GENERAL INFO
What is Public Opinion?
The ideas and attitudes that most people hold about a particular issue or person.
What is an interest group?
People who share a belief and come together to promote it.
What are the three terms of features used to describe public opinion?
Direction, intensity, and stability
A more accurate measure is to request individuals answer questions.
Polls may discourage this action if the outcome is already decided.
Voting.
Public opinions help what?
shape the decisions of each president.
Interest groups are sometimes called?
pressure groups.
Whether people feel positively or negatively about an issue.
Direction.
Polls that word questions a certain way in order to infulence peoples answers.
sometimes leaders focus more on pleasing the public than doing what?
exercising political leadership
True or False: Most Americans agree on very few issues.
True
What is a form of communication that reaches a large audience?
Mass media.
How strongly people feel about an opinion/issue.
What do pollsters do?
Measures the president’s popularity or public attitudes
Constant polling during campaigns turns elections into what type of event?
Horse racing.
Presidents know they need support from the public to do what?
Carry out presidential programs.
A person’s opinions are often shaped by personal factors.
Personal background.
How firmly people hold onto their views.
Stability.
One way to measure public opinion is by looking at..
election results
These people, that also compete in elections have a major influence on public policy.
Political parties
Presidents are more likely to have support if their what is high?
Popularity.
This group of people can shape public opinion by sharing their views.
Public officals.
Public opinion on canididates is relativily what?
unstable.
To find out people’s true opinions what must pollsters be careful of doing?
The wording of their questions.
What are the group professionals who value fair and unbiased questioning called?
scientific pollsters