Deck 4: Political Socialization and Public Opinion

Question 1

Variations in socialization can be caused by differences in ___.

A) Class
B) Race
C) Individual experience
D) All of the above

Answer 1

D

Question 2

If you were conducting an in-depth interview with ten to fifteen people, you would be conducting ___.

A) a benchmark poll
B) a focus group
C) a tracking poll
D) an opinion survey

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Americans tend to support the general principles of our political culture, therefore when asked about specific applications of those principles they tend to answer in predictable ways.

A) True
B) False; they often contradict their espoused general principles and they disagree about the core meaning of those principles.
C) False; they usually cannot answer the specific questions due to their low levels of political knowledge.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Arguing that the death penalty is unfair, arbitrary, and capricious and often based on racial discrimination in the criminal justice system, in 1972 the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the death penalty in the case of ___.

A) Montejo v. Louisiana
B) Furman v. Georgia
C) Miranda v. Arizona
D) Mapp v. Ohio

Question 5

When "Black Lives Matter" activists express outrage at police violence, they are calling attention to the ___.

A) national security state
B) entire capitalist economy
C) whole criminal justice system
D) pervasive coronavirus crisis

Question 6

According to polling research, who is more sensitive to race relations issues, blacks or whites?

A) Blacks
B) Whites
C) Both of the above
D) Neither of the above

Question 7

Amongst racial and ethnic groups, who reports being discriminated against the most?

A) Hispanics
B) Whites
C) Blacks
D) None of the above

Question 8

What is the relative level of political knowledge and political interest among the poor?

A) It is relatively high in comparison to higher-class groups.
B) It is about equal to higher-class groups.
C) It is relatively lower than higher-class groups.
D) None of the above

Question 9

What is the main effect of the media on the political socialization of Americans?

A) The media tend to push the polity to the political left.
B) The media tend to push the polity to the political right.
C) The media tend to promote the fundamental legitimacy of democratic capitalism.
D) The media tend to promote democracy and demote capitalism.

Question 10

What three characteristics do Lipset and Huntington both highlight in their accounts of the American Creed?

A) Liberty, fraternity, and equality
B) Liberty, equality, and individualism
C) Democracy, rule of law, and laissez-faire
D) Liberalism, populism, and conservatism

Question 11

What did Hartz mean when he described American colonial society as a "fragment society"?

A) The English immigrants that came to America were seen to be representative of English society.
B) The English immigrants that came to America were seen to be representative of Europeans in general.
C) The English immigrants that came to America were not representative of Europeans or even the English themselves generally.
D) The English immigrants that came to America were internally fragmented along racial, societal, class, and religious lines.

Question 12

The unifying patterns of thought and behavior that are widely held in society dealing with the relationship between people and their government are referred to as ___.

A) Political socialization
B) Political culture
C) Political behavior
D) Political society

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT an agent of socialization?

A) Parents
B) School
C) Work
D) All of the above ARE agents of socialization

Question 14

What is political socialization?

A) Patterns of political thought and behavior that are widely held in a society
B) The tendency is recent decades for American political culture to become more accepting of socialist ideas, such as the importance of achieving equal wealth
C) The process by which American government has become more and more involved in nearly all aspects of American life
D) None of the above

Question 15

What is public opinion?

A) The distribution of citizen opinion on economic issues
B) The distribution of citizen opinion on political issues
C) The distribution of citizen opinion on matters of public concern or interest
D) The sum attitudes found exclusively in polls

Question 16

What is political socialization's relationship to political culture?

A) There is no such relationship.
B) Political socialization is the process by which political culture is transmitted from those immersed in it to those not.
C) Political socialization is the process by which children and immigrants "place their mark" upon the political culture.
D) Political culture is the process by which political socialization is transmitted from those immersed in it to those not.

Question 17

What are central components of the "American Creed?"

A) Illiberalism, corporatism, and traditionalism
B) Capitalism, socialism, and culturalism
C) Liberty, equality, and individualism
D) Life, death, and taxes

Question 18

What differentiates primary from secondary groups relative to their respective roles as "agents of political socialization?"

A) The constancy of interaction is the main differentiating point between the two groups.
B) There are no discernible differences between the two groups.
C) The organization of the two groups is different with one being more hierarchical than the other.
D) The leadership of the two groups is what differentiates them, with one being more centralized than the other.

Question 19

Which of the following was a transformative event that had a socialization effect on the politics of the generation that lived through it?

A) 37145
B) The Great Depression
C) The Civil War
D) All of the above

Question 20

What is the most important and influential agent of political socialization?

A) Work
B) School
C) Family
D) Peers

Question 21

When did scientific polling begin, at least as a device for predicting presidential elections?

