Chapter 7 Public Opinion
According to Almond, the elite might pay to the attentive public because the attentive public tends to ____
represent the view of the society as a whole
Which statement explains why public opinion is an important consideration for both democratic and authoritarian governments?
strong public dissent can lead to an electoral defeat of the collapse of the regime
Which of the following is most likely to result in a pollster recording a non-attitude response for a participant?
asking the participant this opinion on an especially complex issue
Which type of distribution curve is the most dangerous for a democracy?
bimodal
Published surveys tend to be more carefully watched by the public during ____
election years
A pollster can decrease a poll's margin or error by ____
increasing sample size
What does public opinion polling provide that election results cannot?
insight into citizens' views on specific issues
Suppose two surveys are conducted, one asking people's level of support for "welfare" and the other using the term "assistance to the poor". The former survey finds much lower support than the latter. This discrepancy shows that ____
pollsters must be careful to word questions in ways that avoid biased responses
Why might a government go ahead with a policy or action that the majority of citizens oppose?
public opinion does not always reflect what is best for the nation