Use of Public Opinion Data to Inform COVID-19 Policymaking

ANZSOG’s Research Model project Trust, Transparency and the Use of Data in Informing Policy Responses, co-funded by the Australian Public Sector Commission (APSC), is being undertaken by Monash University’s Sustainable Development Institute This project, to be completed in late 2024, will develop best practice guidance for public sector collection, evaluation, and use of public opinion data, for the purpose of developing public policy that integrates, and gives proper weight to, the opinions of those affected by it.

The first output from the project is the Use of Public Opinion Data to Inform COVID-19 Policymaking rapid evidence review on the utility of public opinion data, within the context of decision-making during the COVID crisis. This review aimed to address the question: How was public opinion data (POD) used to inform policy responses during the COVID-19 pandemic? It examined approximately 20 studies that have in some way drawn upon public opinion, and during crises – an acute context for decision making.