The B.I. and Lucille Cohen Institute for Public Opinion Research, University of Tel Aviv

The B.I. and Lucille Cohen Institute for Public Opinion Research is an academic institute affiliated with the faculty of the Social Sciences at Tel Aviv University. As such, it is charged with the task of pursuing theoretical and methodological capabilites that contribute to the study of attitudes and opinions in Israeli society. Its objectives are:

• to carry out a survey program on attitudes concerning Israeli polity and society
• to assemble trend information in order to follow the dynamics of public opinion in Israel and,
• to experiment with survey methodology in order to improve survey techniques.

The Institute is a not for profit academic center and is not affiliated with market research organizations. The Institute conducts face-to-face interviews on a nation wide basis. The operation is based on a division of the country into five units: four geographic areas covering all Jewish communities with a population of 2,000 residents or more and one covering communities in which Arab citizens of Israel reside. The Cohen Institute also operates a telephone survey laboratory on campus with 15 stations, ten of which are CATI stations. Interviews are conducted in Hebrew, Arabic, and Russian.

The senior staff of the Institute are members of the University Faculty, mostly from the Social Sciences. In addition to carrying out funded research projects, the Institute also offers professional services in research planning, interviewer training, design of survey instruments, and statistical analysis.