Do Interviewers Affect Measures of Factual Political Knowledge? Evidence from Austria and Germany

This study examines how interviewers' gender and education affect the measured level of factual political knowledge by drawing on competing theoretical frameworks: stereotype threat theory and interviewer noncompliance with the instructions. Testing these mechanisms using survey data from the Austrian National Election Study (AUTNES) and the German Longitudinal Election Study (GLES), we find no evidence for a stereotype threat effect, but seem to observe interviewer effects resulting from interviewer non-compliance. In Germany, respondents' measured level of knowledge was significantly higher when a male interviewer, regardless of his education, conducted the interview, compared with low educated female interviewers. This finding has implications for survey-based studies, which measure factual political knowledge, for example attempts to limit such effects should be made during the interviewer briefing.