The document provides an overview of public opinion and political participation in the US. It discusses how Americans learn about politics through socialization agents like family, education, and media. It also examines how public opinion is measured through polls and surveys, and outlines Americans' varied political ideologies and levels of participation in the political process through activities like voting, protesting, and contacting elected officials.
3. Chapter 6: Public Opinion and
Political Action
The American People
How Americans Learn About Politics:
Political Socialization
Measuring Public Opinion and Political
Information
What Americans Value: Political
Ideologies
How Americans Participate in Politics
Understanding Public Opinion and
Political Action
Summary
4. Chapter Outline and
Learning Objectives
The American People
LO 6.1: Identify demographic trends and
their likely impact on American politics.
How Americans Learn About Politics:
Political Socialization
LO 6.2: Outline how various forms of
socialization shape political opinions.
5. Chapter Outline and
Learning Objectives
Measuring Public Opinion and Political
Information
LO 6.3: Explain how polls are conducted
and what can be learned from them about
American public opinion.
What Americans Value: Political Ideologies
LO 6.4: Assess the influence of political
ideology on Americans’ political thinking
and behavior.
6. Chapter Outline and
Learning Objectives
How Americans Participate in Politics
LO 6.5: Classify forms of political
participation into two broad types.
Understanding Public Opinion and Political
Action
LO 6.6: Analyze how public opinion about
the scope of government guides political
behavior.
7. Public Opinion and Political
Action
Why is Public Opinion important in the
US?
-In a Representative Democracy,
citizens’ preferences are supposed
to guide policy makers
8. Introduction
What is Public Opinion?
The distribution of the population’s beliefs
about politics and policy issues
Americans a very diverse
There are many “publics” in America
Many groups with many opinions rather than
a single public opinion
This chapter focuses on the nature of these
“public opinions”, how citizens learn about
politics, and to what extent these opinions
are conveyed to government through various
types of political participation
9. A Way of Looking at the
American Public
One way of looking at the American
public is through - Demography
The science of human population
Census
Required every 10 years by the
Constitution
A valuable tool for understanding
population changes in the US
12. The American People
The Immigrant Society
United States is a nation of
immigrants.
Three waves of Immigration:
• Northwestern Europeans (prior to late 19th
Century)
• Southern and eastern Europeans (late 19th
and early 20th
centuries)
• Hispanics and Asians (late 20th
century)
13. The American People
The American Melting Pot
Melting Pot: the mixing of cultures,
ideas, and peoples that has changed
the American nation
Minority Majority: the emergence of a
non-Caucasian majority, minority
groups will be 50% or more of the
population
15. The American People
The American Melting Pot (continued)
African Americans face a legacy of racism.
• economically disadvantaged
• Political power
Hispanics are the largest minority group faced with
the problem of illegal immigration.
• Simpson-Mazzoli Act(1986): requires employers
document citizenship of employee
• Gaining power in the Southwest
Asian immigration has been driven by a new class of
professional workers. Most highly skilled immigrant
group
Native Americans: least healthy, the poorest, and
least educated
16. The American People
The Regional Shift
Population shift from
east to west
Reapportionment: the
process of reallocating
seats in the House of
Representatives every
10 years on the basis of
the results of the census
Can you think of other
ways this regional shift
can impact the political
process?
17. The American People
The Graying of America
Fastest growing age group is over 65
Potential drain on Social Security
• Pay as you go system
• In 1940, 42 workers per retiree
• 1960, 5.7 workers per retiree
• 2010, 3 workers per retiree
• In 2040, 2 workers per retiree
How does an a graying of America impact the political process?
19. The American People
Americans live in an increasingly
multicultural and multilingual society
Yet, regardless of ethnic background
most Americans share a common
political culture
Political culture is an overall set of
values widely shared within a society.
20. How Americans Learn About
Politics: Political
Socialization
Political Socialization:
“the process through which and
individual acquires (their) particular
political orientation”
Orientation grows firmer with age
21. Political Socialization
How do each of following
have an impact on an
individuals’ political views
The Family
The Mass Media
School
Which one, do you think,
has had the greatest impact
on you? Why?
22. How Americans Learn About
Politics: Political Socialization
The Process of Political Socialization
The Family
• Political leanings of children often mirror their parents’
leanings
The Mass Media
• Chief source of information as children age
• Generation gap in viewing television news
School
• Used by government to socialize young into political culture
• Better-educated citizens are more likely to vote and are
more knowledgeable about politics and policy.
Political Learning Over a Lifetime
Aging increases political participation and strength of
party attachment.
