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Chapter 6
PUBLIC OPINION AND POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION
CHAPTER SUMMARY
Public opinion clearly plays an important role in our political system. President George W. Bush clearly
demonstrates this. While he has enjoyed widespread support for his war on terrorism, the public has
expressed deep skepticism about his war in Iraq. Public opinion also derailed Bushs plan to overhaul Social
Security. Two other presidents embody just how powerful public opinion can be. Opposition to the war in
Vietnam was a factor in 1968 when President Lyndon Johnson declined to run for reelection. Public opinion
on the scandal surrounding the 1972 Watergate break-in gave Congress strong support to initiate
impeachment proceeding against President Nixon.
Defining Public Opinion
Public opinion is defined as the aggregate of individual attitudes or beliefs shared by some portion of adults.
Public opinion is made known in a democracy by voting and responding to polls, as well as participating in
protests and lobbying by interest groups. There are very few issues on which most Americans agree. When a
large proportion of the public does appear to hold the same view on an issue, a consensus exists. If opinion
is polarized between two quite different positions, divisive opinion exists. See Figure 6-1 and 6-2 for
examples of these concepts.
How Public Opinion Is Formed: Political Socialization
The process by which individuals acquire political beliefs and opinions is called political socialization. The
most important influence in this process is the family. Children have a strong need for parental approval and
are very receptive to the parents opinions. The clearest family influence is political party identification.
Schools are also an important influence. Education seems to influence the level of activity in the political
process. The more education a person receives the higher the level of political activity. Friendships and
associations in peer groups can influence political attitudes. At a point at which the media permeates almost
every aspect of American life, it is hardly surprising that the media has a major influence on public opinion.
When events produce a long-term political impact, it is said that a generational effect results. For example,
voters who grew up in the 1930s during the Great Depression were likely to become Democrats. It will be
interesting to see whether 9/11 produces a generational effect. Some individuals, known as opinion leaders,
have the ability to influence others because of position, expertise, or personality. Finally, the election of
Ronald Reagan in 1980 produced a period of economic prosperity, which led many young people to identify
with the Republican Party.
Political Preferences and Voting Behavior
The factors that influence voting decisions include socioeconomic and demographic factors such as
education, income and socioeconomic status, religion, ethnic background, gender, age, and geographic
region. Those with only a high school education are likely to identify with Republicans, those with college
degrees may go either Democratic or Republican, while those with postgraduate education are likely to
identify themselves as Democrats. Those with low incomes are likely to support a governmental role in the
economy while those with high incomes tend to favor a more limited governmental role. At the same time,
lower income Americans tend to be more culturally conservative while those with high incomes are likely to
endorse cultural liberalism. While the conventional wisdom holds that those with low incomes vote
Democratic and those with higher incomes vote Republican, there is evidence that professionals and the
extremely wealthy are leaning toward the Democratic Party.
Religion is a complex factor to define as an influence. However, it can be said that those who define
themselves as fundamentalists or evangelicals and those who attend church services frequently are likely to
vote Republican. African Americans tend to support Democratic candidates. The Hispanic community
tends to be somewhat divided, with many supporting the Democrats but Cuban-Americans supporting
Republicans. The election of Ronald Reagan in 1980 evidenced a gender gap, in which women were more
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KEY TERMS
agenda-setting
consensus
divisive opinion
gender gap
generational effect
media
opinion leader
opinion poll
peer group
political socialization
political trust
public opinion
sampling error
socioeconomic status
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OTHER RESOURCES
A number of valuable supplements are available to students using the Schmidt, Shelley, and Bardes text. The
full list of the supplements is in the preface to this study guide. Ask your instructor how to obtain these
resources. One supplement is highlighted here, the INFOTRAC Online Library.
INFOTRAC EXERCISES
Log on to http://www.infotrac-college.com.
Enter your Pass code.
You can access the article by typing the exact phrase below.
Public opinion and campaign finance: reformers reality.
The premise of this article is that while political elites might favor reform of campaign financing, the general
public is not interested in that reform.
