PSYCHOLOGY IN PUBLIC OPINION AND PROPAGANDA 329
by the results. This, interestingly enough, is the belief of the average
citizen1 and of elective officials.2
DETERMINANTS OF OPINION
To what extent does the widespread questioning of individuals by
the polling process throw light on the real determinants of opinion?
Each person is likely to assert that his opinions are based on his own
personal experience, contacts with friends, and reasoning. As psychol-
ogists we are well aware of the uniqueness of the individual. How,
then, can statistical averages give valid information about these opin-
ions? For every opinion must be held by an individual; the public
exists only statistically.
The facts seem to answer unequivocally. Regardless of the asser-
tion by each individual that his opinion represents his reasoned con-
clusion (or words to that effect), it is clear that such factors as the
amount of economic security he has, the amount and kind of education
he received, the section of the country he inhabits, and other items
have profound influences upon his opinions. These factors are not
matters of reasoning. But they do affect the manner in which we
reason, the arguments we accept, the conclusions we endorse.
Education.—The most consistent group differences on opinion polls
are those found when respondents are classified by educational level.
Persons with some college training differ most sharply from the general
trend. Those limited to grammar school, in general, are more nation-
alistic, more traditional, in their public opinions than the average.
College-trained citizens are much quicker to accept the need for a
world organization; they are less deceived by the theory that war is
inevitable; they are more critical of harsh peace terms. In a compari-
son with experts on the causes of war, the college-educated came
closest to endorsing the program set up by the experts as a means for
approaching permanent peace.
It is easy to see why these differences in opinion would develop.
Not only does the person of higher education have more facts upon
which to base his judgment; he also has a different background of
experience with reality. He has grown up (on the average) in a pro-
tected environment; he comes most often from a well-to-do family; and
he has been less forced to concentrate on the day-to-day job of earning
a living. Add to this the superior intelligence of the average person
going to college, and the result necessarily is a different point of view
1 Goldmaji, E. F., Poll on the Polls, Publ. Opin. Quart., 1945, 8, 461-467.
1 Hartmann, G. W., Judgments of State Legislators concerning Public Opinion,
J, Soc. Psychol,, 1945, 21,105-114.