Ch.+11+-+Public+Opinion+&+Pol+.+Soc.+Study+Questions+(with+Answers)

Study Questions (with Answers)
1)How were the Federalist Papers and the Contract with America attempts to influence public opinion? //The Federalist Papers were one of the first efforts to influence public opinion because they rallied for the ratification of the Constitution. Their purpose was to encourage people to support the new piece of legislation (change thier opinion). The Contract with America was an effort by the Republican party to// change //the public's opinion about the GOP during Bill Clinton's first term as president. The Contract outlined what the Republicans would do if elected as the majority in the next election, and the Republicans used it to increase public faith in the party and its candidates, so as to secure more votes in the next election.//

2)What is random digit dialing, and why are most polls conducted this way? //Random digit dialing selects a series of numbers which make up a telephone number, and calls that number. These telephone polls are conducted on massive scales because they require little manpower and are very convenient for the interviewer in order to try and discover the public opinions on certain issues. They are completely randomized, but biased in that a telephone poll is a voluntary response sample, so subjects select themselves once called, and will often not respond unless they have a very strong, often negative opinion.//

3)What are exit polls and why have they been so severely criticized? //A poll that is taken by a voter at the polling place, used to predict the outcome of an election, mainly by the media. They are criticized because they can be invalid and can seriously change the public’s opinion.//

4)What is public opinion, and why is so much time and effort spent on measuring it in the United States? What techniques are used to obtain an accurate reading of public opinion? Are public opinion poll results generally accurate? Explain. Public opinion is what the masses of the country think about certain issues and the United Sates is a Democratic government and so the voice of the people is a thing to heed for those in power and those aspiring for power. People are polled based on what kind of background and views they have and a few people polled from one of many of different groups will supposedly give them enough generalizations to form a good picture of who thinks what. Generally yes, because good polls include many different kinds of people and although only a few of them are polled others in their group will have very similar views thus they can safely assume their votes are as good as that whole group’s and together what everyone thinks.

5)Describe what is meant by "melting pot." What does "minority majority" mean and why is it likely to be increasingly significant in American society? How will it change America? Do you think it will have any effect on the quality of life in the United States? Explain. //The term "melting pot" is the concept that the United States is a place where all different kinds of people mix, just as food mixes to become one substance in a melting pot. The situation of a "minority majority" is when the majority of the population in a state is not the national majority (White non-Hispanic). This is politically important because now, in certain states, politicians will have to substantially cater towards that minority as well, since they form the largest group of voters. Since most immigrants vote Democratic, this could mean a rise in power for the Democrats until the Republicans figure out effective ways to cater towards these groups as well.//

6)**Compare and contrast the different agents of political socialization. What effect do they have on political learning?** Many different social factors contribute to how one person builds their political opinions. One of the strongest influences is the __family__. Young children spend great amounts of time with their parents and learn their political views early on. In most cases the parent's opinions are the only opinions that people are exposed to until adolescence. And by the time a person reaches adolescence, that's usually when another social influence steps in, __school & peers__. American schools try to instill national pride, and peers can be persuasive with their own opinions whether or not they match yours. The third social influence which is there all a long (depending on the measures you are exposed to it) is __the mass media__. Television especially contributes to a person's over all understanding. TV can enlighten and persuade which is why political figures have taken the initiative to use the media to their benefit by appearing on TV shows and putting their word out. All of these factors seem to have a stronghold on the average person's political learning experience.

7)What is meant by the term "minority majority"? Describe the major minority groups identified in the text, including their relative size, political power and socioeconomic status. A minority majority is a state where the majority of the state’s population differs from the national majority (non-Hispanic whites); currently four states have minority majorities. These minorities include Hispanics, Asians/Pacific Islanders, and Native Americans. The Hispanic community is the biggest and most powerful minority and votes largely according to national origin.

8)What effect does the census have on the makeup of Congress? What states showed the greatest gains in population in the last census? How are they rewarded? Is this a fair system? Explain the rationale behind it and your opinion.


