Infratest dimap

Infratest dimap
Name	Infratest dimap
Type	Private research institute
Founded	1996
Headquarters	Bonn, Germany
Area served	Germany, European Union
Key people	Roderich Egeler, Frank Nienaber
Industry	Public opinion research, political consultancy
Products	Opinion polling, electoral analysis, television research

Infratest dimap is a German public opinion research institute and polling organization known for its electoral surveys, broadcast audience research, and political consulting. Founded in the 1990s through a merger of regional research groups, the institute has become prominent in German media coverage of federal, state, and European Parliament elections. It provides regular voting intention polls, exit polls, trend analyses, and commissioned studies for broadcasters, parties, and foundations.

History

Infratest dimap emerged from the combination of regional firms and academic networks in the 1990s, developing during the era of the Kohl cabinet and the later Schröder cabinet as German electoral politics underwent major realignments. The institute grew amid debates around reunification following the German reunification process and in the context of the expanding European Union and the Maastricht Treaty. In the early 2000s Infratest dimap became known for collaborating with public broadcasters such as ARD (broadcaster) and ZDF for televised election night coverage and trend polling. During the 2010s the institute played a visible role in coverage of the Angela Merkel chancellorship, the Eurozone crisis, and debates around the Refugee crisis in Europe while also engaging with academic partners at institutions like the Freie Universität Berlin and the University of Bonn.

Organization and Structure

Infratest dimap operates as a corporate entity with divisions focused on survey methodology, data processing, and media production. The executive leadership has included figures from German polling and media circles who maintain relationships with stations such as Deutsche Welle and networks linked to the ARD. Its staff profile typically blends statisticians, sociologists, and media researchers drawn from universities such as the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and the Humboldt University of Berlin. The institute maintains offices in Bonn and collaborates with European polling partners in capitals like Berlin, Brussels, and Paris. Governance arrangements reflect standards set by industry associations including the ADM (Arbeitskreis Deutscher Markt- und Sozialforschungsinstitute) and adhere to reporting practices expected by major broadcasters including Süddeutsche Zeitung and Der Spiegel when results are released.

Research Methods and Polling Techniques

Infratest dimap employs a mix of quantitative and qualitative techniques drawn from survey science traditions associated with scholars at the Max Planck Society and departments at the University of Mannheim. Standard tools include random probability sampling, weighting by demographic benchmarks from the Statistisches Bundesamt (Germany), and mode combinations such as telephone surveys, online panels, and face-to-face interviews used in coordination with firms like YouGov and partners across the European Social Survey. The institute has implemented exit poll methodologies for live election night projection similar to practices used by Gallup, Ipsos, and Pew Research Center; it also uses multilevel regression and poststratification techniques developed in academic settings including the University of Oxford and the Harvard University Center for statistical innovation. Quality control protocols follow guidelines promulgated by the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research and relevant ethics frameworks in collaboration with foundations such as the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation when studies are commissioned.

Major Surveys and Publications

Infratest dimap produces recurring "Sonntagsfrage" voting intention series, election night projections, and sector-specific studies commissioned by broadcasters like ARD as well as newspapers like Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and Die Zeit. Major publications include pre-election trend reports, long-term attitude tracking on topics such as EU integration referenced during debates around the Lisbon Treaty, and post-election analyses used by political scientists at institutions like the WZB Berlin Social Science Center. The institute’s outputs are cited in policy discussions involving actors such as the Bundestag, the European Commission, and political parties including the CDU (Germany), SPD (Germany), Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, and FDP (Germany). Collaborative reports have appeared alongside international comparative surveys like the European Election Studies and databases maintained by the OECD.

Influence and Criticism

Infratest dimap’s high visibility in televised coverage and print citation has shaped public expectations about polling accuracy, influencing party strategies for actors such as Martin Schulz and Armin Laschet. Critics drawn from media outlets such as Die Welt and academic commentators at the University of Cologne have questioned margin of error interpretations, nonresponse biases noted in studies by Statista analysts, and the influence of question wording on reported attitudes toward issues like the Dublin Regulation. Debates over transparency have prompted calls for disclosure of weighting schemes and sample frames in line with standards advocated by the World Association for Public Opinion Research and watchdogs in the Bundesnetzagentur regulatory environment.

Notable Polls and Electoral Impact

Infratest dimap produced notable exit polls and trend series for landmark contests including the 2005 German federal election, the 2009 European Parliament election, the 2013 German federal election, and the 2017 German federal election, each influencing media narratives and campaign tactics by figures such as Gerhard Schröder and Olaf Scholz. Its projections during televised election nights have occasionally prompted early concession statements by party leaders and influenced coalition negotiation expectations in post-election negotiations involving the Greens and Left (Germany). Analysts at the Bertelsmann Foundation and research units within the Federal Chancellery (Germany) have used Infratest dimap data to model electoral geography and voter migration between parties.

Category:Public opinion research firms in Germany