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Machine learning applications to survey nonresponse
No full textThis dissertation explores how Machine Learning (ML) can help researchers avoid biased inferences due to low response rates in general population surveys. Low response rates can, though do not always, cause these survey studies to fail in one of their primary objectives: making accurate inferences about a population based on a sample. When survey respondents differ systematically from nonrespondents in regards to the topic of the study, the resulting sample will be biased toward the characteristics of those who participate. This effect is called ’nonresponse bias’.
Machine learning, a subfield of computer science, focuses on developing algorithms that predict outcomes based on historical data. Given this principle, ML algorithms are a natural choice to learn patterns in survey data and predict individual tendencies to participate, which, as I shall explain, can in turn be leveraged to address nonresponse bias in various ways. The contributions of this dissertation, while varied, follow a common approach: applying ML techniques in novel ways to the challenge of survey nonresponse and demonstrating how survey practitioners can benefit from adopting these innovative methods.
Specifically, this work provides survey practitioners with new methods for evaluating the role of past behavior in predicting future nonresponse behavior (Chapter 2), making earlier predictions in newly commenced panel surveys (Chapter 3), enhancing response rates with model-based incentive targeting (Chapter 4), and improving election predictions (which are often confounded by nonresponse bias) by augmenting poll-based models with ML (Chapter 5). Chapters 2-4 are about techniques to ameliorate nonresponse bias, Chapter 5 is about a technique for correcting inferences despite the presence of nonresponse bias
Schlagzeugspielen als Sport? Zur sportiven Inszenierung von Musik in Whiplash oder: ein Musikspielfilm im Modus des Sportfilms
No full textDiverging ethnic hierarchies? Cultural distance, right-wing authoritarianism, and social distance perceptions in the Netherlands
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Sichtbarkeit von Wissenschaftler*innen auf Social Media: Einblicke aus Gruppendiskussionen zur Kommunikation auf Instagram
No full textPlace, perception, and politics : a geospatial analysis of deprivation and discontent
No full textThe importance of place in shaping political attitudes and behaviour is more prominent than ever.
Both public and academic discourses suggest that a place’s rurality and economic hardship contribute to political discontent, manifesting in low turnout and increased support for radical-right parties.
However, previous studies are often limited in their explanatory power by focusing on a small set of contextual variables, by studying voting behaviour at an aggregate level, or by approaching place with attitudinal measures without accounting for objective conditions.
As a result, these studies do not allow us to draw direct conclusions about how and which place-based factors are related to (manifestations of) discontent at the individual level or whether and how subjective perceptions moderate this relationship.
This dissertation addresses this gap and challenges deterministic views on place effects by arguing that objective spatial disparities need to interact with subjective perceptions of deprivation to translate into political discontent.
The dissertation consists of three articles that underscore this argument by exploring different aspects of the link between place and discontent in Germany, using geocoded survey data and high-resolution place-based information.
In the first article, I examine the role of public service provision in shaping political trust, demonstrating that accessibility to essential services influences political attitudes more than economic deprivation.
The second article focuses on how subjective perceptions of deprivation influence the relationship between objective place-based deprivation and political trust.
Place-based deprivation is only partially associated with political trust, while subjective perceptions amplify its effects.
The third article focuses on preferences for radical-right parties instead of political trust.
I explore whether living in a left-behind area affects party evaluation differently for individuals who feel left behind, which captures a broader sense of marginalization than geographical location.
The findings confirm a reinforcing relationship between living in a left-behind place and feeling left behind, particularly regarding rurality.
Overall, the link between place-based factors and political discontent exists.
Yet, at the individual level, it is generally weak and varies based on place-based characteristics, studied outcomes, and perceptions of deprivation.
My findings underscore the complexity of the relationship between place and political discontent.
I contribute to previous research by introducing public service provision as a critical factor and spatial linking methods to integrate fine-grained spatial data with survey data.
Distinguishing between political trust and radical-right support offers a more granular understanding of their drivers.
Lastly, this dissertation highlights that place alone does not suffice to explain political discontent, but subjective perceptions of deprivation are crucial for understanding place-based effects
Perception and use of time : consequences for refugees
No full textThe dissertation examines patterns of refugees’ time use and its link to time perceptions and integration, looking at refugees from the 2015/16 influx in Germany. The dissertation includes four empirical chapters. The first empirical chapter uses qualitative interview data to link refugees’ time use with their time perceptions. The second empirical chapter describes the time use patterns of refugees using quantitative data and shows how refugees differ from other immigrant groups and members of the German majority population in this regard. Empirical chapters three and four quantitatively examine the link between refugees’ time use and their integration outcomes: The third empirical chapter addresses the question of how engagement in and hours allocated to physical leisure activities influence refugees’ labor market outcomes, and the fourth empirical chapter examines the role of refugees’ time allocation to different activities for their social integration in terms of forming ethnically heterogamous partnerships and friendships
