Unit 4: American Political Ideologies and Beliefs

How people feel about things

A smaller group to which an issue is important

The degree to which an issue is important to a certain individual/group

How strongly people feel about a particular issue

How much dimensions of public opinion change

Submitted to popular vote to accept/reject legislation, measures public opinion on specific issues

Conducted by a campaign when a candidate initially announces

Performed multiple times with the same sample to track changes in opinion

Collected on Election Day as voters go to cast their vote

Conducted at polling places, targeting voting districts that represent the public and poll random voters leaving the place

Variation of random sampling; population divided into subgroups and weighted based on demographics

How wrong poll results may be

The process by which a person develops political attitudes

Family, location, religious institutions, mass media, higher education

A coherent set of thoughts and beliefs about politics and government

Less government interference; oppose most federal regulations (laissez-faire economics); social conservatives support government involvement in social issues

More government assistance to help social/economic problems; government regulation of economy; separation of church and state

no coherent ideology; prefer common sense over philosophical principles

Race/ethnicity, religion, gender, income level, region