POLITICAL SCIENCE 425 (27823) | ||
| T 4-6:40 | SH 150 | |
| R. Hofstetter NH-119 | TTh 6-7 594-6804 | |
| rhofstet@mail.sdsu.edu X |
The objectives of this course are to:
Students are responsible for all material in the assigned
portions of the text whether I discuss it explicitly or not in class, and
for lecture and discussion material. Once class has begun, please enter
the class as unobtrusively as possible or wait until a break to enter the
room. If you must leave the class before it is over, please tell me before
the class begins unless you become ill.
Students should complete reading and graded problems in a manner that
maintains pace with the topics being discussed, lectures, and due dates.
Students are required to attend all class and workshop meetings and to
take examinations and quizzes in class. (Please note that the purchase
of airplane tickets, vacations, athletic events, etc., are not excuses
for missing classes.) Quizzes or midterms will be given at each class
meeting and are closed book. No final examination or extra credit
assignments will be given. I will discard the lowest quiz grade and the
lowest midterm grade. No makeup examinations or quizzes will be given
except in extraordinary situations and then at the discretion of the
instructor. One to three hours credit for POLS 499 doing research under
my supervision may also be available, depending on the semester. Interested
students should contact me early in the semester. (If you are interested in
working with me on a research project which you might also use for a senior
thesis, this option is also available.)
SDSU students should also open e-mail accounts. The Social Science
Research Laboratory and other such units on campus offer no-charge training
in the use of e-mail. I have included my e-mail address
on this syllabus to enable students to communicate with me outside my scheduled
office hours for students' convenience. The syllabus is also on my website
with the URL above and my e-mail address is on the course
syllabus. I anticipate that students will make use of e-mail in case they
wish to communicate with me outside office hours or class, since I do not
check my telephone voice mail at SDSU.
Academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. All written work must be your
original work (i.e., not previously submitted for credit in any other course,
either at SDSU or at any other academic institution).
Please familiarize yourself with the University Policy regarding Cheating and
Plagiarism at: http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/dept/ senate/policy/pfacademics.html
And also be aware of the Student Grievances procedure, available on-line at:
http://www.sa.sdsu.edu/srr/statement/sectionVII.html
The course is divided into a series of topics, described below.
Approximately one week of lectures and discussions will be allocated to each
topic. Minor changes to the schedule may occur.
1) Introduce students to basic concepts, theories, and methods of
public opinion, political psychology, and voting behavior;
2) Introduce students to the use of computers to
analyze public opinion data and how to query
opinion surveys about public opinion and political participation questions.
TESTS:
Required:
Shiraev, Eric, and Sobel, Richard. (2006).
People and Their Opinions: Thinking Critically about Public
Opinion. New York: Pearson Longman.
Barbara Norrander and Clyde Wilcox. Understanding Public Opinion
. Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 2002). (Paperback.)
Recommended:
Xeroxed Materials with data disk and data documentation.
REQUIREMENTS:
GRADING:
(3) Exmingations 30%
(10) Quizxes 30%
(13) Computer Assignments 25%
(15) Attendance 15%
Course Outline
Week 1 Introduction to Political Behavior August 29
Week 2 The Nature of Public Opinion Sept 5
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 1. "The Nature of Public Opinion," pp. 1-19.
ii. Norrander and Wilcox, "Introduction: The Diverse
Paths to Understanding Public Opinion," pp. 1-16.
iii. Computer Exercise 1 due September 12.
Week 3 Measurement of Opinion. Sept 12
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 2. "Measurement of Opinion,"
pp. 20-44.
ii. Norrander and Wilcox, "Appendix: A Primer on
Statistics and Public Opinion," pp. 343-356.
Last day to drop/add September 18.