 * 9)Describe the major influences on one's political socialization, and how this comes about. From your own perspective, which influences do you think contributed most to your political attitude today? Explain.** Age, race, family, peers and religion all contribute to one's political socialization. When a person is constantly surround by others sharing the same view points, they tend to acquire the same views. When a child is young, they are constantly around their parents and their parents' political views rub off on them as they get older. For most people, their family along witht he way they were brought up, including their religion, influence people the most because they have been taught certain things their whole life. For me, my family has hap the greatest influence on my political attitude because of the things they have taught me and the morales I have because of them.

10)Describe what is meant by the "graying of America." //One of the fastest growing groups in the United States is that of people over age 65. This large group classifies America as "graying," since a large portion of the population (the baby boomers) is getting old.//

11)Explain why the family is central to individuals' political socialization. Describe how patterns of party identification across generations are consistent with this, using evidence from the National Election Study. Families' views often effect the views of children because of the child's exposure to their parents and how children grow in the footsteps of their parents. However, as some children grow older they do branch from their parents views, but morals and values are ingrained in children thus affecting their political socialization.

12)Are public opinion polls a benefit or a curse to American politics? What influence do they have on campaigns? On governing? What do critics point to as the key weaknesses of public opinion polls? Do you agree? Explain. //Public opinion polls benefit and curse American politics at the same time. They help to an extent because they can give a sampling of what the public things on the given topic at a point in time. However they are only a sampling, so, they don't show an accurate picture of the whole. They can influence a way the campaign goes and the sides taken in the campaign by the leader. They can infulence they way an area is governed due to what's shown as popular in the polls. Critics say the polls can change rapidly and daily, and usually are too much of a sample rather then a whole. I disagree, if the polls are answered by many, the samplings should be accurate if they are randomly selected.//

13)Explain how public opinion is measured. What factors affect the accuracy of public opinion polls? //Public opinion is measured with things such as the election results, number of contacts that are pro or con, and size of demonstrations or marches. These results can be affected but things such as wording of questions or if the sample being polled does not want to voice their true opinion.// //The accuracy can also be affected by the number of people sampled, the age, race, finances or religion of the people sampled, and the order in which the questions are asked.//

14)How much attention should political leaders pay to public opinion polls? Discuss how and why one might argue that political leaders should ignore poll results, and then defend against that argument. //Political leaders should absolutely pay attention to public opinion polls, since these polls are some of the best indications of the will of the people politicians are permitted to lead. Polls can only be trusted so far, however, they can show general trends and help inform politicians what the American people want most.//

15)Present a critique of public opinion polling. What effect might public opinion polls have on the democratic process in the United States? //Many people feel public opinion polls are inaccurate because some do not give awnsers reflecting their true feelings on the subject. Public opinon polls can have the effect of making people feel they don't have to vote because they see their cantidate is winning handily or the opposite effect of people making sure they vote because they know their cantidate needs all they can get.//

16)Describe how public opinion polls make our system more democratic. What are potential problems with relying on these polls? //Public polls are a reflection of how people think about a certain issue. So political leaders can create and modify their policy according to poll. When the leaders fail to respond promptly to the demands of public, their popularity goes down and eventually they are voted out in the next election. This way, polls work as a voice for the people and help make our country more democratic.// //Polls can be misleading if the sample doesn’t represent all of America. Often polls limit the scope of answer by asking a question too specific. Push polls are sometimes used to destroy the image of a political opponent. Finally, people have the tendency to answer questions even when they have no prior knowledge on that topic.//

17)What have public opinion polls told us about the extent of political information among the American people? Comment on the implications this holds for democracy in the United States. //Public Opinion Polls show that Americans have an extremely low knowledge of history and politics. Polls shows that college graduates now know less about government and politics than high school graduates 50 years ago. The fact that the public's civil knowledge is so low definitely hurts the democratic process in the United States. Polls show that the less informed people are about civic matters the less likely they are to participate in the political process. Consequently, the percentage of people that are represented in votes and polls is less and therefor the democratic process is not as effective.//

18)**What is a political ideology? What are the four categories into which the The American Voter divided the American electorate? To which of the categories do you think you fit, and why? Do these categories strike you as accurate? Explain**. Political Ideology is the coherent set of values and beliefs, and core values about how government should operate. The four categories in which The American Voter divided the American electorate are moderate, conservative, liberal, and undecided. I believe that I am a moderate, just like the majority of our population becuase there are some issues that I agree on as a conservative, and there are some issues I agree on as a liberal. I think the categories are fairly placed and are accurate of peoples values and beliefs.

