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Chapter 5 Chapter 5 PUBLIC OPINION PUBLIC OPINION AND POLITICAL AND POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION SOCIALIZATION

Chapter 5 PUBLIC OPINION AND POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION

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Chapter 5Chapter 5

PUBLIC OPINION PUBLIC OPINION AND POLITICAL AND POLITICAL SOCIALIZATIONSOCIALIZATION

Learning Outcomes5.1 Identify the various roles played by public opinion in majoritarian and pluralist democracy.

5.2 Analyze the effect of skewed, bimodal, and normal distributions of opinion on public policy.

5.3 Explain the influence of the agents of early socialization – family, school, community, and peers – on political learning.

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Learning Outcomes5.4 Compare and contrast the effects of education, income, region, race, ethnicity, religion, and gender on public opinion.

5.5 Define the concept of ideology, describe the liberal-conservative continuum, and assess the influence of ideology on public opinion.

5.6 Assess the impact of knowledge, self-interest, and leadership on political opinions.

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Public Opinion Public Opinion on Death Penalty Reveals:

Opinions about a given government policy can change over time, often dramatically

Public opinion places boundaries on allowable types of public policies

If asked by pollsters, citizens are willing to register opinions on matters outside their experience

Governments tend to respond to public opinion Government sometimes does not do what the

people want

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A Fatal Choice

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Public Opinion and the Models of Democracy

Opinion Polling Started in the 1930s Became powerful in 1950s with computers

Majoritarian Majority of people hold clear, consistent

opinions on government policy Pluralist

Public is uninformed and ambivalent

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Stop the Presses! Oops, Too Late…

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The Distribution of Public Opinion

Shape of the Distribution To understand and act on public opinion,

government must understand how it’s distributed

Three patterns of distribution: Skewed Bimodal Normal

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The Distribution of Public Opinion

Shape of the Distribution Description of public opinion results depends

on most frequent response Skewed: most respondents with one opinion Bimodal: two answers chosen with equal frequency Normal: bell-shaped, requiring a moderate approach

to policymaking

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The Distribution of Public Opinion

Stability of the Distribution Stable distributions: little change over time

Same question produces different responses over time: public opinion has shifted

Different questions on same issue produce similar results: underlying attitudes stable

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Political Socialization Political Socialization

Process by which people acquire their political values

Agents of Early Socialization Primary principle Structuring principle

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Political Socialization Agents of Early Socialization

Family Earliest political memories linked to family Politically involved parents create politically

involved children Party identification learned from parents

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Political Socialization Agents of Early Socialization

School Elementary: social order; national slogans and

symbols, norms of behavior, decision making High School: build good citizens; rights,

responsibilities; greater awareness of political process

College: question authority and dominant political values

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Political Socialization Agents of Early Socialization

Community and peers Homogenous communities: strong influence Pressure to conform Peer groups defend against community pressure

Continuing Socialization Adulthood: peer groups and mass media

assume greater importance

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Word of God?

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Social Groups and Political Values

Each Person’s Political Socialization: Unique People with similar backgrounds tend to develop

similar political opinions Ties Between Background and Values

Ex: 2008 American National Election Study Abortion Government guaranteeing employment

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Social Groups and Political Values

Education Increases awareness and understanding of

political issues College-educated tend to choose personal freedom

over social order and equality Abortion: college-educated tend to view it as matter of

women’s choice Government guarantee of employment: college-

educated tend to favor freedom over equality

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Social Groups and Political Values

Income Most Americans consider themselves “middle

class” Wealth linked to opinions favoring limited

government role in promoting equality Groups with higher income and higher

education tend to favor freedom

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Social Groups and Political Values

Region Historically, regional differences in political

opinion were important Differences in wealth fed cultural differences

between regions

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Social Groups and Political Values

Ethnicity and Race Political values differ with race and ethnic

background Minority groups display somewhat similar

political attitudes on equality Low socioeconomic status Targets of prejudice and discrimination

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Social Groups and Political Values

Religion Religious makeup of U.S. fairly stable since

1940s 56% Protestant 22% Catholic 13% no religion 9% other (including fewer than 2% Jewish)

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Social Groups and Political Values

Religion Religious groupings

Little effect on attitudes on economic equality More influence on attitudes of social order

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Clashing Opinions on Same-Sex Marriage

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Social Groups and Political Values

Gender Men and women differ on social and political

issues Gender gap: women are more likely to be and vote

Democrat Women: more likely to favor government actions to

support equality Men: more supportive of death penalty and going to war

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From Values to Ideology

Degree of Ideological Thinking in Public Opinion Some believe terms liberal and conservative

no longer relevant to American politics Ideological labels necessary for classification Most people don’t think of themselves in

ideological terms

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From Values to Ideology

Quality of Ideological Thinking in Public Opinion

Two themes when describing ideology Liberals = change; conservatives = tradition Attitude toward equality

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From Values to Ideology Ideological Types in The U.S.

Liberals: favor freedom over order and equality over freedom

Conservatives: favor freedom over equality and order over freedom

Libertarians: favor freedom over equality and order

Communitarians: favor equality over freedom and order

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From Values to Ideology Ideological Types in The U.S.

People’s preferences for government action depend on what the action targets

Poll respondents don’t always categorize themselves the same way their responses do

Ideological typology reflects important differences between diverse social groups

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From Values to Ideology Ideological Types in The U.S.

Americans who know politics have difficulty locating themselves on liberal-conservative continuum Problem: liberal on some issues and conservative

on others, so they chose middle category (moderate)

People who classify themselves as liberal or conservative do fit categories

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Forming Political Opinions Political Knowledge

About 50 percent of public knows: Basic institutions and procedures of government Party positions on major issues

Public less knowledgeable on: Critical public policy matters Government expenditures

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Forming Political Opinions Costs, Benefits, and Cues

Self-interest principle: people choose what benefits them personally

In some cases, individuals are unable to determine personal costs or benefits

Opinion also emerges from cues and mental shortcuts

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Forming Political Opinions Political Leadership

Public opinion on specific issues molded by political leaders

Politicians make arguments based on shared ideology and self-interest Issue framing or “spin”

Politicians’ ability to influence public opinion enhanced by growth of broadcast media

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