Chapter 6: Public Opinion and Political Action

Based on the line graph, which of the following statements about church attendance in 1972 is true?

In 1972, more people surveyed reported attending church weekly than reported attending rarely or never.

Which of the following is the best conclusion a polling group might draw from the results of the two polls? (agree disagree vs forced choice questions)

Using an agree-or-disagree format encourages respondents to agree with the position.

Which of the following is NOT a core value of United States political culture?

economic equality

When a child's parents both identify strongly with the same political party, the child will most likely

identify with the parents' party

A person loses his job and refuses to accept any government assistance to get back on his feet, instead relying on savings and seeking a new job immediately. Which of the following core values would this person most relate to?

individualism

An important change in political culture since 1950 is that United States citizens have become

less trusting of governmental institutions and leaders

Children are most likely to adopt the party identification

of their parents

Political socialization is the process by which

political values are passed to the next generation

Which of the following most likely explains the difference in result of the two polls?

question format

Which of the following is most important for getting an accurate measure of public opinion in a survey?

selecting a random sample

Which generation group is most likely to oppose a protest of national symbols or ceremonies?

silent

Of the following, the most important role in the political socialization of children is played by

the family

Which of the following policies would an individual who identifies as a Democrat most likely support?

Strengthening anti-discrimination policies for married gay couples

Which of the following statements is supported by data in the graph above?

The higher the income, the more likely that the person will support smaller government.

Based on the line graph, what percentage of people surveyed attended church weekly in 1990 ?

35%

Which of the following best describes an exit poll?

A poll that asks voters at randomly selected voting places whom they voted for so that election results can be predicted more quickly

Which of the following scenarios best illustrates political socialization?

A young teenager hears her parents discussing politics around the dinner table, which influences her own views.

Which of the following is true about church attendance based on the line graph?

About 26% of people surveyed in 2010 attended church once a month or less.

Which of the following best describes how the generations view themselves in regards to the idealistic trait? (self described personality trait depending on generation)

Baby-Boomer respondents are more likely to consider themselves idealistic than Generation X respondents.

Which of the following is likely true about the 2018 midterm elections based on the data in the line graph?

Economic issues are less likely to be discussed in the 2018 midterm elections than in the 2012 presidential elections.

Which of the following illustrates an economic policy most likely supported by an ideologically liberal individual?

Congress increasing the minimum wage

Which of the following represents the most likely way the information in the table will be used?

Congress will use the data to suggest that there is support for their legislative proposals.

. Which of the following best matches a political ideology with that ideology's position on the proper role of government in regulating the economy

Conservative—The government should strictly limit its regulation of the marketplace.

Which of the following positions on the government's role in the marketplace is most influenced by the idea expressed in the passage above? (adam smith the wealth of nations)

Government intervention in the free market should be avoided.

On November 2, 2014, a Gallup poll reported that 51 percent of Americans support legalizing marijuana, while 47 percent oppose legalization. The reported margin of sampling error was +/- 4 percent. Which of the following inferences can be made from the poll?

It is unclear whether more people support marijuana legalization than oppose it.

Which of the following descriptions is the information on the line graph too limited to support?

Most who identify as very conservative believe that the Federal Reserve should be abolished

Which of the following sets of policies would most likely be supported by a libertarian?

Legalization of the commercial sale of marijuana and a reduction in government spending on prisons

In May of 2015, a federal appeals court ruled that the National Security Agency's collection of Americans' phone records was in violation of the USA PATRIOT Act. Which of the following core values are involved in the national debate regarding the surveillance program referred to in this scenario?

Liberty versus stability and order

Based on the outcome of the polls, which of the following is likely true about questions that use the agree-disagree format?

Questions that use the agree-disagree format increase the percentage of respondents who agree with the primary statement.

Which of the following public policies would Republicans be most likely to support?

Opening public lands for ranching and oil exploration

Which of the following is a likely public policy result of the data on the line graph?

Public policies that create jobs but increase the deficit, such as tax cuts or infrastructure spending, will likely be prioritized over paying down the national debt.

Which of the following statements is consistent with data shown in the bar graph above? (views on size of government and government services based on gender, income, and party)

Republicans are more likely than Democrats to believe that there should be fewer regulations on businesses to promote economic growth and increase wages.

A polling firm tried to predict the results of an election by sampling 1,000 adults within a state for two days prior to the election, using landline telephones of likely voters. After the election, the firm found that their poll results were not close to the actual election results. Which of the following recommendations would be the best for the firm to follow in the future? *

Sample people who have cell phones, in addition to those with landlines.

Which of the following public policies would Democrats be most likely to support?

Securing a universal health care system

Which of the following statements draws an accurate comparison from the information graphic? (how generations have voted in presidential elections 1994-2012; democrat, republican, or national average)

The Ford/Carter "Boomer" generation has voted more consistently Republican than has the Bush/Obama "Millennial" generation.

Which of the following is the best example of the core value of limited government?

The United States Constitution delegating specific powers to Congress

in a public opinion poll, a polling company used an online survey tool to randomly contact respondents who did not have telephone lines in addition to contacting people over the phone. Which of the following best explains this decision?

The company wanted to ensure that the sample of the population was truly random.

Which of the following is a limitation of the data when drawing a conclusion about the most important problem facing the country in 2017 ? (issues mentioned by 3 or more respondants in a free response question)

The data were collected in a short time frame, which does not reveal full-year trends.

Which of the following best explains the data in the line graph? (top priorites for the president and congress over the years)

The economy is likely the most important issue because it is a broader category that is more open to individual interpretation than both jobs and the budget deficit.

Which of the following statements accurately explains a limitation of the line graph? (relationship of ideology of federal reserve depending on party)

The line graph does not illustrate differences along party lines regarding the perception of the Federal Reserve.

Using both of the maps, which of the following best explains the role that ideology has played in the shaping of corporate tax rates? (corporate income tax rates vs electoral college results)

The maps indicate that states that have high corporate tax rates are more likely to enact liberal policies.

Which of the following statements represents a trend supported by the data in the bar graph? (ideological composition of congress)

The number of House members between the most liberal Republican and the most conservative Democrat decreased between 1982 and 2012.

Which of the following best describes a trend in the data?

The older the respondents, the more likely they are to identify as patriotic.

Which of the following political parties would be most likely to oppose reduced sentencing for nonviolent felony offenders?

The republican party

A 2013 YouGov poll question asked, "President Obama says the 1975 Public Affairs Act should be repealed. Do you agree or disagree?" The results showed that 13 percent of Democrats agreed and 39 percent of Republicans disagreed. However, the 1975 Public Affairs Act is fictitious. Which of the following is illustrated by the scenario?

The type of information given in a poll question can affect how individuals respond.

Which of the following explains why any attempt to reduce Social Security benefits is difficult?

There are many voters who support Social Security.

The data in the line graph would be least useful to a researcher interested in finding out which of the following?

Whether or not there was a decrease in support for the Federal Reserve after the 2008 financial crisis

A media organization is interested in reporting election results in a congressional election prior to the final tally of votes which will not occur until later in the evening. The organization randomly selects several polling places across the district asking voters whom they voted for. The type of poll being used in this scenario is known as

an exit poll

Candidates for political office use public opinion polls for all of the following purposes EXCEPT to

bring the opposition's opinions into alignment with those of the candidate

Which of the following groups would be most likely to support a constitutional amendment banning all abortions?

conservative