swedish comparison brings into focus the ways in which the national experiences of the Second World War influenced how opinion pollsters discursively linked the practice to ideas about democracy. Furthermore, the article highlights entanglements across the boundaries of science, as commercial survey methods were picked up by social scientists, and across national borders, as opinion pollsters across Western... (More)
This article focuses on the early history of Northwestern European opinion polling (1940s–1950s), specifically the cases of the Netherlands and Sweden. The evolution of opinion polling and its influence on post-war politics and society should be understood in light of processes of international transfer and entanglement. The Dutch-Swedish comparison brings into focus the ways in which the national experiences of the Second World War influenced how opinion pollsters discursively linked the practice to ideas about democracy. Furthermore, the article highlights entanglements across the boundaries of science, as commercial survey methods were picked up by social scientists, and across national borders, as opinion pollsters across Western Europe were in frequent contact with each other.

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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
epub
subject
in
Contemporary European History
pages
1 - 18
publisher
Cambridge University Press
ISSN
0960-7773
DOI
10.1017/S0960777324000390
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
3627e91c-7a7b-4d6b-9b18-822d71e09f2a
date added to LUP
2025-02-06 14:12:10
date last changed
2025-02-07 14:08:26
@article{3627e91c-7a7b-4d6b-9b18-822d71e09f2a,
  abstract     = {{This article focuses on the early history of Northwestern European opinion polling (1940s–1950s), specifically the cases of the Netherlands and Sweden. The evolution of opinion polling and its influence on post-war politics and society should be understood in light of processes of international transfer and entanglement. The Dutch-Swedish comparison brings into focus the ways in which the national experiences of the Second World War influenced how opinion pollsters discursively linked the practice to ideas about democracy. Furthermore, the article highlights entanglements across the boundaries of science, as commercial survey methods were picked up by social scientists, and across national borders, as opinion pollsters across Western Europe were in frequent contact with each other.<br/><br/>}},
  author       = {{Ploeg, Solange and Vesterlund, Eskil}},
  issn         = {{0960-7773}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{02}},
  pages        = {{1--18}},
  publisher    = {{Cambridge University Press}},
  series       = {{Contemporary European History}},
  title        = {{Opinion Polls across Boundaries : The Early History of Northwestern European Opinion Polling beyond National Borders and Disciplinary Frameworks}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0960777324000390}},
  doi          = {{10.1017/S0960777324000390}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}