Deck 5: Public Opinion and Political Socialization

Question 1

One critique that pluralists make of the public as a whole is that

A)subgroups within the public do not express opinions on specific matters.
B)the public simplifies complex issues into too-neat, easy solutions.
C)the public tends to overwhelmingly focus on a handful of policy issues and ignore the rest.
D)the public seldom demonstrates clear, consistent opinions on daily issues of government.
E)public opinion has moved increasingly against minority rights in recent decades.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

A January 2014 poll showed that ____ percent of Americans knew that the Affordable Care Act prohibits companies from denying health insurance to people because of any illnesses they may have.​

A)​54
B)​34
C)​74
D)​14
E)94

Answer 2

A

Question 3

A sample of six hundred randomly selected individuals is usually accurate to (plus or minus)

A)three percentage points.
B)five percentage points.
C)seven percentage points.
D)nine percentage points.
E)eleven percentage points.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

According to the text,which of the following is not a characteristic of public opinion?

A)​Governments tend to respond to public opinion.
B)​Citizens are typically unwilling to offer opinions on matters outside their experience, even when asked by pollsters.
C)​The government sometimes does not do what people want.
D)​Public opinion places boundaries on allowable types of public policy.
E)The public's attitude toward a given government policy can vary dramatically over time.

Question 5

The Framers guessed that the __________ would reflect public opinion,especially on the crucial issues of taxes and government spending.

A)president
B)Supreme Court
C)U.S. Senate
D)House of Representatives
E)educated classes

Question 6

A typical Gallup national ​poll surveys approximately _______ individuals.

A)​500
B)​1,500
C)​3,000
D)​4,500
E)​10,000

Question 7

Public opinion polls can be criticized on the grounds that

A)a survey of a few thousand people cannot possibly yield an accurate picture of American attitudes.
B)there is clear evidence that polling organizations falsify results.
C)politicians pay no attention to poll results.
D)the way a pollster words a question can determine the answer.
E)the entities that finance administration of the poll skew results for a certain desired outcome.

Question 8

The basic definition of public opinion is

A)the collective attitudes of citizens on a given issue or question.
B)the underlying attitude of citizens toward their government.
C)journalists' reports about what the public thinks.
D)support for or opposition to candidates or proposals.
E)polling and survey results of the population.

Question 9

Today,the mass media conduct most polls by

A)face-to-face interviews.
B)telephone.
C)mail surveys.
D)the Internet.
E)mail surveys and the Internet.

Question 10

In a 2014 Gallup poll,_____ percent of Americans supported affording gay marriage the same legal status as traditional marriage.​

A)​5
B)14
C)​32
D)​54
E)​67

Question 11

The goal of the statistical theory of sampling is

A)to match the sampler's views with a public response.
B)to obtain the view of every individual in the population.
C)to account for wide variances in public opinion on controversial issues.
D)to obtain a large enough sample size to avoid bias.
E)to reflect the views of the population with some predictable degree of accuracy.

Question 12

One of the nation's oldest polls,the __________,was started in the 1930s,and was most notably wrong in 1948 when it predicted that Thomas Dewey,the Republican candidate,would defeat the Democratic incumbent,Harry Truman in the presidential election.

A)Harris Poll
B)Zogby Poll
C)Field Poll
D)CBS Poll
E)Gallup Poll

Question 13

​Recently,media outlets have started including ________ in their samples,particularly in response to the habits of younger Americans.

A)​interest groups
B)more people
C)​more urban residents
D)​cable viewers
E)​cell phones

Question 14

Which of the following statements reflects the role public opinion should play according to the majoritarian model of democracy?

A)Public opinion should play a much smaller role than it would play in the pluralist model.
B)Groups with different opinions should be allowed to clash openly over government policy.
C)Public opinion is less important than the opinions of experts.
D)Government should do what a majority of the public wants.
E)A majority of the public is ill-informed on the issues, which means the role of public opinion should be increased.

