Upload
wylie-tidwell-iii
View
486
Download
2
Tags:
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Chapter 6 Public Opinion
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
SvenMartson/The Image Works
Political Socialization• Political socialization
– How individuals acquire political knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs
– Lifelong process, although most scholarly focus has been on children and adolescents
– Studies: children tend to personalize and idealize government
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Political Socialization• Agents of Socialization – the factors that
contribute to political socialization by shaping formal and informal learning
– Includes• family • school• religious institutions • peer groups • media
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Measuring Public Opinion• The opinions of a large population, or universe
– Measured based on interviews with a relatively small sample
• Sampling– Must be representative of that population, or universe– Biased samples are not representative – Margin of error
• Related to sample size and bears on how poll results should be interpreted
– Random sample • Every member of the poll’s universe has just as
much chance of being polled as any other member.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Mauro Saivezzo/Shutterstock
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Measuring Public Opinion– Question Wording – invalid questions: too
complicated or too simple, may be biased and tend to produce results too one-sided
– Question Sequencing – determines context– Phantom Opinions – made-up responses– Interviewer-Respondent Interaction – race or
gender of interviewer can affect results– Timing – most valid on day poll is taken
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Political Knowledge and Attitudes• Knowledge and Interest:
– Americans are poorly informed about politics and government.
– Some groups are more informed than others.• Support for democratic principles:
– Support of majority rule and minority rights in the abstract.
– Opinions are mixed when it comes to specific applications of these concepts.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Political Trust and Political Legitimacy
• Political trust – Essential to political legitimacy in a
democracy • Political legitimacy
– Popular acceptance of a government and its officials as rightful authorities in the exercise of power
• Declining trust in government officials contributes to decline in political legitimacy
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Political efficacy
– The extent to which people believe they can affect the policymaking process.
• For some Americans
– Levels of internal political efficacy have risen over the last two decades.
– Meanwhile, levels of external political efficacy have fallen dramatically.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Political Trust and Political Legitimacy
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Izzy Schwartz/Photdisc/Getty Images
Political Philosophy• Liberalism: political
philosophy that favors the use of government power to promote the welfare of society.
• Conservatism: political philosophy that government undermines the development of the individual and undermines society.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
CORBIS
Political Philosophy• More Americans say
they are conservative than say they are liberal.
• The terms political left and political right are used to describe political ideology.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Bettmann/CORBIS
Political Philosophy Opinion Differences Among Groups:
– Social Class: Lower-income Americans are more liberal than middle and upper-income people on some issues and more conservative on other issues.
– Race and Ethnicity: African Americans and Hispanics hold more liberal views on economic issues than white Americans do.
– Religion: Affiliation with different religious denominations affect many Americans’ political views; church attendance correlates with political participation.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Political PhilosophyOpinion Differences Among Groups:–Generation: Younger people are more liberal, especially on issues such as women’s rights, civil rights for racial and ethnic minority groups, and gay/lesbian rights.–Region : Differences in political views among people from different geographical regions are less evident than they once were, but they still exist.–Gender : Studies have found major differences between men and women on a number of issues, particularly those concerning war and peace and spending on social programs.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Pete Stone/CORBIS
Public Opinion and Public Policy
• Does public opinion affect public policy? – Public opinion establishes a zone of
acquiescence. • This is the range of policy options acceptable
to the public on a particular issue. – Public opinion
• Affects policy not by dictating policy but by limiting options
• Usually only one of several factors affecting the public policy process
Copyright © 2011, 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.