Definitions

• Public opinion: citizens’ attitudes about political issues, leaders, institutions, and events

• Values (or beliefs): basic principles that shape people’s opinions about issues and events

Definitions: Key American values

• Liberty: freedom from governmental coercion

• Justice: the fairness of how rewards and punishments are delivered, especially by governments and courts, but also in society

• Equality of opportunity: a widely shared American ideal that all people should have the freedom to use whatever talents and wealth they have to reach their fullest potential

Why does public opinion matter?

Why does public opinion matter?

Declaration of Independence

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

Declaration of Independence

Declaration of Independence

• “…deriving their just powers from the CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED…”

Declaration of Independence

Consensual government

Consensual government

Consensual government

Consensual government

Consensual government

• More than just majority (or plurality) opinion
• Rights of political minorities matter
• Political minorities are still entitled to representation
• Minority political opinions matter

Political majorities and minorities

Political majorities and minorities

• Election outcomes (parties)

Political majorities and minorities

• Election outcomes (parties)

• Policy opinions (issues)

    - surveys, interviews, contact with representatives, petitions, and other methods

Political majorities and minorities

• Election outcomes (parties)
• Policy opinions (issues)
• Values or beliefs (ideology)

Liberalism - Progressivism

• Classical and European: Individual entrepreneurship, less government
• Modern American (Progressive):
  • Economic intervention
  • Equality
  • Social services
  • Consumer safety/environment focus

Liberal/Progressives Priorities

• Progressive taxation
• Social services, healthcare
• Education, infrastructure, tech spending
• Minority, women’s rights
• Reproductive, LGBTQ, immigrant rights
• Marijuana legalization, gun regulation

Conservatism

• Classical and European:

    - Tradition
    - Hierarchy
    - Authority
    - Strong government
    - Status Quo
    - Order

• Modern American has two strands

Conservatism: Modern American

• Traditional

Combines elements of classical liberalism with traditional values and patriotic themes.

Conservatism: Modern American

“The proper question for conservatives is: What do you seek to conserve? The proper answer is concise but deceptively simple: We seek to conserve the American Founding.”

• George Will, The Conservative Sensibility

Conservatism: Modern American

• Traditional

   - Small government
   - Rugged individualism
   - Free markets
   - Traditional values
   - Strong military

• Populist

   - Anti-elitism
   - Anti-global
   - Government intervention in trade and labor flows (not free market)
   - Withdrawal from international commitments (isolationism, not strong military)

Conservatives on the Issues

• Tax cuts, less spending
• Traditional family
• Strong military (traditional) vs. isolationism (populist)

Other Ideologies

• Libertarian: Freedom, small government

  • “Libertarian Republican senator Rand Paul was a vocal opponent of government regulations during the coronavirus pandemic. He opposed mask mandates and vaccine requirements.”

• Socialist: Social ownership, strong government, equality

  • “Senator Bernie Sanders calls himself a ‘democratic socialist.’ Senator Sanders gained support from Millennials and Generation Z when running for President in 2016 and 2020.”

Public Opinion

• Most Americans: Liberal, Conservative, Moderate
• Stable percentages
• “Gallup surveys indicate that as of 2022, 36 percent of Americans considered themselves conservatives, 37 percent moderates, and 25 percent liberals. Just under half of Democrats identify as liberal or very liberal, while nearly 40 percent identify as moderates and 14 percent identify as conservative.”

Ideology: Pew Quiz

https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/quiz/political-typology/?group=8f1e371e3647daac63a99d28f37e1327

Ideology: Question

• Did the Pew Quiz results match your expectations?

• Did you have enough information to accurately answer the questions?

Political Socialization: Overview

• Beliefs and values shape political views
• Socialization: Learning political culture
• Agents: Family, school

Political Socialization: Major Influences

• Family, friends
• Social networks: Betsy Sinclair - “social citizens”

Political Socialization: Other Influences

• Education
• College vs. non-college

Social Groups and Public Opinion: Race

• Linked fate

Public Opinion: Consent of the Governed

• Whose opinion matters?
• Influence of public opinion?
• Channels for public voice?

Social Groups and Public Opinion: Ethnicity

• Latino views

Social Groups and Public Opinion: Gender

• Gender gap

Social Groups and Public Opinion: Religion

• Religion as predictor
• Protestant, Evangelical, unaffiliated

Social Groups and Public Opinion: Party Affiliation

• Party cues
• Geographic sorting

Defining Public Opinion

• Attitudes
• Values
• Liberty
• Justice
• Equality of opportunity

Social Groups and Public Opinion: Economic Class

• Economic self-interest

Social Groups and Public Opinion: Generation

• Millennials, Gen Z
• Older citizens

Social Groups and Public Opinion: Region

• Regional variation

Authorship and License

Source: We the People, 14th Edition, Chapter 6, Ginsberg, Lowi, Weir, Tolbert, Campbell, Francis

Do not submit to Quizlet, Chegg, Coursehero, or other similar commercial websites.

• Author: Tom Hanna

• Website: tomhanna.me

• License: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.