Programs & Projects

The Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program

The Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program

To inform the public debate on Australia’s foreign policy, the Lowy Institute has sought the views of the Australian public on foreign policy since 2005. The Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program also conducts polls in important neighbouring countries, and more recently, has started to survey diaspora communities in Australia.

The annual Lowy Institute Poll is one of the Lowy Institute’s flagship publications. It is the leading tracking survey on Australian foreign policy, providing a reliable vehicle for understanding Australian attitudes towards a wide range of foreign policy issues, while being independent and methodologically rigorous.

Over the course of the past decade, the Poll has uncovered significant shifts in public sentiment, including towards our most important neighbours and partners. It has tracked attitudes on important international issues ranging from climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic, to Australia’s relationships with China and the United States.

One of the best ways to explore the data from our eighteen years of polling is through our interactive site. Copies of the previous Lowy Institute polls are available here.

The Lowy Institute continues to conduct influential polls in several of our most important neighbours in the Asia-Pacific, including Indonesia (2006, 2011 and 2021), India (2013), New Zealand (2007 and 2012), China (2009) and Fiji (2011).

Through the Multiculturalism, Identity and Influence Project, the Lowy Institute has also conducted surveys of Chinese-Australian communities in 2020 and 2021. The ground-breaking Being Chinese in Australia study asks Chinese-Australians about their views on a wide range of issues — from foreign influence and relationships with China, to systems of government and pride in Australian life and culture.

The annual Lowy Institute Poll is entirely funded by the Lowy Institute to ensure its ongoing independence, and its questionnaire and results are thoroughly reviewed by independent consultants. The full dataset is available on the Lowy Institute Poll website, and datasets are also deposited with the Australian Social Science Data Archive where they are available free of charge for public scrutiny.

Experts
Latest publications
News and media
More young Australians dismissing democracy
Commentary
More young Australians dismissing democracy
Alex Oliver writes in the Sun Herald about the findings of the latest Lowy Institute Poll and the attitudes of young Australians to democracy. Alex Oliver
We see China and U.S. as central to our future
Commentary
We see China and U.S. as central to our future
In an opinion piece in The Australian newspaper, Michael Fullilove and Alex Oliver describe Australians’ complex attitudes towards important foreign policy issues, and in…
The Lowy Institute Poll 2013
Polling
The Lowy Institute Poll 2013
The ninth annual Lowy Institute Poll reports the results of a nationally representative survey of 1,002 Australian adults conducted by mobile and fixed-line telephone in…
Remarks at the launch of the India Poll 2013
Speeches
Remarks at the launch of the India Poll 2013
On 20 May 2013, International Security Program Director launched the India Poll 2013 at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. The full text of his remarks is included…
India Poll 2013
Polling
India Poll 2013
The India Poll 2013 is one of the most comprehensive surveys ever conducted on the attitudes of Indian citizens towards their future in the world. Photo: Flickr user…
India-Australia Poll 2013
Polling
India-Australia Poll 2013
The India-Australia Poll is a groundbreaking survey of Indian public attitudes towards Australia, with some surprising results. It reveals broadly positive views towards…
The Lowy Institute Poll 2012: Public opinion and foreign policy
Polling
The Lowy Institute Poll 2012: Public opinion and foreign policy
The eighth annual Lowy Institute Poll reports the results of a nationally representative opinion survey of 1,005 Australian adults conducted in Australia between 26 March…
Indonesia Poll 2012: Shattering stereotypes: public opinon and foreign policy
Polling
Indonesia Poll 2012: Shattering stereotypes: public opinon and foreign policy
The Lowy Institute Indonesia Poll reports the results of the Institute’s second opinion poll in Indonesia. The findings challenge many assumptions about Indonesia on issues like…
Fiji at home and in the world: public opinion and foreign policy
Polling
Fiji at home and in the world: public opinion and foreign policy
The Lowy Institute’s first Fiji Poll was a wide-ranging survey of public opinion in Fiji about the performance of Fiji’s military-led government and Fiji’s relations with the…
The 2011 Lowy Institute Poll
Polling
The 2011 Lowy Institute Poll
The seventh annual Lowy Poll surveys the Australian public on new questions covering attitudes towards the US alliance and the war in Afghanistan, opinions on basing US forces in…
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