A) 1916
B) 1926
C) 1936
D) 1946

Question 22

What kind of poll is utilized to gauge the electoral prospects of a potential candidate for political office?

A) A benchmark poll
B) An exit poll
C) A focus group
D) A tracking poll

Question 23

Which of the following is a sensible rule of thumb to use when deciding whether or not to trust a poll?

A) Good polls come from those actors actively involved in the issue or event about which respondents are being polled.
B) Good polls come from those organizations that have reputational incentives to be accurate.
C) There are no good polls; avoid relying on any of them.
D) Good polls are the ones that tell you what you want to hear.

Question 24

What is an opinion survey?

A) A poll used to gauge opinion on certain issues
B) A poll used exclusively to market products
C) A poll used exclusively to assist a political campaign
D) All of the above

Question 25

From the Let's Compare section, what is the gender gap?

A) The lack of a difference between men and women regarding the political attitudes that they hold
B) The presence of a difference among men and women regarding the political attitudes that they hold
C) The presence of a difference between men and women regarding the political attitudes that they hold
D) The presence of difference among men but not among women as to the political attitudes that they hold

Question 26

What is political ideology?

A) An organized and coherent set of ideas that forms a perspective on the political world and how it works
B) The same thing as a religion
C) The same thing as a philosophy
D) An organized and coherent set of ideas that forms a perspective on the politics of culture and how it works

Question 27

In what way, if at all, do populists and liberals agree? How do they disagree?

A) Populists share the social values of liberals but disagree with them on economic issues.
B) Populist is just another word for liberal.
C) Populists share the economic values of liberals but not their social values.
D) Populist is just another term for conservative so it has no relation to liberals.

Question 28

Where do conservatives stand on the issue of the size of government?

A) They do not have an opinion.
B) They favor a large government that actively promotes a thriving capitalist economy.
C) They favor a small, limited government, but, unlike libertarians, they believe government should seek to foster religion, morality, the family, and law and order as the bases of social order.
D) None of the above

Question 29

Which of the following is a common characteristic of polls released by many political campaigns?

A) They are often intended to serve political purposes.
B) They are often intended to suggest political momentum.
C) They are often intended to trigger positive news stories.
D) All of the above.

Question 30

Which one of the following is a statement of the classic paradox in American public opinion?

A) Most Americans want higher taxes and they want government to spend less.
B) Most Americans want lower taxes and they want government to spend more.
C) Most Americans want higher taxes and they want government to spend more.
D) Most Americans want lower taxes and they want government to spend less.

Question 31

A recent survey of American voter ideological preferences found that ___.

A) more voters identified as liberal than conservative
B) more voters identified as moderate than liberal
C) more voters identified as conservative than liberal
D) more voters identified as moderate than conservative

Question 32

A "turnout model" is defined as ___.

A) an estimate of the number of donors who will actually contribute to a campaign
B) an educated guess about the make-up of those who will actually vote
C) a prediction of the number of valid signatures actually on a ballot issue petition
D) a rough calculation of the number of candidates who will actually compete for political office

Question 33

In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama had a _______percentage of black, Hispanic, and white voters than Democrat Hillary Clinton had in the 2016 presidential election.

A) larger
B) smaller
C) the same

Question 34

Which one of the following statements is not true regarding public opinions of American citizens?

A) Most Americans hold to certain broad ideas or predispositions about politics.
B) New information, mediated through a voter's predispositions, generally leads to a decision with which they are comfortable.
C) American citizens have detailed information about institutions, leaders, or policies.
D) The least informed citizens find political information so mystifying that they ignore it completely.

Question 35

In survey after survey over the past fifty years, most Americans knew who the president was but only about _______percent could identify the vice president.

A) 50
B) 60
C) 70
D) 80

Question 36

About 55 percent of Americans believe that human life begins at conception, but only about 20 percent of Americans believe that abortion should be illegal in all cases. This suggests that _______percent of Americans are in the uncomfortable position of believing that ending young human life is sometimes necessary.

A) 25
B) 30
C) 35
D) 40

Question 37

As the 2020 presidential election got underway, approximately _______percent of black Americans disapproved of the job that Donald Trump was doing as president.

A) 70
B) 80
C) 90
D) 100

Question 38

William Maddox and Stuart Lilie were among the first to argue that the ideological spectrum in the United States is best understood along _______dimensions rather than one.

A) two
B) three
C) four
D) five

Question 39

Political culture includes _______and ___.

A) common attitudes toward authority
B) common attitudes about gender
C) common attitudes about race
D) common beliefs about political opportunity

Question 40

Opinion polls are often used by _______and ___.

A) Congress
B) Political campaigns
C) Civic organizations
D) Welfare programs

Question 41

Equality of opportunity promises ___, while equality of outcomes or results promises ___.

