Qatar and the World Values Survey: Enhancing the Validity and Cross-Cultural Comparability of Survey Research Measurement

Jocelyn Mitchell, Sean Burns, Mary Dedinsky
Ahoud Hamad Al-Thani, Amna Selman Al-Majid, Asma Adnane Ajroudi, Muneera Al-Buainain, Sara Al Saadi, Sara Saad Khodr, Shahd Mazen Dauleh, Shannon Hana Farhoud, Tasbih Amin, Zena Assem Al-Tahhan
Collaborating Institution and Faculty Member: Qatar University and Justin J. Gengler
Funding: Qatar National Research Fund Undergraduate Research Experience Program (UREP)

This study delved deeper into the World Values Survey (2010) questions by conducting a second survey of the Qatari population. The research team applied a new questionnaire technique, “anchoring vignettes,” to calibrate specific survey questions in Qatar. Their purpose was to adjust the variance in individual responses to ensure valid inter-individual and international comparison and inference. Not only did this new methodology enable the researchers to better understand Qatari attitudes and opinions, but it also represented the first application of this method in the Arab Middle East.

This UREP project contributed to the global social-science knowledge on Qatar through numerous conference presentations and published papers.

Selected publications and papers

Mitchell, J.S., Gengler, J.J., Dauleh, S., Amin, T., and Al Tahhan, Z. (2013, September). How Can You Ask That?: A Conversation about the 2013 NUQ Survey of Qatari Opinion. Presentation at Northwestern University in Qatar, Doha, Qatar.

Mitchell, J.S. (2013, October). What We Can Learn from a Contextual Survey of the Qatari Population. Paper presented at the Qatar Faculty Forum, Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, Doha, Qatar.

Mitchell, J.S. (2013, November). Learning How to Survey the Qatari Population. Poster session presented at the Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference, Doha, Qatar.

Gengler. J.J. (2013, December). Collective Frustration, But No Collective Action, in Qatar. Middle East Research and Information Project. http://www.merip.org/mero/mero120713.

Mitchell, J.S., and Gengler, J.J. (2014, August). Measurement Comparability in Cross-Cultural Surveys: Evidence from Qatar. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Political Science Association, Washington, D.C.

Mitchell, J.S. (2014). Beyond Bricks and Mortar: Creating Knowledge through Student-Faculty Partnerships. Journal of General Education 63 (2–3): 73–93.

Gengler, J.J., and Mitchell, J.S. (2015, March). Understanding Within-Group DIF in Survey Response: Evidence from Three Surveys in Qatar. Paper presented at the World Association for Public Opinion Research regional conference, Doha, Qatar.

Mitchell, J.S. (2016, forthcoming). We’re All Qataris Here: The Nation-Building Narrative of the National Museum of Qatar. In Erskine-Loftus, P., Al-Mulla, M., and Hightower, V. (Eds.), Representing the Nation. Routledge.

Mitchell, J.S, and Pal, L.A. (2016, forthcoming). Policy Making in Qatar: The Macro-Policy Framework. In Tok, M.E., Al-Khater, L., and Pal, L.A (Eds.), Policy Making in a Transformative State: The Case of Qatar. Palgrave Macmillan.

Mitchell, J.S, and Gengler, J.J. What Money Can’t Buy: Wealth, Status, and the Rentier Bargain in Qatar. Under review.