23. How Americans Learn About
Politics: Political Socialization
The Process of Political Socialization
Opinion leaders
Race/Ethnicity
Gender
Place of Residence
Occupation
24. “There are lies, damn
lies, and then there
are statistics.” “Facts
are stubborn things,
but statistics are
more pliable.”
.
25. Measuring Public Opinion
and Political Information
Government leaders make public policy based on what
Americans feel they need.
Measuring Opinion
Elections – “mandate theory” – results can be misleading
Interest Groups – hard to measure
The Media – “mirrors” and “molders” or PO; reflect and shape
Personal Contacts – letters, emails, telephone calls
Public Opinion Polls – best way to measure public opinion
26. Measuring Public Opinion
and Political Information
How Polls Are Conducted
Choose the universe to be surveyed
Get a representative sample
Prepare valid questions
Select and control the polling process
Report the results
27. Measuring Public Opinion
and Political Information
How Polls Are Conducted
Sample: a small proportion of people who are chosen in a
survey to be representative of the whole
Random Sampling: the key technique employed by sophisticated
survey researchers which operates on the principle that
everyone should have an equal probability of being selected for
the sample
Sampling Error: the level of confidence in the findings of a public
opinion poll
In public opinion polling, a sample of about 1,000-1,500 people
can accurately represent the “universe” of potential voters
A typical poll of 1,500-2,000 respondents has a sampling error of
+/- 3%
What this means is that 95% of the time the poll results are
within 3% of what the entire population thinks.
Example: Gallup
28. Polling Companies
In the United States, some notable companies include:
D3 Systems, Inc.
Gallup poll run by The Gallup Organization
Harris Poll
National Opinion Research Center
Nielsen ratings
Pew Research Center
Rasmussen Reports
Research 2000
YouGov.
Zogby International
29. Polling Pros/Cons
1.List at least 3 reasons why
polling can be a positive to the
political process in the U.S.
2.List at least 3 reasons why
polling can be a negative to the
political process in the U.S.
32. Measuring Public Opinion
and Political Information
The Role of Polls in American
Democracy
Polls help politicians detect public
preferences.
But critics say polls make politicians
think more about following the public
instead of leading the public
33. Measuring Public Opinion
and Political Information
The Role of Polls in American
Democracy (continued)
Exit Polls: used by the media to
predict election day winners
• May discourage people from voting
• 2000 presidential election in Florida
34. Measuring Public Opinion
and Political Information
What Polls Reveal About Americans’
Political Information
Americans don’t know much about politics.
Americans may know their basic beliefs but
not how that affects policies of the
government.
The Decline of Trust in Government
Since 1964, trust in government has
declined.
Trust in government has gone up somewhat
since September 11 but recently has seen a
downward trend
36. Agents of Socialization
Influence in one degree or another an
individual's political opinions: Family,
Media, Peers, Education, Religion,
Race, Gender, Age and Geography.
These factors and many others the
people are introduced to as they are
growing up will affect their political views
throughout the rest of their lives.
37. What Americans Value:
Political Ideologies
Political Ideology:
A coherent set of beliefs about politics,
public policy, and public purpose
Who Are the Liberals and Conservatives?
Predominance of conservative over liberal
thinking
Currently about 38% conservative, 24%
liberal, 38% moderate
• Gender gap: women tend to be less conservative
than men
SELF TEST TIME!!!
38. Spectrum 8 - 12
0 - 7 13 - 20
Socialism: Any of various theories or systems of social organization in which the means ofSocialism: Any of various theories or systems of social organization in which the means of
producing and distributing goods is owned collectively or by a centralized government that oftenproducing and distributing goods is owned collectively or by a centralized government that often
plans and controls the economy.plans and controls the economy.
Communism: A system of government in which the state plans and controls the economy and aCommunism: A system of government in which the state plans and controls the economy and a
single, often authoritarian party holds power, claiming to make progress toward a higher socialsingle, often authoritarian party holds power, claiming to make progress toward a higher social
order in which all goods areorder in which all goods are equallyequally shared by the people.shared by the people.
Reactionary: An extremely conservative person or position that not only resists change but seeks toReactionary: An extremely conservative person or position that not only resists change but seeks to
return to the “good old days” of an earlier social order.return to the “good old days” of an earlier social order.
Fascism: a political theory advocating an authoritarian hierarchical government (as opposed toFascism: a political theory advocating an authoritarian hierarchical government (as opposed to
democracy or liberalism)democracy or liberalism)
39. The Political Spectrum
Liberal or Left Wing
Group responsibility
General welfare
Looking to the future for
guidance
Change
Optimistic view of human
nature
Personal freedom over order
Religious tolerance
Trust government
Business is self absorbed
Conservative or Right Wing
Individual accountability
Personal rights and
responsibility
Looking to the past or using
tradition for guidance
Stability
Pessimistic view of human
nature
Order over personal freedom
“Traditional” religious values
Keep government small
Trust business
41. What Americans Value:
Political Ideologies
Do People Think in Ideological
Terms?
