Study title

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.The Audit of Political Engagement is a time-series study providing an annual benchmark to measure political engagement in Great Britain, gauging public opinion about politics and the political system, and more broadly the general health of our democracy. Each Audit report presents the findings from a public opinion survey, providing detailed commentary on a range of measures that have been chosen as key measures of political engagement. Repeating questions in successive years enables us to chronicle the public’s responses year on year and track the direction and magnitude of change since the Audit was first published in 2004, building trend data on public attitudes to key aspects of our democracy. The Audit looks at core inter-locking areas that are known as vital facets, or 'building blocks', of political engagement. Given the multi-dimensional nature of political engagement, the indicators chosen are not exhaustive, but in capturing aspects of public behaviour, knowledge, opinions, attitudes and values towards politics they help us understand the drivers of political engagement and the relationships between them. Across the Audit series several 'core' indicator questions have been asked each year, supplemented by a range of thematic and topical questions, some of which are re-visited on two- or three-year cycles. Further information about the survey series is available from the Hansard Society Audit of Political Engagement webpages. The Audit of Political Engagement 9, 2011 provides an update of the six core indicators. A year ago, Audit 8 reflected on a growing sense of indifference to politics. The greater levels of interest in and perceived knowledge of politics in an election year had not been matched by greater satisfaction with, or a greater engagement in, the political process beyond a slight increase in turnout itself. The 2011 Audit suggests that indifference has hardened into...