Social and Political Research
for government, political parties, NGOs, the media and businesses
Political parties, cities and even countries compete for the consumer’s loyalty, just as producers of goods and services do, and public opinion surveys have become an integral part of this competition. GfK Ukraine has experience in this type of research for governmental and non-governmental organizations, political parties, and international institutions.
Survey of public service quality
All Ukrainians receive public services, financed by his or her taxes. These services cover a broad range, from security to highway maintenance. In democratic societies, governments have a vital interest in maintaining public satisfaction in these services, avoiding "crashes” in specific areas or in public confidence in specific services. With this in mind, state authorities commission public service satisfaction surveys.
GfK Ukraine has been successfully conducting research on the quality of public services, carrying out regular taxpayers surveys at the request of the State Tax Administration from 2006. In 2007-2009, GfK Ukraine has been surveying social assistance beneficiaries, as part of a consulting service and impact evaluation entitled "Social Assistance System Modernization Project,” commissioned by the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy in Ukraine.
Surveys of social and public policy issues
Research for governmental organizations
Governments at both the national and local levels are effective only when their priorities are properly identified. Survey of firms and households are key tools for studying critical social issues, serving as an indicator of a given issue’s importance from the public point of view, as well as the frequency with which certain problems arise.
In order to be successful, research in this area requires a large field network, methodological excellence, and a profound understanding of the challenges facing policy-makers. With all of this at its disposal, GfK Ukraine successfully conducted a research on the contribution of human resources development to migration policy in Ukraine for the Educational Training Foundation, as well as a study on regulatory policy and inflationary expectations for National Bank of Ukraine.
Surveys for NGOs
NGOs are dedicated bringing relevant social issues to the attention of both the government and the public. GfK specialists are experienced in working with NGOs operating in various areas of society. We researched human trafficking for the International Organization on Migration, the development of the Ukrainian book market for the International Renaissance Foundation, the development of regional media markets for Internews Network, Ukraine/ Russia relations for the Institute of Russian studies, and corporate governance practices for the International Financial Corporation.
Surveys for businesses
Social projects, as part of corporate social responsibility programs, focus most frequently upon the needs of the community in which a company operates and the challenges that community faces. The "Lvivan Values Survey" conducted by GfK Ukraine for the Lviv Council of Entrepreneurs provides an example of this type of research, exploring the issues most relevant to residents of Lviv.
Research for media
The media serve are the primary reflection of the most pressing societal issues. GfK Ukraine offers media companies timely snapshots of public opinion on given issues as well as top media stories. CATI and online surveys provide the information required within two or three days interval. If the need is less urgent, GfK can offer a more comprehensive regular study, called the GfK Omnibus, which answers a broader set of questions. These studies are notable for their relatively low cost.
Surveys of electoral preferences and perception of political forces
Given the highly competitive political market, politicians and political parties frequently make use of information on public electoral preferences. With an interest in attracting consumers, media outlets also keep demand high.
As a member of an international research group, GfK Ukraine is free of political influence, thus ensuring its lack of bias and ability to reach a broad variety of stakeholders in its research in the political realm. Since 2007, GfK Ukraine has carried out regularly surveys of voter electoral preferences. PBN Company, for example, is a return customer for surveys of this type.
Rapid changes in new-born democracies call for corresponding adjustments in the positions of political forces, thus making necessary strategic image studies. GfK Ukraine has the experience to successfully apply its internationally patented tools in brand perception surveys like the GfK TARGET®POSITIONING (using quantitative and qualitative methods,) and GfK Loyalty Plus®, for evaluating the image of political parties and their leaders, investigating political brand potential and providing recommendations for promoting and aligning political images. GfK’s internationally renowned tools GfK AD*VANTAGE® and GfK AD*CREATOR test for effectiveness of political advertisements before they are broadcasted.
Inna Volosevych
Tetiana Sytnyk