Ambivalence and the Structure of Political Opinion

by S. Craig (Editor), M. Martinez (Editor)

Overview

This book represents an important step in bringing together various strands of research about attitudinal ambivalence and public opinion. Essays by a distinguished group of political scientists and social psychologists provide a conceptual framework for understanding how ambivalence is currently understood and measured, as well as its relevance to the mass public's beliefs about our political institutions and national identity. The theoretical insights, methodological innovations, and empirical analyses will add substantially to our knowledge about the nature of ambivalence in particular, and the structure and evolution of political attitudes in general.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781349529070
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan US
Publication date:	11/09/2015
Edition description:	1st ed. 2005
Pages:	196
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

STEPHEN C. CRAIG is Professor of Political Science at the University of Florida, USA, as well as Director of the university's Graduate Program in Political Campaigning.

MICHAEL D. MARTINEZ is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Florida, USA.

Table of Contents

Pros and Cons: Ambivalence and Public Opinion; M.D.Martinez , S.C.Craig & J.G.Kane Ambivalence as Experienced Conflict; B.Albertson, J.Brehm & R.M.Alvarez Ambivalence as Psychological Conflict; I.Newby-Clark , I.McGregor & M.P.Zanna Ambivalence and Response Instability: A Panel Study; S.C.Craig , M.D.Martinez & J.G.Kane Meta-Psychological Versus Operative Measures of Ambivalence: Differentiating the Consequences of Perceived Intra-Psychic Conflict and Real Intra-Psychic Conflict; A.Holbrook & J.A.Krosnick Ambivalence toward Political Institutions; K.M.McGraw & B.Bartels Patriotic to the Core? American Ambivalence About America; J.Citrin & S.Luks Is it Really Ambivalence? Public Opinion Toward Government Spending; W.G.Jacoby

Editorial Reviews

"Craig and Martinez have brought together a stellar cast to provide a state-of-the-art resource that summarizes the field and provides groundbreaking original studies on nearly all elements of ambivalence. This is a must-read for all public opinion scholars, but the theory and measurement issues raised would also help researchers in other fields conceptualize problems of duality." - Donald Haider-Markel, University of Kansas

"Ambivalence and the Structure of Public Opinion is a timely collection of the latest work on ambivalence, its theoretical meaning, its measurement, and its impact in politics. The collection explores ambivalence in issues (e.g., abortion), towards political institutions (such as Congress and the Courts), and in patriotism. Democratic politics is inevitably conflictual and so a focused consideration of ambivalence is of special value and this collection delivers a worthy array of thoughtful and empirically rich explorations of the ways in which inner conflict infuses politics." - George E. Marcus, Williams College

From the Publisher