P UBLIC O PINION

T HE B ASICS Public Opinion- citizens attitudes about political issues, leaders, institutions, and events. Values (or beliefs)- the basic principles that shape a person’s opinions about political issues and events. Political ideology- a cohesive set of beliefs that form a general philosophy about the role of government. Attitude (or opinion)- a specific preference on a specific issue.

C OMMON V ALUES IN A MERICA Equality of opportunity- all have the freedom to use whatever talents and wealth they possess to reach their full potential. Democracy- that public officials should be chosen by majority vote Liberty- the freedom to express ones views

P OLITICAL S OCIALIZATION Political socialization- the induction of individuals into the political culture; the process of learning the underlying beliefs and values on which the political system is based. Agents Family Social Groups Education Political Conditions stay-true-parents-political- perspectives.aspx

F AMILY Do you know what your parents’ political beliefs are? Did your parents ever ask for a vote on where to go to dinner? Did your parents tell you that everyone should be allowed to express their opinions? Children are more likely to adopt the political beliefs of their parents than not.

S OCIAL G ROUPS Can be chosen or involuntary Race Gender Occupation Political Party Political opinions can be rational for individuals when considering their social groups: EX- Farmers are overwhelmingly in favor of farming subsidies

E DUCATION Governments use public education to try to teach all children a common set of values. Level of education can be an indication of opinions and participation. The largest difference is in the amount of political participation. “college graduates vote, write letters to the editor, join campaigns, take part in protests, and generally make their voices heard.”

P OLITICAL C ONDITIONS Great or poor conditions in a country can color the political beliefs and identifications of citizens Ex: Those who grew up during the Great Depression and WWII developed a great loyalty to Roosevelt and the Democratic party. How has 9/11 impacted political participation and opinion?

R EALIGNING E LECTION Realigning Election- where a segment of the population align themselves with a different party in an election. Only one true example- FDR’s first election in 1932 when many people left the Republican party because of the Great Depression and aligned themselves with the Democrats

P OLITICAL K NOWLEDGE 25% of Americans polled could name their two senators Political ignorance is a fact of political life given the high cost of political attentiveness. Reading, thinking, participation, social friction, and pessimism can all be costs of political knowledge You can always be a free rider Free Rider- Someone who does not contribute to the greater good Someone will make the decision for a free rider They might not be happy with it, but the decision has been made

S HORTCUTS The trusted other, believe what someone you usually agree with believes (the opposite is also true) Party affiliation or ideology

W HY THAT ISN ’ T SO GOOD IN A D EMOCRACY Issues are often too complex to lend themselves to simple ideological interpretation. Shortcut takers can become victims in political struggles because they cannot effectively defend their political interests Large numbers of politically inattentive people means that the political process can be more easily manipulated by the forces that seek to shape public opinion.

H OW POLARIZED IS PUBLIC OPINION ? State results, by land area County results by land area State results, by population County results, by population

M EASURING P UBLIC O PINION (B ASICS ) Public Opinion Polls- the scientific instruments for measuring public opinion Sample- a small group selected by researchers to represent the most important characteristics of an entire population

M EASURING P UBLIC O PINION (T YPES ) Probability sampling- a method used by pollsters to select a representative sample in which every individual in the population has an equal probability of being selected as a respondent Random digit dialing- a poll in which respondents are selected at random from a list of ten digit telephone numbers, with every effort made to avoid bias in the construction of the sample

M EASURING P UBLIC O PINION (E RRORS ) Measurement error- the failure to identify the true distribution of opinion within a population because of errors such as ambiguous or poorly worded questions Push Polling- A polling technique in which the questions are designed to shape a respondent’s opinion Selection bias- a polling error in which the sample is not representative of the population being studied, so that some opinions are over- or underrepresented. Sampling error- a polling error that arises on account of the small size of the sample

M EASURING P UBLIC O PINION (E FFECTS ) Illusion of Salience- The impression conveyed by polls that something is important to the public when it actually is not. Bandwagon effect- a shift in electoral support to the candidate whom public opinion polls report as the front runner. Rally round the flag effect- a shift in electoral support to the status quo during a time of war or crisis.

H OW DOES THIS INFLUENCE POLICY ? Individual doorstep opinions vs. aggregate public opinion Between 1935 and 1979 about 2/3 of all cases significant changes in public opinion were followed within one year by policy changes Why doesn’t policy always follow opinion The majority may not be intensely committed as the minority Structure of the government creates a lag time (ex: supreme court rulings) Party leadership may be slow, or unwilling to react

S HAPING O PINION Government Presidents and the Executive branch use polls, focus groups, planted news stories, and film to try to persuade the public with propaganda.

S HAPING O PINION Interest Groups Special interests groups may try to shape opinion because of values or personal interest. Partial Birth Abortion Ban Cheap Handgun Ban Sweatshop campaign

S HAPING O PINION The Media Can be outlets for the other two Do the scandals that the media uncovers impact your view of politicians and politics? Priming and Framing We will discuss more of this this in the next notes