Chapter 6: Public Opinion

1. Chapter 6: Public Opinion

2. Public Opinion • In a democracy, government policy is suppose to follow public opinion. • Yet the history of capital punishment in America shows that government policy may resist public opinion. • Democratic theory implies that government leaders are able to ascertain what the public is thinking about current political and social issues.

3. Statistical Sampling Theory • Sampling theory has made it possible to be better informed about the distribution of the population’s belief and attitudes about politics and government. • Modern survey research methodology allows national opinion to be estimated within specific degrees of accuracy

4. Government Policy and Public Opinion • Knowing how often government policy runs against majority opinion, it becomes harder to defend the U.S. government as democratic under the majoritarian view of democracy. • To evaluate the role of public opinion in U.S. government, we need to know more about how opinions are distributed and how citizens acquire their opinions.

5. Public Opinion • Political Values • How We Form Political Opinions • Measuring Public Opinion • Public Opinion and Democracy • The Citizen’s Role

6. Public Opinion • A term used to denote the values and attitudes that people have about issues, events, and personalities. • Values--are a person’s basic orientations to politics. They are deep rooted goals, aspirations, and ideas that shape an individual’s perceptions of political issues and events.

7. Public Opinion Matters!

8. Political Awareness • Democracy assumes an informed and interested public • Yet, Americans lack any real political knowledge • Can you name the president, your members of Congress, the Justices of the U. S. Supreme Court? • Political knowledge is the foundation for politically active society

9. Student Interest in Politics

10. An Opinionated Public • Americans possess a wide range of opinions on political matters • This is particularly true for salient issues • Salient issues are those issues that are important to that individual

12. What is Public Opinion? • Public opinion is the term used to denote beliefs and attitudes that people have about issues, events, and personalities • We need to understand what factors shape public opinion

13. Political Ideology • Political Ideology is a cohesive set of beliefs that form a general philosophy about the role of government. • In the United States the ideological divide is between conservatism and liberalism.

14. The Formation of Public Opinion • Attitudes about political issues and personalities tend to be shaped by underlying beliefs and values • The process through which these beliefs and values are formed is called political socialization

15. SOCIALIZATION • THE PROCESS THROUGH WHICH A PERSON LEARNS OF VALUES, BELIEFS, AND OPINIONS • AGENTS OF SOCIALIZATION • FAMILY • THE FIRST AND PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT AGENT • SCHOOL • A LOT OF HIDDEN CURRICULUM ITEMS WHICH ATTEMPT TO “INCULATE” GOOD CITIZENSHIP VALUES IN THE PERSON

16. OTHER AGENTS • RELIGION • MANY OF A PERSON’S VALUES AND BELIEFS ABOUT POLITICS CAN ORIGINATE IN RELIGIOUS TRAINING • GENERATIONAL EFFECTS • IMPORTANT EVENTS CAN AFFECT THE VIEWS OF PERSONS WHO LIVED THROUGH THEM • LIFE-CYCLE EFFECTS • GETTING OLDER MAY HELP SHAPE A PERSON’S POLITICAL OPINIONS • MEDIA INFLUENCE • MASS MEDIA CAN INFLUENCE OUR VIEWS ON POLITICAL ISSUES

17. Family • Most people acquire their initial orientations toward government from their family • Differences in family background, opinions, child-rearing will ultimately affect your political and social values and beliefs

18. Social Groups • Involuntary • Gender • Race • Voluntary • Political Parties • Labor Unions • Occupational Groups

20. Education • Education used to convey a common set of civic values • Yet, schools are often seen as “boot camps” as they stress order and compliance • College education stresses participation and democratic values

21. Religion

22. Political Conditions • Historical and cultural events that occur during your life will shape your world view • Students of the 1960s have a different perspective than students of the 1990s

23. The Media

24. From Political Values to Ideology • An Ideology is a set of underlying orientations, ideas and beliefs • Liberals generally support social reform and a social safety net • Conservatives generally prefer the social and economic status quo

25. Self Identification

27. Profile of a Liberal • Advocates increasing taxes for the wealthy • Advocates a “Right to Food Policy” to make available a nutritionally balanced diet for all U.S. citizens. • Advocates higher salaries for teachers, more college grants and loans, and doubling the federal education budget

28. Profile of a Liberal • Favors foreign assistance programs designed to wipe out hunger and starvation throughout the world. • Advocates the establishment of a national health care program for all citizens. • Advocates dramatic expansion of federal social and urban programs.

29. Profile of a Conservative • Wants to trim the size of the federal government and transfer power to state and local governments. • Favors prayer in school • Opposes gay right legislation • Opposes affirmative action. • Favors making most abortions illegal.

30. Profile of a Conservative • Supports programs that would allow children and parents more flexibility in deciding what schools to attend. • Would eliminate some environment regulations. • Opposes U.S. participation in international organizations.

31. The ideological conundrum • Liberal • Conservative

32. How We Form Public Opinion • Political Knowledge • The Influence of Political Leaders, Private Groups, and the Media

33. How We Form Political Opinions:Questions • What influences the way we form political opinions? • How are political issues marketed and managed by the government, private groups, and the media?

34. Political Knowledge • Political activity is a function of awareness and interest • The lack of political knowledge can lead to inconsistencies between beliefs and opinions • Political efficacy is the belief that you have an ability to influence government and politics

35. The Influence of Political Leaders, Private Groups and the Media • Government and Public Opinion • Private Groups and Public Opinion • The Media and Public Opinion

36. Government and Public Opinion • All governments attempt to influence, manipulate, or manage their citizens beliefs • Nationalism and encouraging participation allow citizens to buy into the system

37. Political Trust

38. Confidence in Institutions

39. Private Groups and Public Opinion • Interest groups also attempt to mobilize the public to support their issues and put pressure on government officials

40. The Media and Public Opinion • The communication media are among the most powerful forces operating in the market place of ideas

41. Measuring Public Opinion • Constructing Public Opinion From Surveys • Public Opinion, Political Knowledge, and the Importance of Ignorance

42. Measuring Public Opinion:Questions • How can public opinion be measured? • What problems arise from public opinion polling?

43. Constructing Public Opinion from Surveys • Public opinion polls are scientific instruments for measuring public opinion • To be accurate, the poll must be based on a representative sample of the population • The validity of the poll depends on the sampling procedure used • 1,500 samples are needed for a national survey

44. Public Opinion Analysis • Public opinion can be analyzed according to the shape and stability of the distribution of opinions among citizens. • The shape of the distribution refers to the pattern or physical form of the responses when counted and plotted.

45. Skewed Distribution Capital Punishment

46. Consensus Opinion

47. Bimodal Distribution Abortion

48. Divisive Opinion

49. Normal Distribution Political Ideology

50. Problems with Polls • The Good Citizen Response • The Bandwagon Effect • Inconsistent Responses • Survey Wording