Ch. 6: Public Opinion & Ideology

1. Ch. 6: Public Opinion & Ideology • Public opinion in a democracy

2. Political Socialization • Family • Schools • Religious & Civic Organizations • Reference groups: • Primary • Secondary • Mass Media

3. Party Identification • At least 60% of Americans identify with a party • This psychological attachment significantly affects voters’ perceptions of issues and candidates • Parties try to reinforce this attachment – party registration, e.g. • Past 30 years have seen an increase in “Independents,” at the expense of the parties • Party ID still the best single predictor of vote

4. Measuring Public Opinion • Varies by • Direction • Intensity • Saliency • Stability

5. Measuring Public Opinion • Samples and Universes • Random Sampling • Literary Digest: cars, telephones, & FDR • Sample size & margin of error • Question wording • Loaded wording – see example, p. 187 • Open- and closed-ended questions • “Non-attitudes”

6. Do polls affect opinions? • Bandwagon effect? Mixed evidence • Do polls mobilize or demobilize voters? • Exit polls & election-night reporting

7. Are we paying attention? • Does policy reflect opinion? • Attentive publics • Domestic vs. foreign policy awareness

8. Political Culture • Shared values: • Liberty • Equality • Individualism • Majority rule • Popular sovereignty • Rule of law • Optimism

9. Political Subcultures • Daniel Elazar – 3 political subcultures: • Moralistic: Emphasis on civic duty, solving problems collectively. • Individualistic: Politics is a competitive marketplace; reps fight for their people. • Traditionalistic: Keep the status quo; people defer to the ruling elites.

10. Political Ideology • Liberalism • Conservatism • Traditional conservatives • Social conservatives • Libertarianism

11. Ideology in practice • Ideologies as symbols • Converse and the study of “belief systems” • Are there any ideologues (outside talk radio)?