AP Gov Unit 4.6 - Evaluating PUBLIC OPINION Data

Why do people conduct public opinion polls? (Choose all that apply)

• Quantitative Data is more important than Qualitative surveys

• Public opinion Impacts elections

• Public opinion impacts policy debates and candidate's positions

The Bandwagon Effect refers to: 

• How public opinion polling impacts a candidate's positions

• How public opinion polling can impact voting behavior with respect to the candidates they support

• How public opinion polling determines the issues that are most prominent in a given election cycle

Public opinion polling affects:  (CHOOSE ALL THAT APPLY)

• THE ISSUES THAT ARE IMPORTANT IN A GIVEN ELECTION

• THE BEHAVIOR AND SUPPORT OF VOTERS

• POLICY DEBATES

Which of the following best describes the social desirability bias: 

• People are biased to candidates who reflect themselves and their own background or ideology

• People vote for candidates based on the promises that they make, not their actual record

• Voters don't answer honestly to their own views when being questioned in some polls

How might the non-response bias impact polling: 

• People selectively answer certain questions within a poll and not others so the data is incomplete

• People who don't participate at all in surveys may skew the results of the public opinion data

• Certain generational groups do not respond and that is causing an imbalance within sampling and inaccurate polls

Which of the following should people consider when considering the reliability of public opinion polling? 

• The source and intent of the polling group

• How the poll makes them feel

• The Bandwagon Effect