ABSTRACT
Micro research into political behaviour offers a wealth of information about the attitudes of citizens and other persons. The methodology of micro analysis deals with how to access and handle large data sources concerning these attitudes. In order to meet the standard criteria of scientific research, such as the principle of inter-subjectivity, theories about value-orientations must be testable in relation to empirical data that is accessible to the entire scientific community. How are we to meet this requirement? That is the subject of the so-called Converse's rule. It links a theoretical construct in value research with the replies in surveys to standard questions, i.e. more specifically to the constraints implying consistency in the responses of people to batteries of questions. We shall exemplify Converse's rule when examining the main theories of value-orientations, such as trust theory, post-materialism and New Culture Theory.