19)What is the effect of ideology on public opinion in America? Do people really think in ideological terms? Does the liberal-conservative dimension adequately capture how Americans feel about political issues? Ideology has a major effect on public opinion. If you are surrounded by someone that thinks a specific way, it is stupid not to think that their views will not be pushed on you, even slightly. I think people do think in ideological ways because it is natural to be influenced by someone else.

20)Describe President Reagan's view on the scope of government in America. To what extent are these views reflected in American public opinion? //President Reagan had a very laissez-faire approach to the government's role in America. He implemented large tax cuts, often referred to as “Reaganomics” and implemented a military defense buildup during his administration. These views are held commonly by conservatives who tend to support a strong military and low taxes, especially for the wealthy.//

21)To what extent does political participation reflect a bias in favor of the privileged? Should this matter? Why Those that are privileged are the ones that have the greatest ability to have their voices heard in the media. Educated people know what is going on and are more likely to vote on issues versus people who don’t have a large scope of opinion of what has happed around them. If the people that don’t vote and don’t care it doesn’t matter but for the few underprivileged that do vote it is unfair.

22)How do the American people feel about the scope of the federal government? What does it mean to say that the Americans are ideological conservatives and operational liberals? How have public attitudes on the size of government changed over time, and how does it affect public policy? //Americans have recently began to distrust the national government because of their recent problems and have created a void in the relations between the voters and the government. When Americans are ideological conservatives it means that they strongly believe in the conservative way of thinking which involves many issues such as allowing wiretapping, and an anti-abortion stand point. Operational liberals are basically liberals that believe more liberal ideology then conservative thinking, for example liberals tend to believe in pro-life and believe in more government programs for the people as a whole. Also liberals tend to be more in raising taxes while conservatives work to lower them. Public attitudes on size of governments have also changed overtime for instance, in the past people were worried about how large the government was because that equated to a powerful the government. This began to change as people needed help especially during the great depression. Now we have a need for a stronger more liberal government which would appease most people who are unhappy with the situation we have today.//

23)Define protest and why it is employed in the political process. What is civil disobedience? Should it be tolerated in American politics or strictly curtailed? How can civil disobedience be defended? Explain. //i.// //it offers a fairly easy way to display discontent with politicians’ choices// //ii.// //can result in relatively quick changes in the protested situation//
 * 1) //Protest is an expression of disapproval of some sort of situation (i.e. a law, an action, a belief), and it is organized in hopes of changing the situation. For example, many people have protested the war in Iraq.//
 * 2) //Protest is a valuable tool for the “common man” in the political process//
 * 1) //Civil disobedience is deliberate and peaceful actions made in disagreement with a particular law that is seen to be unjust, immoral, or illegitimate//
 * 2) //I think it should be tolerated because it is a form of our right under the first amendment to the freedom of expression and possibly petition. I think those who “civil-ly disobey” should be punished by the laws that they broke, because it wouldn’t be fair if certain people got out of certain punishments. HOWEVER, the point in having civil disobedience is to show that the laws are ridiculous or unfair, and so when they do get punished it should portray those negative aspects of the law and hopefully spur a positive change in the broken law. So ideally, it fosters a cycle of perfection in the laws and policies of the nation.//

24)Define political socialization and discuss two agents of socialization. //Political socialization is how a person acquires a certain political stance. Probably the two most influential are a person’s family and religion. A person’s family shapes their values and moral standards. Children grow up to listing to their parent’s political opinions and usually only hear that side of an issue or ideal. Thus, the children themselves begin to follow that political orientation. Religion also shapes a person’s morals and values from an early age too. For example, a religion’s view on abortion is usually the same opinion as the member of that religion, because that religion has taught that person to have that opinion.//

25)What is a sample? //A sample is the group of people drawn by a polling organization. For an accurate poll, the sample should have a number of people in a certain population (religion, region, salary, age, work hours) proportional to the number of people in that population in the whole US.//

26)What is deliberative polling, and how representative is it? //Deliberative polling is a form of opinion poll that combines small group discussions that contain a large number of participants with random sampling of public opinion. The point of deliberative polling is to gather an informed public opinion concerning a specific issue. All citizens are encouraged to participate so that a large enough, accurate representation of public opinion is taken into account.//

27)Discuss the two major problems to reliable polls. One major problem of reliable polls is that some of the people who are questioned do not have adequate knowledge on the question they are asked. They usually just choose a random answer to avoid looking uninformed and thus the outcome of those polls is not always accurate. Another problem is unequal sampling. For example in some polls the poor and homeless are underrepresented causing the poll to show a certain outcome that would really not be if tat group was sufficiently represented.


