Australian Politics and Policy - Senior, 2019a

Australian Politics and Policy
The history of the public opinion as an idea
Most early theorists and philosophers, including Plato and Machiavelli, were
generally dismissive of the political opinions of the common people. They believed
most citizens did not have the capacity for rational political judgement. However,
some were more positive. Aristotle advocated an early version of the wisdom of
the crowd. The modern, mostly more positive, attitude towards public opinion can
be traced to the Enlightenment, which saw a growth in literacy, the development
of early newspapers and the distribution of political pamphlets. Enlightenment
thinkers, including John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, argued for the existence
of normative, inalienable rights for individuals, protected by the state, and for
greater citizen participation in government.
Lockean political theory was a significant inspiration for the design of the
political system and culture of the USA and other modern representative democracies.
Locke argued that humanity was subject to three laws: divine, civil and
opinion (or reputation). He regarded the latter as arguably the most important.
Poor public opinion could force people to conform to social norms. Despite this,
he generally did not consider public opinion to be a suitable influence for governments.
Other Enlightenment thinkers had a more positive view. David Hume
argued that public support provided government with legitimacy – and was the
only thing that could do so. This view is closest to modern normative beliefs about
the functioning of democracy.
Modern views of voter behaviour
Despite the early origins of the concept, the study of voter behaviour and public
opinion emerged as modern fields of research later, in the 1930s. Key debates
included how voters learn, why they believe certain things and prefer particular
policy options, how their attitudes match with their behaviours and their influence
on government policy decisions.
Much of our understanding of human behaviour comes from the field of social
psychology, where studies of public opinion typically employ one or more of four
basic concepts: beliefs, values, attitudes and opinions.
• Belief systems tend to be thematically and psychologically consistent. They are
the assumptions by which we live our lives, comprising our understanding of
the world, our attitudes and our opinions.
• Values are ideals. They are our understanding of the way things should be.
Many researchers distinguish between ‘terminal’ and ‘instrumental’ values.
Terminal values are ultimate social and individual goals, like prosperity and
freedom. Instrumental values are the constraints on the means used to pursue
ourgoals,suchashonestyandloyalty.
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