Chapters 3.2, 3.3, and 9: Public Opinion

Question 1

Be able to understand and discuss the concept of public opinion, and how it is different from core values and attitudes

Answer 1

Public opinion: Aggregate measure of the beliefs, attitudes, judgments, and/or preferences of a population over matters of public concern.

Question 2

Be able to define and classify the two types of agents of socialization and provide examples

Answer 2

o Primary: occurs when a child learns the attitudes, values, and actions appropriate to individuals as members of a particular culture

o Secondary: refers to the process of learning what is the appropriate behavior as a member of a smaller group within the larger society.

Question 3

Define agents of socialization

Answer 3

Agents of socialization, or institutions that can impress social norms upon an individual, include the family, religion, peer groups, economic systems, legal systems, penal systems, language, and the media

Question 4

Define Primacy Effect

Answer 4

The first item in a list is initially distinguished from previous activities as necessary and may be transferred to long-term memory by the time of recall.

Question 5

Define Recency effect

Answer 5

Items at the end of the list are still in short-term memory at the time of recall.

Question 6

Be able to discuss the trends that occur in group identity

Answer 6

This phenomenon of viewing politics through a group’s lens (age, race, gender, religion, etc.)

Question 7

Be able to discuss how the public influence the government and how these effects are problematic

Answer 7

It will impact society’s economy and the mainstream opinion on the same political problem from different political parties.

Question 8

Be able to identify some of the ways that we measure public opinion

Answer 8

o Public opinion polls.

o Straw Polls: An informal poll that does not employ scientific methods.

o Scientific Polls: Utilize random sampling to yield representative samples.

o Look at voting behavior.

Question 9

Define the concept of sampling

Answer 9

A sample — a “slice” or “preview” of individuals’ behavior or political attitudes.

Question 10

Why is sampling randomized?

Answer 10

It has different locations and sizes, and the same question also can be worded in different formats.

Question 11

Be able to identify the five necessary components to evaluate the accuracy of polls

Answer 11

o	Location.
o	Size.
o	Margin of error.
o	How questions are worded.
o	Framing of issue.

Question 12

Define Public Opinion

Answer 12

Aggregate measure of the beliefs, attitudes, judgments, and/or preferences of a population over matters of public concern.

Question 13

Define Primacy effect

Answer 13

The cognitive bias that results in remembering the first info better than recent info (long list of words)

Question 14

Define Cumulative effect

Answer 14

The tendency of repeated actions, events, or ideas to have a greater effect than the sum of their individual effects (exponential)

Question 15

Define Primary Agents of Socialization

Answer 15

Agents of socialization, sometimes referred to as institutions, work together to influence and shape people’s political and economic norms and values. Such institutions include, but are not limited to: families, media, peers, schools, religions, work, and legal systems

Question 16

Define Secondary Agents of socialization

Answer 16

Secondary agents of socialization are those institutions that teach us how to act appropriately in a group or social situation. Examples include child-minding facilities, schools, places of worship, and recreational institutions. Also included are the places in which we work.

Question 17

Define Frames of Reference

Answer 17

A frame of reference is a structure of concepts and views through which we perceive and evaluate information.

Question 18

Define Party Identification

Answer 18

Party identification refers to the political party with which an individual identifies. Party identification is affiliation with a political party. Party identification is typically determined by the political party that an individual most commonly supports (by voting or other means).

Question 19

Define Political Ideology

Answer 19

A political ideology is a coherent set of views on politics and the role of the government.

Question 20

Define Group Identification

Answer 20

Group identification is defined as member identification with an interacting group and is distinguished conceptually from social identity, cohesion, and common fate.

Question 21

Define Random Sample

Answer 21

A scientific method of selection in which each member of the population has an equal chance of being included in the sample.

Question 22

Define Sample

Answer 22

A small subset of individuals drawn from a population with which public opinion researchers seek to estimate the aggregate opinion of the population.

Question 23

Define Sampling Error

Answer 23

A measure of the accuracy of a public opinion poll

Question 24

Define Margin of Error

Answer 24

The amount, within a specified level of confidence (usually 95% or higher) that a measured sample value can be expected to deviate from the true population value.

Question 25

Define Political Socialization

Answer 25

The process by which our social environment leads us to develop attitudes, values, beliefs, and social identities that shape our views toward government and politics.