Chapter 05

Public Opinion

Chapter Outline

Americans’ opinions are shaped by fundamental values and demographic background.

  1. Public opinion is the term used to denote citizens” attitudes about political issues, leaders, institutions, and events. Values (or beliefs) are a person”s basic orientation to politics.
  2. Political ideology refers to a complex set of beliefs and values that, as a whole, form a general philosophy about government.
  3. Most Americans share a common set of values, including a belief in the principles—if not always the actual practice—of liberty, equality, and democracy.
  4. Equality of opportunity is a widely shared American ideal that all people should have the freedom to use whatever talents and wealth they have to reach their fullest potential.
  5. Americans have always voiced strong support for the principle of individual liberty, meaning freedom from government control.
  6. Most Americans also believe in democracy, a system of rule where popular wishes and preferences regularly and systematically shape who controls the government and what the government does.
  7. The processes that form political beliefs and values are collectively called political socialization. Social institutions, including families and schools, help to shape an individual”s basic political beliefs and values.
  8. Membership in both voluntary and involuntary social groups can affect an individual”s political values. Consider the influence of personal experience, group leaders, and political interests in the context of a social group.
  9. A person”s level of education is an important factor in shaping political beliefs.
  10. Conditions under which individuals and groups are recruited into political life help to shape political orientations.
  11. Many Americans describe themselves as either liberal or conservative in political orientation.
  12. Although ideologies shape political opinions on particular issues, they seldom fully determine one”s views.
  13. Political opinions are influenced by people”s underlying values, their knowledge of political issues, and external forces such as government, private groups, and the media.
  14. Opinion intensity is the depth or strength of feeling Americans hold about an issue.
  15. Opinions can be stable or fluid. If opinions are fluid, they can change or shift over a short period of time. In general, public opinion tends to be relatively stable. A major shift in opinion over a short space of time, however, often prompts political leaders to pay attention to popular wishes.
  16. Studies of political opinion have shown that most people don”t hold specific and clearly defined opinions on every political issue. As a result, they are easily influenced by others. Knowledgeable citizens are better able to evaluate new information and determine whether it is relevant to and consistent with their beliefs and opinions.
  17. Governmental leaders invariably attempt to influence, manipulate, or manage the opinions of the people. Sometimes governmental leaders use public relations techniques to manipulate opinions about their political image.
  18. Private groups are very interested in shifting public opinion to their benefit. The ideas that become prominent in political life are often developed and spread by powerful economic and political groups searching for issues that will advance their causes.

Measuring Public Opinion Is Crucial to Understanding What It Is

  1. Politicians and public officials use the results of public-opinion polls, scientific instruments for measuring public opinion,to help them make decisions.
  2. To conduct polls, researchers must first choose a sample of the total population, meaning a small group selected to represent the most important characteristics of an entire population. The selection of this sample is important.
  3. The views of those included in the sample must accurately and proportionately reflect the views of the whole.
  4. Modern polling is based on the principle of random sampling, meaning that each person in the population has an equal chance of being picked.
  5. Selection bias is when the sample is not representative of the population being studied, and some opinions may be overrepresented or underrepresented.5. Even with reliable sampling procedures, measurement error (failure to identify the true distribution of opinion within a population because of errors such as ambiguous or poorly worded questions) can occur.
  6. Push polling can be used to shape the opinion of the person responding to the poll. This technique involves asking a respondent a loaded question about a political candidate designed to elicit the response sought by the pollster and, simultaneously, to build a negative image of the opponent.

Public Opinion Must Matter in a Democracy

  1. Government policies in the United States are generally consistent with popular preferences. There are, however, always some inconsistencies.
  2. Disagreements between opinion and policy come about on some issues, such as gun control, because an intensely-committed minority can defeat a more apathetic majority. Moreover, the American system of government is not designed to quickly transform changes in opinion into changes in government programs.