Question 15

When sampled,the public strongly favors the death penalty for certain crimes.The graph of such a distribution would be characterized as

A)stable.
B)skewed.
C)expected.
D)extremist.
E)biased.

Question 16

Historians estimate that _____ percent of Americans supported the Revolution in July 1776.​

A)​10
B)​20
C)​40
D)​60
E)​80

Question 17

Survey methodology did not become a powerful research tool until the

A)1930s.
B)1950s.
C)1970s.
D)1980s.
E)1990s.

Question 18

The accuracy of the population sample used for public opinion polls depends on

A)whether telephoning or direct contact is used to draw the sample.
B)the care with which questions are written and asked.
C)whether computers are used to draw the sample.
D)the factors of believability and reliability.
E)randomness of selection, size of sample, and variation in the population.

Question 19

In nineteen presidential elections since 1936,Gallup polls have deviated from actual ​results by

A)​less than 1.0 percentage point.
B)​about 3 percentage points.
C)​about 6 percentage points.
D)​about 10 percentage points.
E)​about 15 percentage points.

Question 20

A polling company surveying public opinion on Obama's health-care plan finds public opinion to be almost evenly divided,for and against.The graph of such a distribution would be characterized as

A)normal.
B)skewed.
C)reversed.
D)modal.
E)bimodal.

Question 21

​The ______________ principle indicates that what is learned first is learned best.

A)​chief socialization 
B)​child socialization
C)​early education
D)​initialization
E)primacy​

Question 22

Generally,the first agent of political socialization that people are exposed to is

A)school.
B)their peers.
C)family.
D)television.
E)the Internet.

Question 23

When elementary schools introduce students to authority figures outside the family,like the teacher,they prepare students for the value of _________; when they stress norms of democratic decision making and respecting the opinions of others,they teach _________.

A)order; freedom
B)order; equality
C)freedom; order
D)equality; order
E)equality; freedom

Question 24

A distribution of opinions that shows little change over time is a​

A)​normal
B)​consistent
C)​modal
D)​stable
E)​skewed

Question 25

Today,college students are much more __________ than the general public.

A)conservative
B)moderate
C)liberal
D)alienated
E)Republican

Question 26

The most frequent response (such as "I favor")in a public opinion distribution is known as the

A)norm.
B)skew.
C)mode.
D)tail.
E)stable point.

Question 27

The major agents of early socialization in the United States are

A)religion and social class.
B)family, religion, and political party.
C)family, school, community, and peers.
D)school and social class.
E)economics, television, and the Internet.

Question 28

​As students move from elementary school to high school,their political socialization tends to transition from knowledge of ________ to development of _________.

A)​partisanship; patriotic ritual
B)patriotic ​ritual; good citizenship
C)​congressional leaders; political behavior
D)​branches of government; knowledge of and respect for the president
E)​city council; national government

Question 29

Learning political party identification from parents is known as the ___________ model of partisanship.​

A)​familial
B)​transmission
C)​sibling
D)​kinship
E)"same-roof"

Question 30

Since surveying the American public about ideology began,the ideological distribution of the public has become

A)somewhat more moderate.
B)skewed toward liberalism.
C)skewed toward conservatism.
D)more bimodal.
E)more normal.

Question 31

A symmetrical,bell-shaped distribution around a single mode is called a

A)stable distribution.
B)normal distribution.
C)skewed distribution.
D)bimodal distribution.
E)modality.

Question 32

Young Americans are more reliably socialized into their parents' religions when

A)both parents follow the same religion.
B)religious issues track social issues.
C)religious institutions focus heavily on socialization.
D)parents follow different religions.
E)they believe they are being rebellious among their peers by adopting their parents' religion.

Question 33

When Americans are asked to identify themselves on left-right ideological scales ("liberal," "moderate," or "conservative"),the data plotted on a graph is a(n)

A)normal distribution.
B)skewed distribution.
C)bimodal distribution.
D)unstable distribution.
E)reliable distribution.

