Political Attitudes in the Arab World: Findings from the First Wave of the Arab Barometer Mark Tessler University of Michigan

Jordan: Center for Strategic Studies, University of Jordan Palestine: Center for Policy and Survey Research, Ramallah Morocco: team at Hassan II University- Mohammadia Algeria: team at University of Algiers Kuwait: team at Kuwait University Yemen: team at Yemen Interactions Lebanon: team at Statistics Lebanon U.S. Partners: University of Michigan, Princeton University The Arab Barometer Project

The Arab Barometer Web site, with postings in both Arabic and English, may be found at The site contains information about the Barometer, a summary of findings, and selected descriptive and analytical reportshttp:// The Arab Barometer, while independent in both design and content, cooperates with a number of other regional barometers and with other Arab and international public opinion and political reform projects. Web sites for some of these are listed below. Global Barometer Surveys Sub-Sahara African Barometer Latin America Barometer East Asian Barometer Arab Reform Initiative World Values Survey Program on Governance in the Arab Region Latin American Public Opinion Project

Seven Representative National Surveys in : Selected Topics Political Interest and Participation Candidate and Leadership Qualifications Trust in Political Institutions Political System Preferences Religion in Political Affairs

Do You Follow News about Government and Politics in (Respondent’s Country)

Follows News about Government and Politics by Country (All=57%)

Electoral Participation: Voted in the Most Recent Election and Attended a Campaign Rally

Percentage Who Voted in Last Election and Attended a Campaign Rally by Sex, Education and Age (All=23%)

How Important Would You Consider Each of the Following Factors When Deciding Which Candidate To Support in an Election

How Important Is Each of the Following as a Qualification for National Leadership: Openness to Diverse Political Ideas

How Much Trust Do you Have In Each of the Following Political Institutions

Some People Have Said that the Arab World Lags Behind Other Regions. To the Extent This Is the Case, Which Statement Best Expresses Your Opinion about Responsibility for this Situation?

Percentage with Very Much or Much Trust in Political Parties by Sex, Education and Age (All=29%)

Electoral Participation by Trust in Political Parties

Democracy May Have Its Problems but Is Better than Any Other Form of Government

There Is a Substantial Division of Opinion about the Role of Religion in Political Affairs

Support for Democracy Is Not Influenced by Views about the Role of Religion in Political Affairs

Would Each of the Following Be a Suitable Way of Governing Your Country: A Parliament with Only Islamic Parties

Percentage Who Strongly Agree or Agree that Religion and Politics Should Be Separated by Sex, Education and Age (All=54%)

Views about Religion in Political Affairs by Frequency of Reading the Quran

Views about Religion in Political Affairs by Evaluation of Political Situation

Electoral Participation by Views about Islam in Politics

Trust in Political Parties by Views about Islam in Politics

Only Percent Report Political Interest and Involvement Education and Openness to Diverse Political Ideas Considered Important Qualifications for Political Office and Leadership Only about 50 Percent Trust Political Institutions; Even Fewer Have Much Trust in Political Parties Most Believe Democracy Is the Best Political System; There is Disagreement about Whether Religion Should Play a Role in Political Affairs Religiosity and Unfavorable Political Judgments Are Associated Support for Religion in Political Affairs; This Support Is Not Associated with Political Involvement or Trust in Political Parties Some General Conclusions