The First Probability Survey Panel in North Macedonia
Lifepanel started its pilot recruitment in North Macedonia back in the summer of 2022, in order to test its probability-based RDD telephone recruitment modes: SMS, Whatsapp, and CATI.
The overall benefits of launching Lifepanel in North Macedonia prove to be a cost-effective and methodologically scientific way with relative feasibility for enabling survey research efforts in an otherwise under-researched region and serve as a positive indicator for utilisation of probability panels in the rest of neighboring countries as part of this overlooked part of Europe.
A downside of the approach is currently the under-representation of the older age group (65 and older) which will be sampled in an additional recruitment wave using landline sample and CATI. By doing so the Design Effect can be reduced for actual surveys.
We are looking forward to this new approach of collecting the population’s opinions and monitoring the attitudes in longitudinal trend studies on key topics surrounding the country and the broader Balkan region.
In the initial recruitment stage, Lifepanel engaged with the selected respondents on a 3 question flash survey to measure their opinions of the post-pandemic inflation and thoughts on whether the authorities should impose measures to combat the rising prices of basic household goods:
The results are as followed:
95.5% of residents in N. Macedonia perceive prices of domestic goods to be high for current standards.
70% of residents consider that their budget has been affected enormously by the price hikes in basic food products
– 70.0% strongly impacted
– 25.5% moderately impacted
– 3.2% slightly impacted
– 1.3% not at all affected
Respondents‘ perception on the current prices
It should be noted that this impact concerns all age groups, all social categories, all ethnicities, and all regions (each impacted by more than 87%); the differences observed are minor.
A very large majority of respondents perceive the economic situation as worrisome: 88.8%. While only 4.2% are not at all worried about the overall direction the economy is headed and 7% share a neutral stance This evolution is also very present in all layers of the population.
Respondents‘ perception on the nation’s economic situation
Finally, the survey also reveals the opinions on whether the government authorities should step in to limit the price increase:
– 91.7% believe the government should intervene with a price freeze on basic domestic products
– 8.3% believe it should not intervene
Respondents‘ opinion on whether a price freeze intervention is necessary by the authorities
According to a survey carried out by Lifepanel on a representative sample of 751 eligible respondents selected using a Mobile RDD frame for a mixed mode push-to-web and CATI survey mode, between 4th and 14th February 2023.
All surveys are subject to sampling error, which is the expected probable difference between interviewing everyone in a population versus a scientific sampling drawn from that population. Sampling error should be adjusted to recognize the effect of weighting the data to better match the population. In this poll, the simple sampling error for 751 respondents is +/-±3.58 percentage points, at a 95 percent confidence interval.
For more information ? : hello@lifepanel.eu
About Lifepanel
Lifepanel provides the next generation of probability based-data collection allowing researchers and policymakers to base their decision on reliable and scientifically reliable data.
The current coverage of Lifepanel consists of Germany, Malta, and North Macedonia. For enquiries to run your own survey for one of the countries, please reach out via hello@lifepanel.eu.
Lifepanel is further expanding its reach with the addition of new countries where we partner up with local fieldwork agencies. If you are a fieldwork agency and interested in getting to know how Lifepanel can further help you in growing a probability-based panel, please take a glance at our article: https://lifepanel.eu/lifepanel-for-cati-fieldwork-agencies/
