User:Psychle/sandbox

Plan for Improving the article "Public Opinion"

The article is unfinished because while it boasts a "Relationship with Public Policy" section, it doesn't have one on Foreign Policy. The article is also missing a lot of faultily-cited claims, and is not verified yet.

I will:

-Write an paragraph/section explaining, objectively, Public Opinion's relationship with Foreign Policy. This will include citations from reputable sources. -Improve the article in its entirety by editing spelling and grammar mistakes as well as improving citing its claims.

Initially I wanted to create an article discussing the impact of technology on public opinion on foreign policy, but there are not sufficient sources for that subject. Instead, I think I could enrich the Wikipedia article “Public Opinion” by adding a “Relationship with Foreign Policy” section. This would fit well into the article because there is a “Relationship with Public Policy” section, so naturally it should have one about foreign policy. There is a plethora of sources available from scholarly articles to research polling, so my information will be credible and accurate.

SOURCES:

https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.polisci.11.060406.214132 --good overview

Faces of internationalism : public opinion and American foreign policy / Eugene R. Wittkopf. --available in GW library

https://doaj.org/article/c32c57d9d7764c0693c1aa322c77cc46 --another overview article

http://www.jstor.org/stable/1962580?pq-origsite=summon --hurwitz and peffley hierarchical model

I will also use sources that we have in the class electronic reserves on blackboard.

Relationship with foreign policy
 * Paragraph Draft***

As with public policy, public opinion also has a close relationship with foreign policy. There is much debate concerning what the relationship should be, however there are a few core principles that hold true for this relationship. The study of foreign policy's relationship has evolved over time, with the Almond-Lippmann Consensus coming first. Created before the Vietnam War, Almond and Lippmann argued that public opinion about foreign policy was unstructured, incoherent, and highly volatile, and that public opinion shouldn't influence foreign policy. Today, this is seen as a "government knows best" approach. More recent studies have rebuked the Almond-Lippmann consensus, showing how people's opinions are generally stable, and that while individuals may not be entirely informed about every issue, they still act efficiently and rationally. (pg 6 relationship baum and potter) How people make judgments about issues are often based on heuristics, which are mental shortcuts that allow rational decisions to be made quickly. deductive delegative

hurwitz and peffley-hierarchical attitudes

Final Paragraph:

Relationship with foreign policy
As with public policy, public opinion also has a close relationship with foreign policy. There is much debate concerning what the relationship is, and the study of foreign policy's relationship with public opinion has evolved over time, with the Almond-Lippmann Consensus being one of the first attempt to define this relationship. Published before the Vietnam War, Almond and Lippmann argued that public opinion about foreign policy was unstructured, incoherent, and highly volatile, and that public opinion shouldn't influence foreign policy. More recent studies have rebuked the Almond-Lippmann Consensus, showing how people's opinions are generally stable, and that while individuals may not be entirely informed about every issue, they still act efficiently and rationally.

People’s judgments about issues are often based on heuristics, which are mental shortcuts that allow rational decisions to be made quickly. Heuristics apply in public opinion about domestic as well as foreign policy. The deductive heuristic is one that relies on a person’s core values and social groups. Delegative heuristics are influenced by figures of authority such as the media or president.

Another key theory about how people form their opinions on foreign policy issues is Hurwitz and Peffley’s hierarchical attitudes model. They argue that it is structured, with core values providing the basis for postures which further influence the ultimate issue position.

Public opinion about foreign policy is measured in the same way that all public opinion is measured. Through polls and surveys, respondents are asked about their issue positions. Conclusions are drawn by researchers by applying the scientific method.