William_T._Bianco,_David_T._Canon]_American_Polit

224 Chapter 6Chapter 6 || Public OpinionPublic Opinion

Survey respondents may also be responding to trust questions in ways we do not

expect. In particular, in an era where citizens and political organizations are polarized

to some degree, high levels of distrust are almost a given, as citizens whose partisan

affiliation or leaning differs from the president’s party ID are unlikely to report high

levels of trust. Moreover, the data shown earlier suggests that even within the president’s

party, a significant percentage of people may report low trust because they disagree with

the president’s policy positions. If so, the decline in trust may say more about the nature

of contemporary politics than it does about citizens’ confidence in their government.

Policy Preferences

In a diverse country of more than 330 million, people care about a wide range of

government policies. One useful measure of Americans’ policy preferences is the

policy mood, mentioned earlier, which captures the public’s collective demands for

government action on domestic policies.^48 Policy mood measures are constructed from

surveys that ask about opinions on a wide range of policy questions.^49

Changes in the policy mood in America have led to changes in defense spending,

environmental policy, and civil rights policies, among others—and have influenced

elections (see Figure 6.6).^50 When the policy mood leans in an activist direction (Americans

want government to do more, corresponding to lower values on the vertical axis), such

as in the early 1960s, conditions are ripe for an expansion of the federal government

involving more spending and new programs. In contrast, when the policy mood leans in

the opposite direction (Americans want a smaller, less-active government, corresponding

to higher values on the vertical axis), elected officials are likely to enact smaller increases

in government spending and fewer new programs—or, as in recent elections, candidates

policy mood

The level of public support for

expanding the government’s role in

society; whether the public wants

government action on a specific issue.

Percentage that says the government is doing a good job...

79%

76

72

72

59

56

52

52

51

51

48

36

28

Setting workplace standards

Ensuring safe food and medicine

Keeping the country safe from terrorism

Protecting the environment

Ensuring access to health care

Ensuring access to high-quality education

Maintaining infrastructure

Advancing space exploration

Strengthening the economy

Ensuring basic income for 65+

Helping people get out of poverty

Managing immigration system

Responding to natural disasters

FIGURE

6.5

Measuring

American

Public Opinion:

Is the

Government

Doing a Good

Job?

How is it that Americans disapprove of

government overall but give relatively

high ratings in many specific areas?

Source: Pew Research Center, “Beyond

Distrust: How Americans View Their

Government,” November 23, 2015, http://www.

people-press.org (accessed 12/5/15).

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