public opinion and parties Flashcards
public opinion
distribution of the population’s beliefs about politics and policy issues
role of polls
help politicians detect public preferences
may distort election process
bandwagon effect
supporting a candidate simply because they see others doing so
exit polls
used by media to predict election day winners
may discourage people from voting
vote count taken outside poll stations
random sample
key technique employed by survey researchers
everyone should have equal probability of being selected
criticism of polls
wording questions weirdly can encourage specific answers
push polls
polls that seek to push out negative information about a candidate than measure public opinion
political socialization
process through which an individual acquires a particular political orientation
family media school etc
political ideolody
coherent set of beliefs about politics, public policy, and public purpose
gender gap
women make up 51%of the population and are typically less conservative than men
more likely to support democrats
liberal
favored personal and economic freedom and against centralization of power TO
someone who supports an active federal government that:
intervene in economy
create social welfare programs
help certain groups acquire greater bargaining power
promote equality
conservative
person who opposed excesses of the french revolution and supported a restoration of power of the state, TO
those who support a more limited federal government
free markets
states rights over national supremacy
greater reliance on individual responsibility and choice in economic affairs
what did founding fathers think of political parties
george washington found them to be possibilities for corruption and national divisiveness
madison warned of factions
why is a two party system good
serves functions with structure
sorts out exhausting list of candidates
discourages extreme views
why is a two party system bad
contributes to political ambiguity
divided government
