What is Public Opinion?
Emily Echevarria
What is Public Opinion?
Public opinion is an expression of the general population's thoughts on public issues. Rather than saying a specific thought belongs to a specific person, we broaden it, stating that it's the general public's opinion in order to represent a common or popular opinion on a issue. It is a useful tool in politics, allowing politicians to use public opinions to help generate their campaign.
Public Opinion Polls
Public opinion polls is a survey used to collect data about people's thoughts on particular matters. But like with all survey's you need a good representative sample to get accurate data on these public opinions. A representative sample is a group of random people that could represent the population well enough to generate accurate data.
Influences on Public Opinion
Many factors can influence public opinion, such as knowledge on a particular topic, the customs and habits of people, a person's cultural background, their attitude, environment, etc.