Question 34

The first political institution that young children tend to focus on is the

A)president.
B)Congress.
C)Supreme Court.
D)political party system.
E)Constitution.

Question 35

The extent to which any socializing agent is influential depends on

A)repetitive behavior.
B)whether or not a person is familiar with the concept before hearing it.
C)the economic influence of the agent.
D)whether the family favorably supports the agent.
E)prolonged exposure to and good communication with the agent, as well as being receptive.

Question 36

As parental and school influences wane in adulthood,_________ emerge as more important socialization agents.

A)adult peer groups
B)political parties
C)the mass media
D)the current presidents
E)adult peer groups and the mass media.

Question 37

Children are likely to adopt their parents' party identification when

A)parents discuss party politics with children.
B)parents refrain from forcing their views on children.
C)at least one parent has worked for a party.
D)both parents vote regularly.
E)both parents strongly identify with the same party.

Question 38

The political knowledge of many young adults changes from high school to college if the college student's education includes

A)encouragement to reject authority.
B)exposure to third parties.
C)a course in constitutional criticism.
D)questioning established values.
E)training in traditional values.

Question 39

The process whereby one becomes aware of politics,learns political facts,and forms political values is called

A)political norming.
B)ideological awakening.
C)political coming-of-age.
D)systems building.
E)political socialization.

Question 40

Pressure on an individual to conform to community values or views is strongest when

A)community values are consistent with modern culture.
B)schools are involved in socialization.
C)the community is homogeneous.
D)competing values are present.
E)corruption in local government occurs.

Question 41

In the presidential elections since 1968,the South has tended to vote

A)for Democratic candidates.
B)for Independent candidates.
C)for Republican candidates.
D)for Republican and Independent candidates about equally.
E)for Democratic and Independent candidates about equally.

Question 42

A libertarian is most likely to exhibit the characteristics of

A)low education and high income.
B)low education and low income.
C)low income and high education.
D)high income and high education.
E)moderate education and moderate income.

Question 43

​According to the 2012 American National Election Study (ANES),about ____ percent of Americans believe the government should permit abortions in many,if not all,instances.

A)15
B)79
C)​33
D)​61
E)45

Question 44

In the current American context,a communitarian would tend to promote

A)both order and equality over freedom.
B)order over freedom and freedom over equality.
C)freedom over both order and equality.
D)equality over freedom and freedom over order.
E)liberty and equality over fairness.

Question 45

Which of the following statements concerning gender and political beliefs is incorrect?

A)Women are more likely to favor government action to promote equality.
B)Women are more likely to favor affirmative action.
C)Men are less likely to favor increased spending on social programs.
D)Men are more likely to favor the death penalty.
E)Women are more likely to favor going to war.

Question 46

The contemporary political "gender gap" refers to the tendency of women to

A)identify more with the Democratic Party than men do.
B)vote less than men do.
C)favor female candidates for office over male candidates.
D)pay less attention to politics than men do.
E)vote more for Republican candidates than men do.

Question 47

A respondent who agrees with the statement,"By law,a woman should be able to obtain an abortion as a matter of personal choice" values

A)equality over order.
B)freedom over order.
C)order over equality.
D)order over freedom.
E)freedom over equality.

Question 48

Which of the following statements concerning ideological "moderates" is correct?

A)Fewer Americans identify as "moderate" than as liberal or conservative.
B)Moderates tend to have higher than average incomes and education.
C)Moderates are as likely as liberals and conservatives to correctly identify ideologies.
D)Many people identify as "moderate" because they do not understand the alternatives.
E)Fewer Americans identify as "moderate" than as liberal or conservative, and moderates tend to have higher than average incomes and education.