Week 4 Peoples' Opinions. Sept 19
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 3. "Thinking Critically about
Peoples' Opinions," pp. 45-66.
ii. Dennis Chong, "Free Speech and Multiculturalism In and
Out of the Academy," Political Psychology, V. 27, No. 1,
2006, pp. 29-54.
iii. Qiong Li & Marilynn B. Brewer, "What Does It Mean to Be
an American? Patriotism, Nationalism, and American
Identity After 9/11," Political
Psychology, Vol. 25, No. 5, 2004, pp. 727-739.
iv. Darren W. Davis and Brian D. Silver, "Civil Liberties vs.
Security: Public Opinion in the Context of Terrorist
Attacks on America," American Journal of Political Science,
Vol. 48, No. 1, January, 2004, pp. 28-46.
v. Quiz 2.
vi. Computer Exercise 3 due September 26.
Week 5 Attitudes and Opinions. Sept 26
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 4. "Attitudes and Opinions,"
pp. 67-91.
ii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 8, William G. Jacoby,
"Core Values and Political Attitudes," pp. 177-202.
iii. Rui J.P. de Figueiredo, Jr., and Zachary Elkins,
"Are Patriots Bigots? An Inquiry into the Vices of
In-Group Pride," American Journal of Political
Science, Vol. 47, No. 1, January, 2003, pp. 171-188.
iv. Computer Exercise 4 due October 3
v. First Midterm Examination.
Week 6 Socialization. Oct 3
i. Benjamin Highton and Raymond E. Wolfinger,
"The First Seven Years of
the Political Life Cycle," American Journal
of Political Science, Vol. 45, No. 1, January,
2001, pp. 202-209.
iii. Quiz 3.
iv. Computer Exercise 5 due October 10.Quiz 3.
Week 7 The Media. Oct 10
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 6. "The Media and Opinion," pp. 116-142.
ii. Diana C. Mutz and Byron Reeves "The New Videomalaise" Effects of
Televised Incivility on Political Trust" American Political Science
Review, vol 99, No 1, February 2005, pp. 1-15.
iv. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 2, Shanto Iyengar and Markus
Prior, "Giving Advertising a Bad Name: The Effect of Political Ads on
Commercial Advertising, " pp. 43-60.
v. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 12, Kathleen M. McGraw, "Manipulating
Public Opinion," pp. 265-280.
vi. Nicholas A. Valentino, Vincent L. Hutchings and Ismael K. White,
"Cues that Matter: How Political Ads Prime Racial Attitudes during
Campaigns," American Political Science Review, Vol. 96, No. 1,
(March, 2002), pp. 75-90.
vi. Quiz 4.
vi. Computer Exercise 6 due October 17.
Week 9 Culture/Media. Oct 17
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 7. "Gender and Opinion," pp. 143-165.
ii. Kira Sanbonmatsu "Gender Stereotypes and Vote Choice"
American Journal of Political Science,
Vol. 46, No. 1, (January, 2002), pp. 20-34.
iii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 1, "It's the Context, Situation,
and Question, Stupid: The Gender Basis of Public Opinion,"
pp. 21-42.
iv. Karen M. Kaufmann, "The Partisan Paradox: Religious
Commitment and the Gender Gap in Party Identification,"
Public Opinion Quarterly, Vol. 68,
No. 4, (Winter, 2004), pp. 491-511.
v. Quiz 5.
vi. Computer Exercise 7 due October 24.
Week 10 Social Class. Oct 24
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 8. "Social Class and Opinion," pp. 166-190.
i. Rosalee A. Clawson and Rakuya Trice "Poverty as we Know it:
Media Portrayals of the Poor" Public Opinion Quarterly, Vol.
64, No 4, (Spring, 2000), pp. 53-64.
i. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 10, Henry E. Brady, Kay Lehman Schlozman,
Sidney Verba, and Laurel Elms, "Who Bowls? The (Un)Changing
Stratification of Participation" pp. 219-242.
i. Adam J. Berinsky, "Silent Voices: Social Welfare Policy Opinions and
Political Equality in America," American Journal of Political Science,
Vol. 46, No. 2, April, 2002, pp. 276-287.
i. Rosalee A. Clawson and Rakuya Trice, "Poverty as we Know It: Media
Portrayals of the Poor," Public Opinion Quarterly, Vol. 64,
No. 4, (Spring, 2000), pp. 53-64.
i. Computer Exercise 8 due October 31.
i. Second Midterm Examination.
