Methodology
How the Rankings Are Built.
Every league answers a specific question. Its methodology explains what is being compared, which evidence is used and how that evidence becomes a score. This page sets out our shared principles and connects you to the rules for each league.
Choose a league
League Methodologies
Each league has its own scope, evidence and scoring method. Start with its methodology when interpreting a result.
Politics
PublishedPolitical Parties Integrity Index
This index compares European political parties, combining electoral strength with assessments of democratic commitment, media integrity, corruption and rule of law, transparency and accountability.
Policing
PublishedEuropean Police Confidence and Rights Context Index
A comparison of public assessments of police and the wider rights conditions in which policing takes place. The scores describe national systems, with police organisations named in the profiles.
Food
PublishedLa Lega — Italian Restaurant League
La Lega combines observational checks on restaurant identity and operating status with review checks across multiple sources. Review checks inform League Points; observational checks establish eligibility.
Ranked restaurants are grouped into Serie A, Serie B and Serie C. League Points run from 0 to 100, with higher points producing a higher place. Equal points share a place and stay in the same division. The selection covers the restaurants assessed for this edition.
Travel
PublishedThe Airline League
A comparison of passengers’ ratings of boarding, comfort and crew service. Each measure contributes one third of the points, using the same KAYAK profile for each airline.
Points are rounded to whole numbers. Equal points share a rank and are never split between Premier League, League One and League Two. The methodology explains the fixed snapshot, selection and small-review flags.
This directory includes methods for politics, policing, Italian restaurants and airline passenger experience. It will expand as more leagues are introduced, with evidence and scoring rules suited to each subject.
Shared research principles
What Every Method Needs to Explain
The same questions guide our work across subjects. The answers determine what a particular league can reasonably claim.
Define the Question and the Entries
State what the index measures, who is eligible, the geographic coverage and what one entry represents. A score for a national system cannot automatically be assigned to an organisation within it.
Identify the Evidence and Its Dates
Name the sources, explain the measures and distinguish the publication date from the period covered by the data. A recent edition may combine observations collected in different years.
Apply the Same Rules to Comparable Entries
Use consistent definitions and scoring criteria within a league. Explain differences in coverage, samples or data collection that affect comparisons.
Explain How the Score Is Calculated
Set out the indicators, scales, weights and aggregation rules. Weights express judgments about what matters. The method should also explain missing data, rounding and ties.
Distinguish Different Kinds of Evidence
Public perceptions, recorded events and expert assessments answer different questions. A survey about accountability measures what people believe; it does not count investigations or sanctions.
Show What the Evidence Cannot Establish
Explain uncertainty, gaps and limits to coverage. Missing information is not evidence of a clean record. Small score differences may be too weak to support a strong conclusion about relative performance.
Interpreting a league
Read the Score With Its Method
Can scores be compared across different leagues?
Scores have meaning within the index that produces them. An 80 in the Political Parties Integrity Index, the police index, the Italian Restaurant League and the Airline League reflects different evidence and calculations. Bands and labels also belong to their own league; there is no shared platform-wide rating.
Does a higher position mean an entry is better overall?
It means a stronger result on the measures included in that index. A ranking cannot cover every aspect of an organisation, country or experience. The scope statement and methodology explain what the score covers and what it leaves out.
Are small differences meaningful?
A precise-looking number can still be uncertain. Rounding may hide small differences, while survey estimates and expert judgments have their own limits. A change of one position should not automatically be treated as a substantial or statistically established difference.
Does moving up mean an improvement over time?
A position can change because of new evidence, different coverage, revised methods or changes elsewhere in the table. Comparisons across editions need a consistent basis. Method changes and corrections should be read alongside the results.
Research governance
Updates, Corrections and Independence
Each league sets its own update cycle. Its methodology should identify the edition, data period, correction process and any changes that affect comparisons over time.
Document Changes
LeagueIndex’s policy is to record corrections and methodological changes, with earlier editions and methods retained for reference. Factual corrections must be supported by evidence; scores are not negotiated.
Keep Scoring Independent
Research and scoring decisions are separate from funding and sponsorship. The methodology and research framework are developed in collaboration with the Media and Journalism Research Center (MJRC).