https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa en-us 2018-03-20 16:05:13 UTC 2018-03-21 15:58:08 UTC hello@padlet.com 5191811 https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244116389 Election results are thus very often said to be indicators of public opinion. Elections are only useful indicators of public opinion.
Interest groups are private organizations whose members share certain views and work to shape the making and content of public policy.  They present their views through their lobbyists by letters and telephone calls in political campaigns and by number of other methods.

]]> 2018-03-20 16:13:31 UTC https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244116389 2011254 https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244116508 Shaping public opinion is based on a bunch of things; voting, lobbying, books, pamphlets, magazine and newspaper articles, editorial comments and more.]]> 2018-03-20 16:13:39 UTC https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244116508 2011254 https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244579506 The media are frequently described as the mirrors as well as the molders of opinion. Often views expressed in newspapers and television commentaries are good indicators of public opinion. Sometimes the media is not very accurate on certain issues. Most public officials have frequent and wide ranging contacts in many different forms with large numbers of people. Many government officials have these to keep in touch with their folks back home.]]> 2018-03-21 15:20:58 UTC https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244579506 2011254 https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244584666 Early efforts of public opinion polls go back to something known as the straw poll. A straw poll is where polls were sought to read the public's mind simply by asking the same question of a large number of people. This technique today is highly unreliable creating things like false assumptions and hacking of certain votes. Serious efforts to take these elections to a scientific level are being made. As the internet and technology continue to develop we may be able to vote just with the tap of our finger.]]> 2018-03-21 15:28:39 UTC https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244584666 2011254 https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244588284 using the internet to vote is a complex process and could take time to develop. The universe is a term that means the whole population that the poll aims to measure. If a polls universe is very small, the best way to find out what that universe thinks about some issue would be to poll every one of them. Now the goal is constructing a sample. Professional pollsters draw a random sample. In a random sample the pollster interviews a certain number of randomly selected people who live in a certain number of randomly selected places. There are plenty of other samples but when it comes down to it, it is all about probability.]]> 2018-03-21 15:34:35 UTC https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244588284 5191811 https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244588960 The major national polls are very reliable.  Most responsible  pollsters themselves are quite aware of that fact and readily acknowledge the limits of their polls. They have difficulty measuring the intensity, stability, and relevance of the opinions they report. 
Intensity- the strength of feeling with which an opinion is held.
Stability- is the relative permanence or changeableness of an opinion.
Relevance- is how important a particular opinion is to the person who holds it.]]> 2018-03-21 15:35:33 UTC https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244588960 2011254 https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244594082 The way in which questions are worded is very important. Wording can affect the reliability of any poll. Responsible pollsters acknowledge these issues and thus phrase their questions very carefully. How pollsters communicate with the sample respondents can also affect accuracy. Professional pollsters see advantages and drawbacks of both interviewing tactics. Pollsters have the technology to tabulate and interpret their data, draw their conclusions, and then publish their findings.]]> 2018-03-21 15:42:58 UTC https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244594082 5191811 https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244597443 The energy devoted to measuring public opinion in this country suggests something of its powerful role in american politics. Public opinion is the major but by no means the only influence on public policy in this country. ]]> 2018-03-21 15:48:30 UTC https://padlet.com/2011254/yu0hz8kqehwa/wish/244597443