SOURCES OF OPINIONS| 131Some events that shape beliefs are specific, individual experiences. For
example, someone who believes that he managed to get a college degree only
because of government grants and guaranteed student loans might favor a
large, activist government that provides numerous benefits to its citizens.
Other events affect large numbers of people. Political realignments are a good
example. A realignment is a nationwide shift in which many people move from
identifying with one political party to identifying with another (see Chapter 6).
Beginning in the early 1960s, large numbers of white southerners shifted their
party identification from Democratic to Republican. This gradual change was
driven by national events, including support of civil rights and voting rights leg-
islation by many Democratic officials in Washington, D.C.^30
Recent events also shape beliefs. After the September 11 terrorist attacks,
many citizens became more willing to restrict civil liberties to reduce the chances
of future attacks.^31 Support for restrictions remained elevated 10 years later, sug-
gesting a long-term change in public opinion.^32 Less specifi c events such as changes
in the economy hold a similar sway over opinions, such as presidential approval.
Presidents are more likely to have high approval ratings when economic growth
is high and infl ation and unemployment are low, whereas their ratings fall when
growth is sluggish or negative and unemployment and infl ation are high. Many of
these factors also shape attachments to political parties.^33
Finally, the reaction to events depends on how political information is dissemi-
nated. A study of public opinion on the death penalty found that opposition increased
as media coverage of death penalty cases began to deemphasize moral arguments
and focused instead on the possibility that innocent people were being mistakenly
executed.^34 We discuss this phenomenon, known as framing, later in the chapter.
Group Identity
Other inf luences on an individual’s opinions are social categories or groups,
such as gender, race, and education level. These characteristics might shape
opinions in three ways. The first two ways relate to the fact that individuals
learn about politics from the people around them. Therefore, those who live in
the same region or who were born in the same era might have similar beliefs
because (1) they experienced the same historical events at similar points in
their lives or (2) they learned political viewpoints from one another. In the
United States, opinions on many issues are highly correlated with the state or
region where a person grew up.^35
Third, individuals may rely on others who “look like” them as a source of opin-
ions. Some political scientists, for example, argue that group identities shape
partisanship: when a person decides between being a Republican or a Democrat,
she thinks about which demographic groups are associated with each party and
picks the party that has more members from the groups she feels she is a part of.^36
One reason for looking at group variations in public opinion is that candidates
and political consultants often formulate their campaign strategies in terms of
groups. For example, analyses of the 2008 election argued that Barack Obama’s
presidential win and the Democratic gains in t-he House and Senate were driven
by high levels of support from young Americans, African Americans, and people
with advanced degrees. Similarly, Democratic losses in 2009 and 2010 special
elections were the result of lower turnout among the same groups and strong