POSC 1010 CHAPTER 10 EXAM
QUESTIONS WITH 100%
CORRECT ANSWERS
The varying levels of support for the Iraq War highlight what aspect of public opinion?
a. Answers may be affected by even ostensibly minor changes in question wording.
b. Even though most Americans lacked specific knowledge, they were willing to express
their opinions.
c. The margin of error meant that it was very difficult to ascertain the true feelings of the
American people on the question.
d. The public was more supportive of the war in larger samples than smaller samples,
and this is a common concern. - Answer- A
Individual opinions sometimes may be badly informed and unstable,
a. but aggregate public opinion is both stable and coherent.
b. and aggregate public opinion is uninformed and unstable.
c. although only informed and stable individual opinions are considered for the purposes
of aggregate public opinion.
d. but when combined into aggregate public opinion, individual opinions are informed—
though still unstable. - Answer- A
The best way to describe the public's support for women and minorities as presidential
candidates from 1936 to 2012 is that
a. it sharply increased.
b. it remained stable.
c. it fluctuated wildly, sometimes sharply increasing and then sharply decreasing for as
much as a decade at a time.
d. it never exceeded 50%. - Answer- A
How can public opinion play its assigned role in democratic politics if large segments of
the public are politically ignorant or hold inconsistent views?
a. It perfectly matches the political system of the United States where separated
institutions share political power.
b. It is consistent with the expectations of the Framers who wanted to temper public
opinion as much as possible.
, c. There are a variety of formal and informal political institutions that give public opinion
shape and force.
d. While many of the public are politically ignorant or hold inconsistent views, they are
capable of sending clear signals on issues of local importance. - Answer- C
When public opinion is not stable, its movements can usually be explained by which of
the following?
a. polling-method errors
b. measurement errors that have failed to cancel one another out
c. responses to changed conditions
d. random individual changes that have failed to cancel one another out - Answer- c
The experiences of Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush illustrate
a. that the level of public approval for the President rarely deviates very much.
b. that the level of public approval for Republican presidents declines more sharply than
for Democratic candidates.
c. that the level of approval for presidents typically varies from month to month with
economic conditions and international events.
d. that the level of support for only Republican presidents is higher when there is some
type of international crisis. - Answer- C
How can stable and coherent public opinion arise from unstable and incoherent
individual opinions?
a. Pollsters have developed weighting systems that allow them to identify the most
informed respondents so their responses count more.
b. Measurement errors and random individual changes tend to cancel one another out
and the average remains the same if the circumstances remain the same.
c. New technologies and platforms have allowed pollsters to draw better samples that
reduce the amount of measurement error in polls.
d. It can arise through opinion leaders who canvass their friends and answer polling
questions consistently over time. - Answer- B
When a small segment of the public forms opinions by paying close attention to political
events and issues and the uninformed and inattentive take cues from the attentive
segment, what collective action problem does it illustrate?
a. tragedy of the commons
b. coordination problems
c. public goods
d. free riding - Answer- D
Which of the following is true about opinion leaders?
a. They are limited to the media elite who tell individuals how they should think.
b. They pay close attention to political issues and from them the uninformed take cues.
c. They are those who agree with the majority.
d. They are politicians who are able to gauge public opinion without using polls. -
Answer- B
QUESTIONS WITH 100%
CORRECT ANSWERS
The varying levels of support for the Iraq War highlight what aspect of public opinion?
a. Answers may be affected by even ostensibly minor changes in question wording.
b. Even though most Americans lacked specific knowledge, they were willing to express
their opinions.
c. The margin of error meant that it was very difficult to ascertain the true feelings of the
American people on the question.
d. The public was more supportive of the war in larger samples than smaller samples,
and this is a common concern. - Answer- A
Individual opinions sometimes may be badly informed and unstable,
a. but aggregate public opinion is both stable and coherent.
b. and aggregate public opinion is uninformed and unstable.
c. although only informed and stable individual opinions are considered for the purposes
of aggregate public opinion.
d. but when combined into aggregate public opinion, individual opinions are informed—
though still unstable. - Answer- A
The best way to describe the public's support for women and minorities as presidential
candidates from 1936 to 2012 is that
a. it sharply increased.
b. it remained stable.
c. it fluctuated wildly, sometimes sharply increasing and then sharply decreasing for as
much as a decade at a time.
d. it never exceeded 50%. - Answer- A
How can public opinion play its assigned role in democratic politics if large segments of
the public are politically ignorant or hold inconsistent views?
a. It perfectly matches the political system of the United States where separated
institutions share political power.
b. It is consistent with the expectations of the Framers who wanted to temper public
opinion as much as possible.
, c. There are a variety of formal and informal political institutions that give public opinion
shape and force.
d. While many of the public are politically ignorant or hold inconsistent views, they are
capable of sending clear signals on issues of local importance. - Answer- C
When public opinion is not stable, its movements can usually be explained by which of
the following?
a. polling-method errors
b. measurement errors that have failed to cancel one another out
c. responses to changed conditions
d. random individual changes that have failed to cancel one another out - Answer- c
The experiences of Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush illustrate
a. that the level of public approval for the President rarely deviates very much.
b. that the level of public approval for Republican presidents declines more sharply than
for Democratic candidates.
c. that the level of approval for presidents typically varies from month to month with
economic conditions and international events.
d. that the level of support for only Republican presidents is higher when there is some
type of international crisis. - Answer- C
How can stable and coherent public opinion arise from unstable and incoherent
individual opinions?
a. Pollsters have developed weighting systems that allow them to identify the most
informed respondents so their responses count more.
b. Measurement errors and random individual changes tend to cancel one another out
and the average remains the same if the circumstances remain the same.
c. New technologies and platforms have allowed pollsters to draw better samples that
reduce the amount of measurement error in polls.
d. It can arise through opinion leaders who canvass their friends and answer polling
questions consistently over time. - Answer- B
When a small segment of the public forms opinions by paying close attention to political
events and issues and the uninformed and inattentive take cues from the attentive
segment, what collective action problem does it illustrate?
a. tragedy of the commons
b. coordination problems
c. public goods
d. free riding - Answer- D
Which of the following is true about opinion leaders?
a. They are limited to the media elite who tell individuals how they should think.
b. They pay close attention to political issues and from them the uninformed take cues.
c. They are those who agree with the majority.
d. They are politicians who are able to gauge public opinion without using polls. -
Answer- B
