Chapter 6 - Public Opinion and Political Action Flashcards
The science of population changes
Demography
The distribution of the population’s beliefs about politics and policy issues
Public opinion
A valuable tool for understanding demographic changes. The Constitution requires that the government conduct an “actual enumeration” of the population every 10 years
Census
The mixing of cultures, ideas, and peoples that has changed the American nation.
Melting pot
The emergence of a non-Caucasian majority, as compared with a White, generally Anglo-Saxon majority.
Minority majority
An overall set of values widely shared within a society
Political culture
The process of reallocating seats in the House of Representatives every ten years on the basis of the results of the census
Reapportionment
The process through which an individual acquires his/her particular political orientations- his/her knowledge, feelings, and evaluations regarding his/her political world
Political socialization
A relatively small proportion of people who are chosen in a survey so as to be representative of the whole
Sample
The key technique employed by sophisticated survey researchers, which operates on the principle that everyone should have an equal probability of being selected for the sample
Random sampling
The level of confidence in the findings of a public opinion poll. The more people interviewed, the more confident one can be of the results
Sampling error
A technique used by pollsters to place telephone calls randomly to both listed and unlisted numbers when conducting a survey
Random-digit dialing
Public opinion surveys used by major media pollsters to predict electoral winners with speed and precision
Exit poll
A coherent set of beliefs about politics, public policy, and public purpose. It helps give meaning to political events, personalities and policies
Political ideology
A term that refers to the regular pattern by which women are more likely to support Democratic candidates
Gender gap
