The Week in Polls

The Week in Polls

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The Week in Polls
The Week in Polls
How well do politicians understand public opinion?

How well do politicians understand public opinion?

Dr. Mark Pack's avatar
Dr. Mark Pack
Aug 21, 2022
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The Week in Polls
The Week in Polls
How well do politicians understand public opinion?
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A newly published study asked both politicians and random citizens in four countries to estimate public opinion on salient issues.

The verdict? As one of the study's authors says:

We find remarkably large errors: politicians incorrectly perceive where the majority is on issues 29% of the time, doing so even when the support/opposition is lopsided.

Politici…

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