Especially for democratic political systems, public opinion plays a major role in the political Research on public opinion often focuses on aggregated effects. But how do individuals assess what millions of people they have never met think about single issues? In recent years, SNS have become increasingly important for politics. They pose a new means of campaign activities and are targets of new laws, e.g. the Netzwerkdurchsetzungsgesetz in Germany, but have also been used for deception (cf. Hameleers and Schmuck 2017, Esser, Stepinska and Hopmann 2016). These developments and the lack of-up-to-date evidence in the literature led me to the following research question: What determines the individual perception of public opinion?
The remainder of the paper is structured as follows. After some remarks concerning the definition of the term public opinion, I will discuss single influential works for the field in general and, briefly, the literature of the past two decades examining the specific micro-level relationship. As the paper aims to examine current implications, a focus lies on the effects of aggregated user opinion representations and comments on SNS embedded in the frameworks of the spiral of silence (Noelle-Neumann 1974, 1977, 1993), social projection (Fields and Schuman 1976) and the persuasive press inference (Gunther 1998).
Table of Contents
1. The Individual Perception Matters
2. What Determines the Individual Perception of Public Opinion? - An Overview
2.1 The Individual’s Own Opinion
2.1.1 Social Projection
2.1.2 Possible Intervening Variables
2.1.3 Implications in Regard to Filter Bubbles
2.2 The Spiral of Silence Applied: The Influence of Comments and Likes
2.2.1 The Spiral of Silence in the Age of the Web 2.0
2.2.2 Possible Opinion Cues From Likes and Approval Ratings
2.2.3 Reading Comments Online - Substantive and Substantial Influence or a Waste of Time?
2.3 The Persuasive Press Inference and its Implications
3. Hypotheses
4. Bibliography
Research Objectives and Core Themes
The paper aims to investigate the complex mechanisms that influence how individuals perceive public opinion in the digital age, specifically examining the interplay between traditional media effects and social networking site dynamics.
- The role of individual opinion and social projection in perception.
- Application of the Spiral of Silence theory to Web 2.0 interactions.
- The comparative influence of user-generated comments versus aggregated "Likes."
- Theoretical evaluation of the Persuasive Press Inference in modern media environments.
- The impact of filter bubbles and ideological segregation on perception.
Excerpt from the Book
2.1.1 Social Projection
There is a great deal of empirical support (e.g. Fields and Schuman 1976, Marks and Miller 1987, Fabrigar and Krosnick 1995, Gunther and Christen 2002, Neubaum and Krämer 2016, Steinfeld, Samuel-Azran, Lev-On 2016) for the social projection hypothesis (Krueger 1998). The phenomenon is also described with varying other names such as looking-glass perception (Fields and Schuman 1976), egocentric attribution (Granberg and Brent 1983 via Joslyn and Haider-Markel 2002), or false-consensus effect (Ross, Greene, and House 1977 via Joslyn and Haider-Markel 2002). They all mean the tendency of individuals to perceive their own opinion in others.
There are several theoretical explanations for this. For example in the paper about their field study Fields and Schuman concluded that “it is likely that the tendency to see agreement with oneself in the general public is a basic way of perceiving the world in the absence of other information” (Fields and Schuman 1976, 442). They found even very small minorities perceiving of having at least half of the population on their side. They also mention the possibility that respondents simply regard their own opinions as so sensible that they are convinced that this exact opinion must be held by all other reasonable people (Fields and Schuman 1976). Marks and Miller offer another explanation for social projection in the context of public opinion. They equate agreement on public issues with social support, meaning that the individual has a motivation to perceive this exaggerated perceptions of social support because it enhances its self-esteem (Marks and Miller 1987).
Summary of Chapters
1. The Individual Perception Matters: This chapter introduces the importance of studying individual perceptions of public opinion in democratic societies and shifts the focus from macro-level effects to micro-level processes influenced by modern media.
2. What Determines the Individual Perception of Public Opinion? - An Overview: This section provides a conceptual framework and reviews existing literature regarding the factors that shape how people interpret public sentiment, including the subject's own opinion and perceived media coverage.
2.1 The Individual’s Own Opinion: This chapter explores how individuals tend to perceive their own opinions as being held by the majority, a phenomenon known as social projection or false-consensus.
2.2 The Spiral of Silence Applied: The Influence of Comments and Likes: This chapter analyzes how social media metrics, specifically likes and user comments, serve as cues that influence an individual's perception of the opinion climate.
2.3 The Persuasive Press Inference and its Implications: This chapter discusses the theory that individuals infer public opinion from media coverage based on the assumption that the media exerts a persuasive impact on others.
3. Hypotheses: This section presents formal research hypotheses linking perception of public opinion to variables like interpersonal communication, mass media, and social media cues.
4. Bibliography: This section lists the comprehensive academic literature and empirical studies cited throughout the paper.
Keywords
Public Opinion, Social Projection, Spiral of Silence, Persuasive Press Inference, Social Networking Sites, Likes, User Comments, Filter Bubbles, False-Consensus Effect, Media Perception, Political Communication, Web 2.0, Opinion Cues.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper examines how individuals form their perception of public opinion, specifically questioning how digital factors like SNS engagement influence these perceptions compared to traditional media.
What are the primary theoretical themes discussed?
The central themes include social projection, the Spiral of Silence, the Persuasive Press Inference, and the potential impact of modern digital mechanisms like filter bubbles.
What is the main research question?
The primary research question is: "What determines the individual perception of public opinion?"
Which scientific methods are primarily utilized in this work?
The work utilizes a theoretical literature review and analysis to evaluate existing empirical studies and develop a set of testable hypotheses regarding perception mechanisms.
What subjects are covered in the main body of the text?
The main body covers the psychological drivers of opinion perception (social projection), the influence of social media interactions (likes/comments), and the role of mass media coverage (Persuasive Press Inference).
How would you characterize this paper using key terms?
Key terms include Public Opinion, Social Projection, Spiral of Silence, Persuasive Press Inference, Social Networking Sites, and Filter Bubbles.
How do "Likes" compare to "Comments" in influencing public opinion perception?
The literature suggests that user-written comments often carry more persuasive weight as exemplars, whereas likes are often perceived as less concrete statistics with a weaker effect on perception.
What is the significance of the "Spiral of Silence" in the current digital landscape?
The paper discusses how the Spiral of Silence theory, which explains how people gauge opinion to avoid isolation, must be re-evaluated for Web 2.0, where diverse and extreme opinions are more visible.
- Quote paper
- Christin Rudolph (Author), 2018, The Perception of Public Opinion between Likes, Comments and Media, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/465471
