chapter 10 Flashcards
Public Opinion
what the public thinks about a particular issue or set of issues at any point in time
public opinion polls
interviews or surveys with samples of citizens that are used to estimate the feelings and beliefs of the entire population
George Gallop
One of the earliest developers of scientific methods for public opinion polling and a proponent for a strong role for the voice of the public in politics and government
straw poll
unscientific survey used to gauge public opinion on a variety of issues and policies
sample
a subset of the whole population selected to be questioned for the purposes of prediction or gauging opinion
American National Election Studies (ANES)
Founded in 1952 by researchers at the university of Michigan and Stanford university, ANES collects data on the political attitudes and behavior among voters, such as party affiliation, voting practices, and opinions on parties and candidates
push polls
polls taken for the purpose of providing information on an opponent that would lead respondents to vote against that candidate
population
the entire group of people whose attitudes a researcher wishes to measure
random sampling
a method of poll selection that gives each person in a group the same chance of being selected
stratified sampling
A variation of random sampling; the population is divided into subgroups and weighted based on demographic characteristics of the national population
tracking polls
continuous surveys that enable a campaign or news organization to chart a candidate’s daily or weekly rise or fall in support
exit polls
polls conducted as votes leave selected polling places on election day
margin of error
A measure of the accuracy of a public opinion poll within statistical parameters
sampling error
errors resulting from the size or the quality of a survey sample
political ideology
the coherent set of values and beliefs about the purpose and scope of government held by groups and individuals