Question 49

In the current American context,a liberal would tend to promote

A)economic equality ahead of freedom, and freedom ahead of social order.
B)freedom ahead of economic equality, and social order ahead of freedom.
C)freedom ahead of both economic equality and social order.
D)both economic equality and social order ahead of freedom.
E)business and government policy ahead of social order.

Question 50

​Individuals with higher education and income tend to favor _______ over ________.

A)freedom; order or equality​
B)​order; freedom
C)​equality; freedom
D)​conservatives; libertarians
E)government guarantees of employment; a more limited government role

Question 51

The set of values and beliefs that a person holds about the purpose and scope of government is called

A)political ideology.
B)party identification.
C)liberalism or conservatism.
D)political socialization.
E)communalism.

Question 52

Which of the following statements concerning Latinos is incorrect?

A)Latinos are defined as people of Latin American origin.
B)Latinos are a racial group.
C)Latinos are projected to be 20 percent of the nation's population by 2030.
D)Latinos have lagged behind African Americans in gaining political office.
E)Latinos favor government restrictions on abortion more than other groups.

Question 53

The fact that ideological conservatives believed even more strongly that Iraq ​had weapons of mass destruction before the 2003 war after they were informed that subsequent investigations concluded that this was not true is an example of the

A)backfire effect.
B)​fog of war.
C)​​misinformation effect.
D)​crowd delusion syndrome.
E)​willfulness effect.

Question 54

According ​to the self-interest principle, ​people tend to

A)choose what benefits them personally.
B)​have only a vague notion of how political ideology impacts policy outcomes.
C)​misunderstand costs and benefits of different policies.
D)​be inflexible in their ideology.
E)​select policy options based on their perception of the greatest good for the greatest number.

Question 55

About _______ of immigrants in America are undocumented.​

A)​5 percent
B)a quarter
C)​a third
D)​half
E)​three quarters

Question 56

​People who are not religious are more likely to be categorized as

A)​liberal.
B)​communitarian.
C)​conservative.
D)​libertarian.
E)none of the choices is true.

Question 57

In a 2012 election survey,respondents were asked whether abortion should be outlawed by government or a matter of personal choice,and whether government should guarantee people a job and a good standard of living or people should get ahead on their own.People's responses to the two questions

A)demonstrated that these value choices cannot be explained by a one-dimensional liberal-conservative continuum.
B)demonstrated a majority of Americans are liberal.
C)demonstrated a majority of Americans are conservative.
D)demonstrated a majority of Americans are apathetic.
E)None of the above is true.

Question 58

Lack of political knowledge among individual Americans makes the ___________ model more difficult to sustain.​

A)​communitarian
B)​pluralist
C)​majoritarian
D)​substantive
E)​procedural

Question 59

​With respect to religion,the group that has grown rapidly in the 21st century and now makes up almost 20 percent of the American population is

A)​Catholics.
B)​Protestants.
C)​Jews.
D)​Muslims.
E)"unaffiliated."

Question 60

As a general trend,college-educated individuals are more likely to choose

A)social order over freedom.
B)social order over equality.
C)equality over freedom.
D)freedom over social order.
E)equality over social order.

Question 61

How is education related to attitudes toward social order and economic freedom?

Question 62

Describe two of the earliest sources of political socialization and another source that grows in importance as Americans reach adulthood.

Question 63

How is gender related to political beliefs and opinion?

Question 64

Discuss issue framing and how ​it can be used by politicians and others.

Question 65

Explain how the self-interest principle and sociotropic responses impact Americans' political attitudes.​

Question 66

How are race and ethnicity related to political beliefs and opinion?

Question 67

How is geographic region related to Americans' political beliefs?

Question 68

Explain how the majoritarian and pluralist models of democracy differ in their assumptions about the role of public opinion in democratic government.

Question 69

Based on the ideological typology described in the text,explain how liberals and conservatives differ in America.​

Question 70

Explain what skewed,bimodal,and normal distributions are.

Question 71

Identify and discuss the factors that can cause polls results to be wrong.​