POLS 1101 Lecture 9: notes 9 27 16

• School: Temple University
• Department: Political Science
• Course: POLS 1101
• Professor: Gary A.Mucciaroni

Document Summary

The public"s knowledge and preferences about politics and public policy. Includes knowledge and preferences about: candidates and issues during election campaigns, citizens" support for government officials and policy preferences between elections. Signals to candidates whether their campaigns are ahead of behind the opposition. More important: leaders and government need to learn what citizens think and want in order to respond to their preferences. Measured through opinion polls: surveys, within a statistical margin of error, randomization (random sampling) If a poll is properly designed it can tell you what the entire population thinks, based on small sample of population. Alternative sources of information about what citizens are thinking. Candidates and public officials learn about what the public thinks by talking to them, meetings, Polls are only one way: unbiased way if properly designed. If the election were today would you vote for clinton/kaine or trump/pence: look at likely voters to get a good idea.