Different polls ask different questions, but many times the same question is asked but all the difference in the world falls in the way it was worded. Why do subtly different wording create such a difference in the way people vote?
2006-11-08 15:35:55 · 2 answers · asked by tammylicious 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Elections
Primarily because most people don't think to deeply about the issues underlying the question -- they just react, usually emotionally.
Example: Do you favor interrogation by torture? Most say no. Do you favor taking whatever steps are necessary to get information that could be used to save American lives? Most say yes. Same question, different phrasing.
2006-11-08 15:39:04 · answer #1 · answered by coragryph 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Wording makes a difference to those who place words over substance. It's like Bush saying for three years that his policy was to stay the course, and then a couple of days before the election his advisors told him to not use the phrase "stay the course". They thought by changing the words, people would think he had changed his policy. As Thomas Friedman said, they thought the American public was so stupid they would not know the difference. Tuesday showed they knew the difference and were not fooled by an attempt to call the same policy by a different name. Hopefully, Bush will start to give us more credit.
2006-11-08 23:41:20 · answer #2 · answered by rec 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