Exam 9: Public Opinion

Some people believe that politicians and officials in a democratic government should pay close attention to public opinion and try to follow it when possible, because the government not only derives its authority from the people but should also be responsive to their expressed desires. This is the ________ model of representation.

Kendra is attached to core values of moral traditionalism and economic liberty. These values lead her to express support for policies that limit access to abortion services and lower taxes on income, among other things. Kendra's beliefs and attitudes are consistent with a conservative ________.

Which ideology, most closely identified with Marxism, represents the extreme left of the ideological spectrum in Western political thought since the mid-nineteenth century?

During the 2000 Republican presidential primaries, campaign consultants in favor of George W. Bush's election conducted a poll in which potential primary voters were asked whether they would be likely to vote for or against John McCain after learning that his "campaign finance proposals would give labor unions and the media a bigger influence on the outcome of elections." Clearly, the consultants' goal was not to find out how many people were going to vote for McCain but to spread negative information about Bush's opponent while posing as pollsters. This is an example of ________ polling.

Which refers to how people rank-order potential outcomes or experiences?

The best predictor of how an individual will vote in a congressional or presidential election is ________.

In a presidential election poll surveying a random sample of 1,200 voters, the margin of error is around 1.5 percent. This means that if a candidate, according to the sample of voters in the survey, will receive 51 percent of the vote on Election Day, we can confidently predict that in the real election that candidate will receive ________ percent of the vote.

Although the United States is one of the most ________ nations of the world, its citizens express remarkable ________ about democracy and forms of government.

Explain the concept of political socialization. How does the process of socialization influence the opinions a person expresses? What are three likely sources of political socialization for individuals raised in the United States?

Because of ________ methods of survey research, we know ________ about what people think and feel, and about the collective attitudes of the general public.

In statistical research, a ________ is a subset of people who are chosen to provide information as representatives of the entire group in which a researcher is interested.

________ is the psychological process of shaping people's perceptions of a particular issue, figure, or policy.

People's support or opposition regarding a government program ________ depends on how a question is posed. Public opinion ________ over short periods of time.

Alissa's parents are both Democrats, as are most of her friends. Alissa herself identifies with the Democratic Party, in part because she grew up surrounded by other Democrats and feels comfortable with the policies and personalities that are associated with that party. The development of Alissa's partisanship is best described as a process of ________.

A ________ sample does not accurately represent the overall population from which it is drawn.

In statistical research, the ________ is the range of expected outcomes for a population given the data revealed by a sample drawn from that population.

Ideology and partisanship are two fundamental ________ that are usually long term and shape people's opinions toward specific politicians and government policies.

Susan conducts a telephone survey about offshore drilling. The people who respond to her calls are overwhelmingly senior citizens, with very few young adults answering her survey questions. Her sample is likely to be ________.

Many people express opinions and attitudes in surveys that are inconsistent with their own personal material interests but are in accordance with collective interests. For example, quite a few wealthy African Americans support more liberal social welfare policies than their wealthy white counterparts. This is an example of ________.

Policy makers and mass media communications often use measures of ________ as indicators of what "the people" want.