• Survey Research
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.23-43
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• 2009

The purpose of this paper is to explain characteristics of panel data and display the academic cases using panel data. Panel data have merit to control various variables to influence respondents' attitude and estimate the effects of independent variables researchers are interested in by surveying the same respondents several times. However, panel data also have problems such as contaminating the respondents and reducing the number of the respondents as survey conducted several times. In spite of a few inherent problems of panel data, informations that panel data provide are valuable and some research themes could not be possible without panel data. This paper investigates the relationship between interest in elections and voting. Electoral stimulation such as watching TV debates influences the consistent voting intended. But changing nonvoters who had voting intention but not vote are not influenced by the electoral stimulation.