Government in America: People, Politics, and Policy
Edwards/Wattenberg/Lineberry
Chapter 6
What is America’s Opinion?
 The main problem with public opinion is that
Americans are UNINFORMED!
 We cannot guide public policy if we don’t know and
understand the issues
 In recent years, the implementation of health care
proved this point: people opposed a policy they knew
little or nothing about, but it was a policy that would
affect ALL of us
Introduction
 Public Opinion
 The distribution of the population’s beliefs about
politics and policy issues

America is VERY diverse in its opinions
 Demography
 The science of population changes
 Census
 A most valuable demographic tool for understanding
population changes
 Required every 10 years by the Constitution
2010 Census
 Sent to 134 million homes, only 72% of households
responded
 800,000 people were hired to follow up with the
households that didn’t respond
 Census information determines how $400 billion in
federal funds are spent every year on infrastructures
and services like hospitals, job training centers,
schools, senior centers, bridges, tunnels and
emergency services
 People who most need that money are often the ones
who don’t complete and return the census
The American People
 The Immigrant Society
 United States is a nation of immigrants.
 Federal law allows about 1 million new immigrants every
year (in addition, about 500,000 immigrants enter each
year through illegal methods)
 California has the highest number of foreign born
residents (27%)
 Three waves of Immigration:


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Northwestern Europeans (prior to late 19th Century)
Southern and eastern Europeans (late 19th and early 20th
centuries)
Hispanics and Asians (late 20th century)
 Growth in Hispanic Population after 2010 Census
The American People
 The American Melting Pot
 Melting Pot: the mixing of cultures, ideas, and peoples
that blend into one

Is this a valid view of America today?
 Minority Majority: the emergence of a non-Caucasian
majority. 2010 Census had an all-time-low for the white
population (63%), Hispanics were 16%, African
Americans 13%, Asian Americans 6%, Native Americans
2%

By mid 21st Century, white non-Hispanics will be half of the
population. What trends are bringing this into existence?
 Immigration
 Higher birth rate among minorities
The American People
Figure 6.1
The American People
 The American Melting Pot (continued)
 African Americans: disproportionately high rate of
poverty (26% as compared to 9% of whites). More
African Americans are becoming active in politics
 Hispanics are the largest minority group (as of the 2000
census). Most are concentrated in cities. Many came to
the US for better opportunities and to escape poverty.
Their community is faced with the issue of illegal
immigration.

Simpson-Mazzoli Act (1986): requires employers document
citizenship of employee – it’s done little to slow illegal
immigration
The American People
 Asian immigration has been driven by a new class of
professional workers. 53% of the Asian American
population over the age of 25 have a college degree
(almost twice the national average)
 Native Americans: indigenous and disadvantaged
 Political Culture: overall set of values we share as a
society.

We claim to value egalitarianism. Do we?
 The Regional Shift
 Population shift from east to
west (Move to the “sun belt”)
 Reapportionment: the process
of reallocating seats in the
House of Representatives
every 10 years on the basis of
the results of the census.
**REMEMBER – the overall
number of 435 remains the
same**
 Reapportionment after the
2010 Census
Figure 6.2
The American People
 The Graying of America
 Fastest growing age group is over 65
 Potential drain on Social Security


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
Pay as you go system
In 1942, 42 workers per retiree
In 1960, 5.7 workers per retiree
In 2040, 2 workers per retiree
How Americans Learn About Politics: Political Socialization
 Political Socialization:
 “the process through which an individual acquires
[their] particular political orientation”
 Orientation and participation grow firmer with age
Who are these families?
 The Process of Political Socialization
 The Family

Political leanings of children often mirror their parents’
leanings
How Americans Learn About
Politics: Political Socialization
 The Process of Political Socialization (continued)
 The Mass Media – “the new parent”
 Chief source of information as children age
 Generation gap is viewing television news
 School
 Used by government to socialize young into political culture
 Better-educated citizens are more likely to vote and are more
knowledgeable about politics and policy.
Socialization in School
continued…
 Most American schools are public (funded by the
government)
 Better educated citizens are more likely to vote, exhibit
more knowledge about politics and public policy, and
more tolerant of opposing opinions
 As Albert Einstein said, “Schools need not preach
political doctrine to defend democracy. If they shape
men and women capable of critical thought and
trained in social attitudes, that is all that is necessary.”
As is shown here, aging increases political
participation. It also increases party attachment.
Political behavior is a LEARNED behavior. Young
people haven’t had much political experience.
Measuring Public Opinion and
Political Information
 How Polls Are Conducted
 Gallup Polls are synonymous with “opinion polling”
 Sample: a small proportion of people who are chosen in
a survey to be representative of the whole
 Random Sampling: the key technique employed by
sophisticated survey researchers which operates on the
principle that everyone should have an equal probability
of being selected for the sample
 Sampling Error: the level of confidence in the findings
of a public opinion poll
Measuring Public Opinion and
Political Information
 The Role of Polls in American Democracy
 Polls help politicians detect public preferences.
 But critics say polls make politicians think more about
following than leading public

Even though politicians do not track opinion to make policy
 Polls may distort election process
Measuring Public Opinion and Political Information
 The Role of Polls in American Democracy (continued)
 Exit Polls: used by the media to predict election day
winners


May discourage people from voting
2000 presidential election in Florida
 Question wording may affect survey results
Measuring Public Opinion and
Political Information
 What Polls Reveal About Americans’ Political
Information
 Americans don’t know much about politics.
 Americans may know their basic beliefs but not how
that affects policies of the government.
 The Decline of Trust in Government
 Since 1964, trust in government has declined.
 Trust in government has gone up somewhat since
September 11, according to the text. Has it?
 Citizens Show Little Knowledge of Geography
Measuring Public Opinion and Political
Information
What Americans Value: Political
Ideologies
 Political Ideology:
 A coherent set of beliefs about politics, public policy,
and public purpose
 Who Are the Liberals and Conservatives?
 Predominance of conservative over liberal thinking
 Currently about 38% conservative, 24% liberal, 38%
moderate


Gender gap: women tend to be less conservative than men
Ideological variation by religion too
Liberal vs Conservative
How Americans Participate in
Politics
 Political Participation: all the activities used by
citizens to influence the selection of political leaders
or the policies they pursue
 Conventional Participation
 Voting in elections
 Working in campaigns or running for office
 Contacting elected officials
How Americans Participate in
Politics
 Protest as Participation
 Protest: a form of political participation designed to
achieve policy changes through dramatic and
unconventional tactics
 Civil disobedience: a form of political participation that
reflects a conscious decision to break a law believed to
be immoral and to suffer the consequences



Henry David Thoreau
Mohandas Gandhi
Martin Luther King, Jr.
How Americans Participate in
Politics
 Class, Inequality, andParticipation
Figure 6.5
Understanding Public Opinion
and Political Action
 Public Attitudes Toward the Scope of Government
 Many people have no opinion about scope of
government.
 Public opinion is inconsistent, which may lead to policy
gridlock.
 Democracy, Public Opinion, and Political Action
 Americans select leaders, but do they do so wisely?
 If people know little about candidates’ issues, how can
they?
 People vote more for performance than policy.
Summary
 American society is ethnically diverse and changing.
 Knowing public opinion is important to a democracy,
just as polling has costs and benefits.
 Americans know little about politics.
 Political participation is generally low.