A) some attention to the distribution of prizes at the end of the race
B) some attention to the distribution of prizes at the start of the race
C) a fair start to the race
D) a fair end to the race

Question 42

The Death Penalty Information Center reports that of the 1,500 persons executed in the U.S. since 1976, more than one-third have been ___, even though they are only about _______percent of the total population.

A) 6
B) brown
C) 12
D) black

Question 43

S. Supreme Court struck down the death penalty in the case of ___, while later upholding the death penalty in the case of ___.

A) Furman v. Georgia
B) Fisher v. Texas
C) Gregg v. Georgia
D) Lawrence v. Texas

Question 44

In the 2016 presidential campaign, the Clinton campaign's "turnout model" estimated _______and _______than actually showed up on election day.

A) fewer minorities
B) fewer whites
C) more whites
D) more minorities

Question 45

Maddox and Lilie argue that the ideological spectrum is best understood along the dimensions of the extent of government involvement in _______and ___.

A) reducing racial tension
B) securing and expanding personal freedoms
C) the economy
D) the international community

Question 46

James Madison asserted that public opinion _______to every government and _______in every free government.

A) is the real sovereign
B) gives obeisance
C) defers to the will of elected representatives
D) sets bounds

Question 47

A majority of the American public remains committed to the fairness and utility of the death penalty.

Question 48

Political socialization stops when a person becomes an adult.

Question 49

Public opinion is, collectively, the result of political socialization.

Question 50

Knowing a person's demographic background accurately predicts their political behavior.

Question 51

According to public opinion researchers, do Americans have a detailed level of political knowledge?

Question 52

Generally, blacks and women take more conservative stances than whites and men.

Question 53

Colonial America was heavily influenced by select groups of Protestants, such as Puritans and Quakers, who generally preferred local control over state control.

Question 54

A benchmark poll is the same thing as a preference poll.

Question 55

Although whites and blacks often disagree over civil rights issues, they tend to agree about foreign policy issues.

Question 56

Since we have a unifying political culture, we can suggest that public opinion is basically stable in America.

Question 57

A recent General Social Survey found that 70 percent of whites, but only 42 percent of blacks, said they could imagine a situation in which they could approve police striking an adult male.

Question 58

In the 2016 presidential campaign, the Clinton campaign "turnout model," meaning the campaign's best estimate as to how many whites, blacks, Hispanics, etc. would turn out on election day, was accurate.

Question 59

In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama had a larger percentage of black, Hispanic, and white voters than Democrat Hillary Clinton had in the 2016 presidential election.

Question 60

Most Americans hold to certain broad ideas or predispositions about politics, although they have little detailed information about institutions, leaders, or policies.

Question 61

Seventy-four percent of white Americans favor cash reparations to the descendants of slaves while only 15 percent of black Americans agree.

Question 62

In 2016, although 56 percent of respondents thought their federal income taxes were too high, most favored increased spending on education, the poor, alternative energy sources, health, social security, among other programs.

Question 63

As the beginning of the 2020 presidential campaign, a public opinion poll revealed that the vast majority of respondents said they could vote for a black or female for president.

Question 64

Why is understanding political socialization important for learning about public opinion?

Question 65

Which agents of socialization are most influential and why?

Question 66

Compare and contrast the influence of families and workplaces on political attitudes and behavior.

Question 67

What are the advantages of scientific polling?

Question 68

What would most Americans think about the government doing more to create gender equality?

Question 69

If you're a pollster in the first month of an election season, what kind of poll would you want to use? And, why?

Question 70

As completely yet succinctly as possible discuss political socialization.

Question 71

Discuss your personal ideology or lack thereof, being sure to include evidence for the basis of your argument from the text.

Question 72

Discuss the American Creed as the American political culture.

Question 73

What is a poll and how is it used in American public opinion?

Question 74

James Madison believed that public opinion was more than just the current distribution of citizen opinion on matters of public concern or interest. Discuss what he added to this depiction of public opinion.

Question 75

Discuss why most Americans hold to certain broad ideas or predispositions about politics, although they have little detailed information about institutions, leaders, or policies.

Question 76

Do you believe that a widespread lack of information about political institutions, parties, candidates, and policies endangers representative democracy? Why or why not?

Question 77

Even though many citizens and voters "know" little about politics, do you agree that there are informational shortcuts of "cues" from trusted surrogates that can guide voters toward responsible choices? Why or why not?

Question 78

Why do you think citizens, particularly lower education and lower income citizens, are generally unwilling to respond to surveys or polls on politics and political matters?

Question 79

What does it mean to say that America is the only country in the world based on a creed- on principles and ideals?

Question 80

Where do individual Americans get their opinions about politics, and what are the forces that shape those opinions?