Political Culture
The dominant set of beliefs, customs, tradition, and values that define the relationship between citizens and government
Individualism
The belief that individuals should be responsible for themselves and for the decision they make
Equal of Opportunity
The preamble to the Declaration of Independence includes the following statement about natural rights
Rule of Law
The principle that no one, including public officials, is above the law
Political Socialization
The experience and factors that shape an individual’s political values, attitude, and politics.
Generation Effect
The impact of historical events experienced by a generation upon their political views.
Life-cycle Effect
The impact of a person’s age and stage in life on his or her political views
Globalization
The increasing interconnectedness of people, business, and countries throughout the world.
Outsourcing
When a company moves its business to a place where labor costs are cheaper or production is more efficient because workers work longer hours.
Public Opinion
The sum of individual attitudes about government, policies, and issues.
Focus Group
A small group of individuals assembled for a conversation about specific issues.
Scientific Poll
A representative poll of randomly selected respondents with a statistically significant sample size, using neutral language.
Sample
A group of individuals from a larger population used to measure public opinion.
Random Selection
A method of choosing all poll respondents in a way that does not over-or-underrepresent any group of the population.
Representative Sample
A sample that reflects the demographics of the population.
Weighting
A procedure in which the survey is adjusted according to the demographics of the larger population.
Sampling Error
The margin of error in a poll, which usually is calculated to plus or minus three percentage points.
Mass Survey
A survey designed to measure the opinions of the population, usually consisting of 1500 responses.
Exit Poll
A survey conducted outside a polling place in which individuals are asked who or what they voted for and why.
Benchmark Poll
A surgery taken at the beginning of a political campaign in order to gauge support for a candidate and determine which issues are important to voters.
Tracking Poll
A surgery determining the level of support for a candidate or an issue throughout a campaign.
Random-digit Dialing
The use of telephone numbers randomly generated by computer to select potential survey respondents.
Question Working
The phrasing of a question in a public opinion poll.
Question Order
The sequence of questions in a public opinion poll.
Gender Gap
The statistical differences in how men and women vote or hold political opinions.