230 Chapter 6 | Public OpinionWhat Americans think
about politics
Present findings on what Americans think about government
and why it matters. (Pages 220–227)Summary
As a whole, the American electorate is ideologically moderate, with
relatively little ideological polarization. Paradoxically, although trust
in the government has declined steadily since the 1960s, people are
still generally happy with their own representatives in Washington,
D.C., and low trust in government does not preclude Americans from
approving of specific government programs and activities. While it can
be difficult to determine exactly what the American public wants, public
opinion is still quite relevant in American politics. Government policy and
congressional outcomes are responsive to changes in public mood, and
most policy decisions (and arguments) reflect the priorities of a majority
of Americans.Practice Quiz Questions
- In the 1970s, the majority of Americans identified themselves
as ideologically ; in the 2000s, most Americans
identified themselves as.
a moderate; conservative
b moderate; moderate
c moderate; liberal
d conservative; moderate
e conservative; conservative - What is policy mood?
a public support for Congress
b presidential approval rating
c trust in government
d public demand for government action on domestic policies
e public demand for government action on international policies - Which policy area is always near the top of Americans’
concerns?
a economic conditions
b health care
c same-sex marriage
d immigration
e the environment - Americans generally of the government and
generally of their own representatives.
a approve; approve
b approve; disapprove
c disapprove; approve
d disapprove; disapprove
Key terms
ideological polarization (p. 220) policy mood (p. 224)Measuring public opinion
Describe basic survey methods and potential issues affect-
ing accuracy. (Pages 211–220)Summary
While most information on public opinion comes from mass surveys
where thousands of people respond, some information comes
from focus groups where small groups of people are interviewed
together. Despite a number of limitations, most research on public
opinion focuses on mass surveys, as they can be used to draw broad
conclusions about the country.Practice Quiz Questions
- Why are focus groups helpful in understanding public opinion?
a They provide deep insights into why people hold the views that
they do.
b They provide a representative sample of the population.
c They use a small number of respondents to draw conclusions
about the country.
d It is impossible to understand someone’s partisanship based on a
survey.
e They restrict respondents to a few answer choices. - Which of the following is not a random sampling technique?
a random digit dialing
b face-to-face interviewing
c Internet polling
d push polls
e robo-polling - Why is it important to get a large random survey sample?
a to keep costs down
b to provide deep insights into why people hold their opinions
c to help candidates fine-tune their campaign messages
d to be able to generalize about the broad population
e to prevent question wording from biasing survey results - Suppose a survey of Americans’ attitudes about NSA surveil-
lance of cell phone records reveals that the level of opposition
to surveillance varies with how the question is phrased. What
is the best explanation for this variation?
a People don’t take surveys seriously.
b People are afraid to express truthful opinions on surveys.
c Changes in the wording of questions call to mind different
considerations.
d Changes in the wording of questions make people suspicious.
e Few people can respond in a rational way to survey questions.
Key terms
mass survey (p. 211)
population (p. 211)
sample (p. 211)sampling error (p. 214)
random sample (p. 215)Full_07_APT_64431_ch06_198-231.indd 230 16/11/18 1:39 PM