Related Experiment Videos
Policy shifts in the presidential debates
1Department of Psychology and Counseling, Alabama A&G University, Normal 35762, USA.
Psychological Reports
|July 2, 2002
Summary
Watching a political debate can change how voters view candidates' policy stances. In a study, participants showed a notable shift in agreement with Gore's domestic policy after viewing the 2000 presidential debate.
Area of Science:
- Political Science
- Psychology
- Communication Studies
Background:
- Political debates are a common feature of election campaigns.
- Understanding how debates influence voter perceptions is crucial for democratic processes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if viewing a political debate alters potential voters' evaluations of candidates' policy positions.
- To quantify the impact of debate viewing on policy agreement.
Main Methods:
- Forty-five undergraduate students participated in the study.
- Questionnaires were administered before and after viewing the third 2000 presidential debate (Bush vs. Gore).
Main Results:
- A statistically significant shift in agreement with Al Gore's domestic policy was observed.
- The average agreement score with Gore's domestic policy increased by 1.2 points from pretest to posttest.
Conclusions:
- Exposure to political debates can lead to measurable changes in voter attitudes towards specific policies.
- The findings suggest that debates play a role in shaping voter opinion on candidate policy platforms.