Question 1

For pollsters, "framing" ______.

Accepted Answer

Framing in polling refers to the context or way a question is presented, which can influence how respondents interpret and answer the question.

Question 2

The terms liberal and conservative ______.

Accepted Answer

Liberal and conservative are ideological labels commonly used in American politics to describe political beliefs and positions.

Question 3

The experiences of Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush illustrate ______.

Accepted Answer

Presidential approval ratings often fluctuate based on economic conditions and international events, as seen in the presidencies of both George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush.

Question 4

What do the reactions to Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama illustrate about partisanship?

Accepted Answer

Reactions to Presidents Bush and Obama show that evaluations of political figures have become more polarized, with opinions often divided sharply along party lines.

Question 5

How can public opinion play its assigned role in democratic politics if large segments of the public are politically ignorant or hold inconsistent views?

Accepted Answer

Public opinion can still play a role in democratic politics through various formal and informal institutions that help shape and channel it, even if segments of the public are politically ignorant or hold inconsistent views.

Question 6

What is the effect of ambivalence on people's expressed opinions?

Accepted Answer

Ambivalence causes people to rely on the considerations that are most accessible or salient at the moment, leading to variability in their expressed opinions.

Question 7

The varying levels of support for the Iraq War highlight what aspect of public opinion?

Accepted Answer

Answers may be affected by even ostensibly minor changes in question wording.

Question 8

Unless there is a compelling reason to do otherwise, Americans interpret political phenomena ______.

Accepted Answer

Americans often interpret political phenomena in ways that align with their partisan preferences, a concept known as partisan bias or motivated reasoning. This means they are likely to favor interpretations that support their political party.

Question 9

What lessons can we draw from the fact that Americans believed that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction or that President Obama was foreign-born and ineligible to be President?

Accepted Answer

People often exhibit confirmation bias, where they favor information that aligns with their pre-existing beliefs and ignore contradictory evidence.

Question 10

The process of acquiring political attitudes is known as ______.

Accepted Answer

Political socialization is the process by which individuals acquire their political attitudes, beliefs, and values.

Question 11

Which of the following is true about opinion leaders?

Accepted Answer

Opinion leaders are individuals who pay close attention to political issues and influence others by providing cues and information. They are not limited to media elites or politicians, nor do they necessarily agree with the majority.

Question 12

How can stable and coherent public opinion arise from unstable and incoherent individual opinions?

Accepted Answer

Measurement errors and random individual changes tend to cancel each other out, leading to a stable average opinion if circumstances remain unchanged.

Question 13

When asked to place themselves on a scale from very liberal to very conservative, about half the people classify themselves as liberal or conservative. Of the rest ______.

Accepted Answer

About a quarter of the remaining people position themselves in the middle, and another quarter do not place themselves at all.

Question 14

Which of the following statements about political information is true?

Accepted Answer

People often do not invest time in acquiring political information if it does not have a direct benefit to them, leading to opinions that may seem uninformed or unstable.

Question 15

When public opinion is not stable, its movements can usually be explained by which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Public opinion often shifts in response to changes in social, economic, or political conditions, reflecting the public's reaction to new information or events.

Question 16

Which of the following interpretations of partisanship is correct?

Accepted Answer

Partisanship can serve as a heuristic for some voters, simplifying their decision-making process, while for others, it is a core part of their identity, influencing their political views and behaviors.

Question 17

Individual opinions sometimes may be badly informed and unstable, ______.

Accepted Answer

Aggregate public opinion tends to be more stable and coherent because it averages out individual fluctuations and errors, leading to a more consistent overall view.

Question 18

What is the political attitude that shapes opinions and organizes other political attitudes most consistently for most Americans?

Accepted Answer

Political parties are the primary framework through which most Americans organize their political attitudes and opinions, as they provide a consistent set of beliefs and policy preferences.

Question 19

When a small segment of the public forms opinions by paying close attention to political events and issues and the uninformed and inattentive take cues from the attentive segment, what collective action problem does it illustrate?

Accepted Answer

This scenario illustrates the free riding problem, where the uninformed benefit from the efforts of the informed without actively participating themselves.

Question 20

What ideological label do we use to describe those who distrust government, have greater faith in private enterprise and free markets, and are more willing to use government to enforce traditional moral standards?

Accepted Answer

Conservatives typically distrust government intervention in economic affairs, favor free markets, and support the use of government to uphold traditional moral values.

Quiz 10: Public Opinion