International Encyclopedia of Communication Online

Extract

The phrase “deliberative polls” most often refers to political philosopher James Fishkin's conception of a multi-stage opinion poll that incorporates systematic deliberation on policy issues (→  Public Opinion Polling ). As such, Fishkin has trademarked the phrase “deliberative polling.” It can refer to other methods of introducing a deliberative component to public opinion research, some of which are touched on below. Deliberative polling addresses the relationship between public opinion and policy outcomes. Many political philosophers believe that in a representative democracy, policy should be responsive to considered public preferences (→  Deliberativeness in Political Communication ). Many empiricists conclude that policy is responsive to public opinion as expressed in conventional surveys – but whether such opinion is “considered” is another matter. Survey researchers agree that citizens do not typically form considered opinions on policy issues (→  Public Opinion ). As Anthony Downs (1957) has argued, citizens tend to practice rational ignorance: they expend little effort informing and refining political opinions that, individually, will have vanishingly little impact on outcomes. In consequence, conventional opinion surveys often tap what Philip Converse (1964) called “nonattitudes”: opinions made up on the spot (→  Survey ). As such, not only are individuals' responses ... log in or subscribe to read full text