Ideologues: those who think in
ideological terms (12 percent)
Group Benefits voters: view politics
through party label (42 percent)
Nature of the Times: view of politics
based on whether times are good or
bad (24 percent)
No issue content: vote routinely for
party or personality (22 percent)
42. How Americans Participate
in Politics
Political Participation: all the activities
used by citizens to influence the
selection of political leaders or the
policies they pursue
Conventional Participation
Voting in elections
Working in campaigns or running for
office
Contacting elected officials
Donating $
43. How Americans Participate
in Politics
Protest as Participation
Protest: a form of political participation
designed to achieve policy changes
through dramatic and unconventional
tactics
Civil disobedience: a form of political
participation that reflects a conscious
decision to break a law believed to be
immoral and to suffer the
consequences
45. Understanding Public
Opinion and Political Action
Public Attitudes Toward the Scope of
Government
Many people have no opinion about scope of
government.
Public opinion is inconsistent, which may
lead to policy gridlock.
Democracy, Public Opinion, and Political
Action
Americans select leaders, but do they do so
wisely?
If people know little about candidates’
issues, how can they?
People vote more for performance than
policy.
46. Summary
American society is ethnically diverse
and changing.
Knowing public opinion is important to
a democracy
polling has costs and benefits.
Americans know little about politics.
Political participation is generally low.
Editor's Notes
Brief Contents of Chapter 6: Public Opinion and Political Action
Lecture Tips and Suggestions for In-Class Activities
The textbook points out that many immigrants today come, not to flee an oppressive government, but to escape poverty, and immigrants’ aspirations as well as their political beliefs can influence the policy agenda. For example, to meet the needs of immigrant children who are poor and speak little English, many Hispanic leaders have advocated that bilingual education be offered in American public schools. Ask students to think of themselves as the policymakers. Ask them would you encourage your local or state government to support special educational programs for non-English-speakers. Ask them if you support such programs, do you favor the maintenance version of bilingual education, the transition version, or English as a second language.
The concept of political socialization is difficult for students to grasp without examples and discussion. Ask students to think about the role of political symbols in society. In particular, ask students to list these symbols and where they are most often seen. For example, the flag, the constitution, Uncle Sam, etc. Discuss the Pledge of Allegiance as a socializing agent for young children as well as activities during Fourth of July celebrations, which are often used to reinforce public values of nationalism, patriotism, and reverence for the Constitution. Once they have listed a variety of these, then ask them to explain why the national anthem is sung at baseball games. Ask how many know all of the words, how many have stood but did not sing, and how many did not sing or stand while the national anthem was being sung at a baseball game. This exercise provides an un-intimidating yet thoughtful way of emphasizing just how pervasive political socialization has been used to instill.
Lecture Tips and Suggestions for In-Class Activities
principles, values, and beliefs in citizens. A follow-up exercise may include a short essay debating whether the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance or the singing of the national anthem is more appropriate for baseball games, given that most people can say the pledge without hesitation, but have trouble singing the national anthem
Have students visit the Internet site operated by Gallup, the National Election Study, or the General Social Survey to find public opinion data on a question of interest. Have each student write up, or present orally in class, what the question wording was, the response distribution, and how to interpret the data.
Ask students to watch criminal justice entertainment shows from the 1970s compared to those in the 2000s. Then have students write brief essays on the political value or information conveyed in these shows, and the implications of these for individuals’ political beliefs.
Lecture Tips and Suggestions for In-Class Activities
The textbook points out that the diversity of the American public and its opinions must be faithfully channeled through the political process in order for the American government to work efficiently and effectively. At the same time, the least informed among the public are also the least likely to participate in the political process. Ask your class to evaluate the effect that this inequality of participation has on the democratic process.
The authors of the textbook point out that more people today think the government is too big rather than too small, yet a plurality has consistently called for increased spending on domestic programs. Many political scientists have looked at these contradictory findings and concluded that Americans are ideological conservatives but operational liberals. Ask your class to examine this theory with reference to public debate over the latest presidential budget proposals.
Lecture Outline
The United States remains one of the most diverse countries in the world today.
The study of American public opinion aims to understand the distribution of the population’s belief about politics and policy issues.
Such diversity makes the study of American public opinion especially complex, for there are many groups with a great variety of opinions.
The task is further complicated by the fact that people are often not well informed about the issues, and they may have contradictory attitudes.
There are also consequences for democracy: the least informed are also the least likely to participate in the political process, thereby leading to inequalities in who takes part in political action.
