Constructing Public Opinion: How Political Elites Do What They Like and Why We Seem to Go Along With It (review)

2002 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 374-377
Author(s):  
Robert Y. Shapiro
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Political Elites

Research Frontier Essay: When Are Interests Interesting? The Problem of Political Representation of Women

1981 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
pp. 701-716 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virginia Sapiro
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Social Movements ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Interest Groups ◽  
Political Science ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Political Research ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Increasing Demand

Recent years have witnessed an increasing demand by women for political representation of women. This demand points the way toward a number of important problems for political research, many of which remain unsolved primarily because of the segregation of women's studies from the dominant concerns of political science. This discussion focuses on the problem of group interests and representation, drawing on and suggesting further research on public opinion, interest groups, social movements, international politics, political elites, and public policy.

‘Articles of Practical Banking Written by Practical Bankers’

2016 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Declan Curran
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Free Market ◽  
Banking System ◽  
Market Mechanism ◽  
British Society ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Irish Famine ◽  
Self Reliance ◽  
Great Irish Famine ◽  
Relief Efforts

This article analyses the reportage of the banking publication Bankers’ Magazine over the duration of the Great Irish Famine (1845–50). It explores attitudes to famine incidence and relief prevalent among Irish and British banking officials, as expounded in the trade publication representing their views. These professionals, employed in branch networks across both Irish and British society, were not political elites or ideologues, but rather saw themselves as ‘practical bankers’. This analysis shows that the Bankers’ Magazine reportage of the famine espoused, albeit in a measured rhetoric, the prevailing economic mindset based on self-reliance and the free market mechanism, while repeatedly acknowledging Irish famine-era suffering and reconciling itself to the expediency of ‘unproductive’ government-funded famine relief efforts. This analysis also shows the Bankers’ Magazine’s famine reportage to have largely been subsumed by its campaign against the Bank Charter Act. More generally, the article argues that the Irish banking system offers a useful, though underutilised, lens through which to view famine-era socio-economic institutional workings and public opinion.

Constraining Elites: The Impact of Treaty Networks on Foreign Policy

2015 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 298-320
Author(s):  
Michael O. Slobodchikoff
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Customs Union ◽  
Association Agreement ◽  
Treaty Networks ◽  
Bilateral Treaties ◽  
The Impact

In democracies, elites should be responsive to public opinion. This is especially true in Eastern Europe, where politicians fear electoral sanctions in the process of reform (Roberts and Kim 2011). Public opinion in general in Eastern Europe has been overwhelmingly in favor of European integration (Caplanova et al. 2004). In Ukraine, public opinion was in favor of increased cooperation with the eu, while in Moldova, public opinion was in favor of increased cooperation with the Russian led Customs Union. Ukraine refused to sign an association agreement with the eu, while Moldova enthusiastically signed the same association agreement. Why should both Ukrainian and Moldovan political elites have chosen not to be responsive to public opinion in such an important decision? Using network analysis of bilateral treaties between Russia and Moldova and Russia and Ukraine, I predict the responsiveness of political elites to public opinion toward European integration. I argue that the denser a treaty network between a weaker state and the regional hegemon, the less likely political elites will be to cooperate and move toward European integration. Conversely, less dense treaty networks allow politicians more flexibility in following their own preferences. Further, I offer a prediction for other states in the fsu to seek further cooperation with the eu.

The Politics of Gun Control: Comparing Canadian and American Patterns

1992 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
G A Mauser ◽  
M Margolis
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Linear Regression ◽  
Cultural Differences ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Gun Control ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Gun Ownership ◽  
Popular Support ◽  
Socioeconomic Variables ◽  
Stark Contrast

In this paper two questions are asked: To what extent do the Canadian and US publics differ in their beliefs about firearms-control legislation, and to what extent do these differences help to account for the stricter firearms legislation found in Canada? Surveys indicate that Canadians and Americans have remarkably similar attitudes towards firearms and gun control. Linear regression is used to analyze the factors that underlie the popular support for (or opposition to) stricter gun-control legislation. It is found that, with respect to support for gun control, cultural differences between Canadians and Americans are overshadowed by socioeconomic variables, such as gender and gun ownership. The similarities in public attitudes between Canadians and Americans suggest that the explanation for stricter firearms legislation in Canada lies more with the differences in political elites and institutions than with differences in public opinion. The differences in public attitudes in the two countries are insufficient to explain the stark contrast in firearms legislation.