Study Questions
1. What is the role of public opinion in a representative democracy?
2. What evidence is given in the article that the public is not interested in campaign reform?
3. Do you agree with the article?
PRACTICE EXAM
[Answers appear at the end of this chapter.]
Fill-in-the-Blank Supply the missing word(s) or term(s) to complete the sentence.
1.
2.
When he encountered a public that had grown suspicious and unsupportive of his policies in Vietnam,
President ________ chose not to run for reelection.
3.
4.
When a large proportion of the American public expresses the same view on an issue, we say that a
__________________ exists.
5.
6.
The _________________ ______________________ is the term that describes the differences in issue
orientation and voting behavior between men and women.
7.
One of the most common ways of gathering public opinion is the_____________ __________.
8.
Roper, Gallup, and Crossley developed modern polling techniques to predict the total voting population by
using _____________ _____________ with small samples of selected voters.
9.
10. Political trust of government reached a three decade ____________ point in 2001.
True/False Circle the appropriate letter to indicate if the statement is true or false.
T
1.
Adverse public opinion undermined George W. Bushs plan to reform Social Security.
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2.
Children accept their parents political attitudes because of communication and receptivity.
3.
4.
5.
Quota sampling is a more accurate technique for public opinion than random sampling.
6.
7.
The government institution the public has the most confidence in today is the military.
8.
9.
10. Well-defined public opinion tends to restrain government officials from taking intolerable
actions.
The aggregate of individual attitudes or beliefs shared by some portion of adults is referred to as
a. political opinion.
b. propaganda.
c. public opinion.
d. an ideology.
e. a special interest.
2.
3.
When public opinion is polarized between two quite different positions it is said to be
a. consensus.
b. divisive.
c. private.
d. in error.
e. converse.
4.
5.
According to studies, which group is mostly likely to use media to form basic political attitudes?
a. the elderly
b. college graduates
c. high school students
d. women
e. middle-aged men
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Political events like the Vietnam War tend to produce what are called
a.
peer group influence.
b.
social and economic influence.
c.
opinion leader influence.
d.
generational effects.
e.
demographic influences.
7.
8.
9.
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53
2.
3.
4.
Discuss the most important values of the American political system and the trends of political trust in the
last three decades.
public opinion
Johnson
Divisive opinion
consensus
family
gender gap
opinion poll
personal interviews
randomness
high
True/False
1.
2.
T
T
3.
4.
T
T
5.
6.
F
T
7.
8.
T
T
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
d
b
d
c
c
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
c
b
c
e
e
16. c
17. c
18. a
19. d
20. e
9. T
10. T
Multiple Choice
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
c
c
b
b
c
The aggregate of individual attitudes or beliefs shared by some portion of the adult population.
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2.
The family is the most important influence and largely responsible for political party choice.
Schools are most likely to influence the understanding of issues and political activity.
Religion has some impact on political activity, but its influence is not clear.
Wealth and social-class influence a tolerance for differences and more voting activity.
Generational events, such as the great Depression, can influence opinion for decades.
Charismatic opinion leaders using the power of media can have a tremendous impact on
opinion.
3.
Randomness is the most important factor. The sample to be interviewed must be representative
of the whole population. One technique is to choose a random sample of telephone numbers.
A quota sampling, which is not as accurate, is to select people who represent certain types of
people. The major polls can interview about 1,500 people and predict elections within a
margin of three percent, plus or minus.
Timing is a second factor. Polls continue to be conducted until the election day because a shift
in opinion at the last minute can produce an unexpected outcome. The polls in the presidential
election of 1980 between Carter and Reagan showed a very close contest. Reagan won easily,
because of a shift in the undecided vote in the last week of the election.
The types of questions asked on the survey have a major impact on the results of the poll. If
poorly worded or leading questions are asked, the result will be distorted.
4.
Discuss the most important values of the American political system and the trend in political trust over the
last three decades.
The core elements of the American political system include:
These generally-supported values provide an environment of support for the political system,
which helps the system survive a crisis such as scandal. The levels of political trust that
citizens have in the system declined tremendously in the 1960s and 1970s and reached an alltime low in 1992. The events of 9/11 inspired a grater level of political trust. The military and
the Supreme Court are the most trusted parts of the political system today.
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