Polling, Policy, and Public Opinion The Case Against Heeding the "Voice of the People"

by Weissberg, Robert

• ISBN13: 9780312294953
• ISBN10: 0312294956
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-08-03
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

The opinion poll has become commonplace in politics and typically reveals public desires for greater government social welfare assistance, such as more aid for education or health care. These statistics seem to proclaim the welfare state's enduring popularity. Though sincere, these desires largely reflect how questions are asked. Unfortunately, polls usually lack basic economic restraints. There are no costs, risks or disasters in the world of polling. Market-based solutions are routinely excluded. This book works to reveal these shortcomings and clearly demonstrates why a government ruled by the vox populi would be folly.

Author Biography

Robert Weissberg is Professor of Political Science at University of Illinois-Urbana. He is author of Democracy and the Academy (2000) and has written for Forbes, The Weekly Standard, and the major political science journals.

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
Public Opinion, Polling, and Politics	1	(16)
From Wishes co Hard Choices	17	(32)
Civic Competence	49	(22)
Public Opinion I: Policies and Questions	71	(24)
Public Opinion II: Fervent Desires	95	(44)
Bestowing the Democratic Mantle	139	(36)
Conclusions	175	(20)
Appendix The Daycare Questionnaire	195	(8)
Notes	203	(14)
Bibliography	217	(12)
Index	229