scholarly journals Who Supports Expanding Surveillance? Exploring Public Opinion of Chinese Social Credit Systems

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuncheng Liu
Keyword(s):  
Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Chinese Communist Party ◽  
Political Trust ◽  
The State ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Social Credit ◽  
Dynamic Relationship ◽  
Party Members ◽  
High Support

In recent decades, debates on surveillance in society have been mounting, yet they largely concentrated on ethical discussions and lack sociological examination. Drawing on innovative national survey data as well as fieldwork observations and interviews, this study analyzes public opinion about social credit systems (SCSs), an emerging infrastructure that expands the depth and breadth of surveillance in China. Overall, I find high support for the expanding surveillance and punishment. Political trust in the state is positively associated with higher support for SCSs. Counterintuitively, political elites do not wholly embrace the expanding surveillance and punishment. For example, Chinese Communist Party members are less likely to support SCSs compared to the general public. Higher socioeconomic status is consistently correlated with higher support, while different media consumption showed limited correlations. This study enriches our understanding of the heterogeneity of the state, public, and surveillance and their dynamic relationship in the authoritarian regime.

Polarized Partisanship and Voting Behavior in Zimbabwe: A Public Opinion Perspective

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Bratton
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Voting Behavior ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Voting Behaviour ◽  
Party Affiliation ◽  
National Union ◽  
Partisan Polarization ◽  
Policy Debates ◽  
Electoral Choice ◽  
Significant Attention

The chapter argues that voting behaviour and public opinion are deeply influenced by official controls applied by the entrenched ruling Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) party. Popular voting behaviour in Zimbabwe is associated with an assortment of political, cultural, and economic views. In regard to the ruling ZANU-PF’s series of electoral triumphs, leading considerations are whether persons trust traditional leaders as a guide to vote choice, the extent to which they think the economy has been administered properly, and whether they fear retribution for not voting for incumbent political elites. However, the chapter further argues, to best appreciate Zimbabwean voting behaviour, scholars must pay significant attention to Zimbabwe’s acute hyper-partisan polarization. Zimbabweans are more divided politically than in any other African country in which party affiliation has been systematically measured. Ruling and opposition parties are divided by mutual distrust, conflicting standpoints on policy debates, and over electoral choice. Polarization is partly a construction by Zimbabwean political elites, but it also has substantial traction amongst ordinary citizens who have accepted partisan loyalty as an important facet in their range of identities.

Putting Inequality in Its Place: Rural Consciousness and the Power of Perspective

2012 ◽  
Vol 106 (3) ◽  
pp. 517-532 ◽  
Author(s):  
KATHERINE CRAMER WALSH
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Group Consciousness ◽  
Rural Residents ◽  
Public Opinion Research ◽  
The Public ◽  
Limited Government

Why do people vote against their interests? Previous explanations miss something fundamental because they do not consider the work of group consciousness. Based on participant observation of conversations from May 2007 to May 2011 among 37 regularly occurring groups in 27 communities sampled across Wisconsin, this study shows that in some places, people have a class- and place-based identity that is intertwined with a perception of deprivation. The rural consciousness revealed here shows people attributing rural deprivation to the decision making of (urban) political elites, who disregard and disrespect rural residents and rural lifestyles. Thus these rural residents favor limited government, even though such a stance might seem contradictory to their economic self-interests. The results encourage us to consider the role of group consciousness-based perspectives rather than pitting interests against values as explanations for preferences. Also, the study suggests that public opinion research more seriously include listening to the public.

Popular versus Elite Views of Privatization: The Case of Britain

1989 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian McAllister ◽  
Donley T. Studlar
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Median Voter ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Government ◽  
Privatization Policy

ABSTRACTPrivatization is an idea that is popular among political elites throughout the advanced industrial world. In Britain, it has been the centrepiece of Margaret Thatcher's three Conservative governments, reflected in the sale of publicly-owned industries to the private sector and in the sale of council houses to their tenants. Using survey data, this article tests two models to account for privatization policy. The median voter model argues that it was a policy demanded and initiated by voters, while the elite interests model argues that it stemmed from the government and that little popular demand existed for it. The evidence confirms the elite interests model and shows that public opinion has generally accepted the status quo on the public ownership of industry. In addition, the Conservatives have made modest electoral gains from privatization. However, voters are not consistent in their views about privatizating particular industries, implying the Conservatives may lose votes with future privatization.

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