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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.
Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning 2
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.
Copyright © 2014 Cengage Learning 3
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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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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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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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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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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