 * 28)Name and discuss the events that have shaped your political opinions and how they have changed your ideas.**The events that have shaped my political opinions are experience and family. Experience has changed my ideas when the 911 happened, then I knew that the world wasn’t a utopia. Family has also changed my ideas because the way I think or do things rely on my family’s beliefs.

29)**What is a straw poll, and why is it problematic?** Straw Polls are unscientific polls that help guess the public opinion on certain issues. They are not always correct because they sometimes sample only certain types of people (ex the middle class in the FDR vs Landon), timing is sometimes off (if the poll is taken too early many opinions can change before the election), and not everyone responds to the polls.

30)**Discuss the methods you might use to increase the accuracy of a poll?** If I created a poll, I'd try to get the opinions from a few groups of people from different parts of each state, or at least from each part of the country(North Atlantic, South, Midwest, West.. etc.)... not just of a few people from a few states.

31)**What is political ideology?** A set of well thought out values or beliefs that a group of people or an individual has. These tend to be strong beliefs on one topic (ex abortion) that will sway a voter to vote for a certain politician who agrees on that one topic or vote in favor of a certain set of policy programs.

32)What is the gender gap? //The gender gap is the difference between men and women's voting habits. The two genders support and oppose issues differently than people of the opposite sex. Also, there is a gap in knowledge between the two groups. Men are more likely to know a candidate's position on certain issues, even though women are usually the ones who come out to vote.//

33)Define public opinion and discuss early efforts to influence and measure it. //Public opinion is how the public feels about certain issues. In the 1920s, Literary Digest magazine correctly predicted 4 presidential elections. However, it didn't predict the 1936 election correctly because it drew samples from automobile owners (oversampled the upper class), mailed the questionaire in early September (didn't measure opinion changes as the election drew closer), and let people select themselves into sample (people chose whether or not to respond to the questionaire - people who respond are usually wealthier and better educated).//

34)Fully discuss the major agents of political socialization and how they affect political attitudes. //The major agents of political socialization are family, school and peers, the mass media, and social groups (religion, race and ethnicity, gender, age, and region.) Family impacts the political views of children through communication and receptivity because they are most likely to have the same views as their parents, studies show. In the school, patriotism is taught through the Pledge of Allegiance and such. There is also peer pressure in schools so kids want to have the same political opinions as everyone else their age. The media, like television and internet, stands as a big source for information about politics, but could be skewed towards one party or another. In social groups, people are similar in one characteristic, which in turn affects their views on politics as a whole.//

35)Discuss three factors that filter our ideas about politics. //Three factors that filter our ideas about politics are family, religion and income. Whatever your parents believe can shape what yout think toward politics. You grow up hearing what your parents think and that could effect what your opinions are about certain ideas. As well, your religious views can sometimes clash with how politics sees things, therefore shaping what your political standings are. Lastly, income can affect our ideas about politics becasue the government decides how much tax will be taken out of peoples' income. Some people don't care/ are not affected by taxes while others will be strongly opposed to an increase in taxes.//

36)How do we measure public opinion? Be sure to discuss the different methods and their reliability. //The three main steps to measure public opinion include 1) Making the question 2) Choosing an ideal group of people (Sample) and 3) Contacting the respondents.// //There are several kinds of polls frequently used throughout the year://


 * 1) //Push Polls: A Poll designed to hurt the image of a political opponent by posing hypothetical questions that don’t contain truth but often creates a negative impression in a voter’s mind.//
 * 2) //Tracking Polls: This poll continuously track public opinion on a certain issue on a daily basis. These polls can be taken over the Internet. It's reliability is questionable due to bias in selecting the sample.//
 * 3) //Exit Polls: News media carry out this poll. They approach every tenth voter who emerges from the polling place on the Election Day and ask what she voted for. These polls are helpful to predict the outcome of election.//