Week 11 Race, Ethnicity, Opinion. Oct 31
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 9. "Race, Ethnicity, Religion,
and Opinions," pp. 191-221.
ii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 3, Allison Calhoun-Brown,
"This Side of Jordan: Black Churches and Partisan
Political Attitudes," pp. 61-76.
iii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 4, Carole Jean Uhlaner
and F. Chris Garcia, "Latino Public Opinion," pp. 77-102.
iv. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 5, Edward G. Carmines and
Paul M. Sniderman, "The Structure of Racial Attitudes:
Issue Pluralism and the Changing American Dilemma," pp. 105-120.
v. Donald R. Kinder and Nicolas Winter, "Exploring the
Racial Divide: Blacks, Whites, and Opinion on National
Policy," American Journal of Political Science,
Vol. 45, No. 2, April, 2001, pp. 439-453.
vi. Ryan I. Claassen, "Political Opinion and Distinctiveness:
The Case of Hispanic Ethnicity," Political Research
Quarterly, Vol. 57, No. 4, (December, 2004), pp. 609-620.
vii. Quiz 6.
viii. Computer Exercise 9 due November 7.
Week 12 Voting Nov 7
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 10. "Opinions and Voting," pp. 222-248.
ii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 9, Alan I. Abramowitz and Kyle L.
Saunders, "Ideological Realignment and U.S. Congressional
Elections," pp. 203-216.
iii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 11, Paul R. Brewer "Public Opinion,
Economic Issues, and the Vote: Are Presidential Elections
'All About the Benjamins'?," pp. 243-262.
iv. Paul S. Martin, "Inside the Black Box of Negative Campaign
Effects: Three Reasons Why Negative Campaigns Mobilize,"
Political Psychology, Vol. 25, No. 4, 2004, pp. 545-562.
iv. Quiz 7.
iv. Computer Exercise 10 due November 14.
Week 13 Domestic Issues Nov 14
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 11. "Opinions about Domestic
Issues," pp. 249-283.
ii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 6, Clyde Wilcox and
Barbara Norrander, "Of Moods and Morals: The
Dynamics of Opinion on Abortion and Gay Rights," pp. 121-148.
iii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 13, Wendy M. Rahn and
Thomas J. Rudolph, "Trust in Local Governments," pp. 281-300.
iv. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 14, John R. Hibbing,
"The People's Craving for Unselfish Government," pp. 301-318.
iv. William G. Jacoby, "Issue Framing and Public Opinion
on Government Spending, American Journal of Political
Science, Vol. 44, No. 4, October, 2000, pp. 750-767.
iv. Quiz 8.
iv. Computer Exercise 11 due November 21.
Week 14 Foreign Policy Nov 21
i. Shiraev & Sobel, Chapter 12. "Opinions about
Foreign Policy," pp. 284-313.
ii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 7, John Mueller,
"American Foreign Policy and Public Opinion in
a New Era: Eleven Propositions," pp. 149-172.
iii. Matthew A. Baum, "Sex, Lies, and War: How Soft
News Brings Foreign Policy to the Inattentive Public,"
American Political Science Review, Vol. 96,
No. 1, (March, 2002), pp. 91-109.
iv. Quiz 9.
v. Computer Exercise 12 due November 28.
Week 15 Conclusions Nov 28
i. Shiraev & Sobel, "Conclusions," pp. 314-320.
ii. Norrander and Wilcox, Chapter 15, William Mishler and
Richard Rose, "Public Support for Post-Communist Transitions
in Central and Eastern Europe and the Former
Soviet Union," pp. 319-342.
iii. Quiz 10.
iv. Computer Exercise 13 due December 5.
Week 16 Discussion and Review Dec 5