1. CH. 11 PUBLIC OPINION & POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION
STUDENT NOTES

2. PUBLIC OPINION
Public Opinion - The distribution of people’s beliefs about politics and policy issues
Professional polling institutions conduct scientific polling (e.g. Gallup, Pew Research Center). Major newspapers and networks also conduct scientific polls
Government created to achieve goals not “do what people want”
Policy at odds with public opinion

3. We don’t know anything but we have an opinion on everything
American public lacking knowledge about issues and government.
Nearly one-third do not know the name of the vice president.
Only one-fourth can name their two senators.
Only one-third can name their U.S. representative.
Most do not have a factual knowledge about policy.
Only a small percentage can identify a single piece of legislation passed by Congress.
Misperceptions about government policies are widespread.
Many do not know what is in the Constitution.
Education levels have increased but not political knowledge.
Sarah Palin thinks she can see Russia from her house!

4. MEASURING OPINION Public Opinion Polling
Interviews or surveys used to gauge and estimate feelings and beliefs of citizenry
Polls help candidates detect preferences
Exit, Straw, Tracking, Push

5. ACCURATE POLLING Characteristics of valid, scientific poll:
Randomized sample
Representative sample
Question wording (unbiased, unambiguous)
Large sample size/low margin of error

6. ACCURATE POLLING Questions can’t be leading
Rely on a representative sample of the population - small proportion of people who are chosen to represent the whole
1,500 represent US, but LARGER the size, more accurate the poll
Random Sampling: everyone should have an equal probability of being selected as part of the sample
Random-digit dialing
Sampling error: +/- 3%

7. Measuring Public Opinion and Political Information
Role of Polls in American Democracy
Help politicians figure out public preferences.
Polls reflect the policy agenda—problems the people inside and outside of government believe must be addressed.

8. Use of Polls
Even accurate and reliable polls can affect politics in a negative way:
Discourages candidates from running if low in polls
Polls find out what voters want and candidates adopt positions and develop images to suit the voters – not a true view of the candidate’s preferences or ideas.
Influence fund-raising

9. WHY LISTEN TO POLLS… Winning! Dealing w/ competitive elections
Politicians need to appeal to masses during elections
Sense of patriotic duty
Dealing w/ competitive elections
Desire to get reelected
One up the opponent

10. WHY NOT TO LISTEN TO POLLS…
Voting record
Effort to not appear indecisive
“flip-flopper”
Maintain reputation
Party leadership
Good favor by maintaining loyalty

11. POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION
Complex process by which people acquire their political values
Political Ideology - coherent set of beliefs about public policy
Political socialization is how people acquire their ideology
Americans tend to identify themselves as Conservative, Liberal, or Moderate

13. Freedom (LIBERTY):
Freedom of: the absence of constraints on behavior - freedom to do something (liberty)
Freedom from: immunity from fear and want; the fight against exploitation and oppression
Order:
Preserving life and protecting property
Social Order refers to the established patterns of authority in society and to traditional modes of behavior
Equality:
Equality of opportunity: Each person has the same chance to succeed in life
Equality of outcome: Government must design policies that redistribute wealth and status so that economic and social equality are actually achieved

14. CONSERVATIVES (American)
Higher value placed on freedom than on equality when the two conflict. Restrict freedom when threatened with the loss of order
limit size of government (national)
decrease regulation of business
Pro-life
support school vouchers
freedom and tradition

15. LIBERALS (American)
Gov should promote equality, even if some freedom is lost in the process, but who oppose surrendering freedom to government-imposed order
larger role for government
Increase regulation of business
Increase gun control
Pro-choice

20. POLITICAL IDEOLOGY
Ideological Types in the United States also include:
Libertarians: People who favor freedom over both equality and order
Communitarians: People who favor equality and order over freedom

21. POLITICAL CULTURE
The widely-shared beliefs, values, and norms that citizens share about their gov.
Helps define the publics expectations towards the political process and its role in the process

22. Political Culture v. Ideology
A set of general attitudes, ideas and beliefs
Broadly informs and shapes a region’s politics
Political culture is different from ideology because people can disagree on ideology, but still have a common political culture.

23. AMERICAN POLITICAL CULTURE
Democracy
Equality of opportunity
Individual liberty
Civic duty
Rule of law
Private property
Capitalism
Nationalism and exceptionalism

24. Equality Americans strongly support: political equality legal equality
equality of opportunity
There is much less support for equality of results
social welfare less comprehensive than in other Western democracies

26. FAMILY
#1 indicator of ideology
More to do with ideology than party

27. RELIGION
Catholics and Jews more liberal on social and economic issues than Protestants (WASP)
Religious differences make for political differences
Social status – discrimination or minority position w/i society
Christian Coalition

28. EDUCATION More education (higher degree) = more liberal
Liberal education, professors, exposure, intellectual freedom

29. GENDER Gender gap Women reliable democrats since 60’s
Shifted b/c of women’s liberation
Men identify more w/ Republicans
Women: social
Men: military and economic

30. AGE
Older people vote more conservative than younger votes and at a higher rate

31. SOCIAL CLASS “Blue collar” (Laborer) typically Democrat
“White collar” (Businessmen) typically Republican
New Deal coalition

32. RACE & ETHNICITY Argument based on past policy
Agree on more issues than disagree
Blacks more liberal coalition than whites
Hispanics – Cubans more conservative; hardcore Catholics more conservative, BUT immigration policy favors liberals

33. NEW DEAL COALITION
Coalition of Democratic state party organizations, city machines, labor unions and blue collar workers, minorities (racial, ethnic and religious), farmers, white Southerners, people on relief, and intellectuals

34. REAGAN CONSERVATIVES
White (WASP), socially conservative, attracted to social conservatism on issues such as abortion, Christian right, and hawkish foreign policy
Reagan Democrats – voted for Carter, then hated Carter, fell in love with Reagan, then voted for Reagan and Bush Sr.

35. GEOGRAPHICAL REGION East and West coast – more liberal
Mid-West – more conservative
Urban – liberal
South: 1870s-1950s – Democrat “solid south” but tday social conservatives (whites especially)
North more liberal
Economic and social