37)How does polling affect politicians, politics, and policy? //Each year, the government spends millions on polls and surveys to assess what the general population is thinking and where they stand on certain issues. The publics opinion undoubtedly influences the actions of politicians and public officials. Polls do not show the intensity of feeling on certain issues and may not provide accurate opinions because they are taken from responders who lack sufficient information to make educated choices. Polls also can distort an election by creating bandwagon effects. Primary elections can boost a candidates standing in the polls which causes new supporters to "jump on the bandwagon", and in turn generates an abundant amount of larger donations, which is what every campaign thrives off of.//

38)Going beyond the simple explanation of cynicism, speculate about the reasons for the apathy most Americans feel toward their government and officials and their low levels of knowledge about both. //American apathy and distrust towards government began with the Nixon resignation over the Watergate scandal. It was the first time that citizens realized their government officials weren't infallible and corruption was possible on a large scale. The low level of knowledge could stem from the fact that people could assume all politicians are corrupt, so there's no point knowing what it is they're supposed to be doing if the voter is just going to be let down by scandal.//

39)What impact has the events of September 2001 had on public opinion in the United States and around the world? //Immediately after September 11th, the country became very pro-government, united with the desire to protect the country and fight terrorism. Additionally, the attacks had a unifying effect on the world as a whole. “[|France]'s// //[|Le Monde] newspaper summed up the international mood of sympathy: "We Are All Americans" (////Nous sommes tous Américains).” Many countries froze the bank accounts of countries associated with al-qaeda and arrested people they suspected as terrorists."//

40)Summarize what studies of the American public find with respect to issue salience, citizens' understanding issues, and voting.

41)Identify the major factors which influence political socialization and explain some of the specific differences that emerge in opinions as a result of these factors. //Peoples' beliefs are molded based on the conditions and people who comprise their life. If your friends are liberal, you will probably be liberal. If you belong to a Christian church, you will most likely lean conservatively. If your teachers bash the Republican president, you will probably favor Democratic candidates. Peer pressure influences both young and old people alike. Also, if a certain politician or party starts paying attention to you, and courting your vote with money or potlucks and other incentives, you will probably vote in their favor.//

42)What are three cross cutting cleavages that are evident in public opinion in the United States?

43)Identify and explain three broad categories of opinion that enable one to distinguish between liberals and conservatives. Provide specific examples of opinion differences within each category.

Conservatives usually favor a strong military, isloationism, and unilateralism when dealing with foreign policy. Liberals on the other hand favor an adaquate military, iternationalism, and mulitlateralism when dealing with forienh policy and approve of working with international organizations such as the UN.
 * National Security**

Conservatives usually favor a traditonal family (marriage) raised with Judeo-Chrisitan values, and oppose abortion. Liberals usually are more accepting of nontraditional families homosexuality, and different cultures and religions. Liberals also belive in the woman's right to choose.
 * Family Values**

Conservatives usually belive in individual responsibility, private charities, privatized social security, private health coverage, and private persriction drug insurance plans. Liberals favor government sponsored perscription drug programs, Welfare, expanded Social Security, national health care, and a social safty net.
 * Social Programs**

Conservatives believe in a laissez-faire economy and a limited government role in the economy, free markets, low taxes and tax cuts, a balanced budget, and are tolerant of corporations. Liberals, on the other hand, believe in Keynesian economics, or a government role in the economy, government spending and deficits when necessary, and progressive taxes.
 * Economic Policy**

44)Identify and explain the two ways that political scientists measure political ideology. In addition note any possible shortcomings of each approach. political scientist measure political ideology in 2 different ways. //One way is to take the percentage of a state's vote for a particular ideological presidential candidate. But if the percentage is measured inaccurately, the consequence will be a measurement error. Another way is to take polls such as: traditional public polls or political polls (Push, tracking, exit). But there are shortcomings to polling. There is sampling error (margin of error) which measures the accuracy pf public opinion polls, Limited responses, lack of information, and intensity of feeling on issues.//