The Supreme Court and Public Opinion

Paper Summary:

This paper focuses the effects of Supreme Court decisions on public opinion as debated by Johnson and Martin in "The Public Conditional Responses to Supreme Court Decisions," Mishler and Sheenan's "The Supreme Court as a Countermajoritarian Institution? The Impact of Public Opinion on Supreme Court Decisions" and Rosenberg in his book "The Hollow Hope". This paper argues that the Supreme Court does have an effect on public opinion but that such effects are conditional.

From the Paper:

"It would be simple to conclude that the Supreme Court either has an effect on public opinion or that it has no effect whatsoever on public opinion. The correct conclusion would be to say that the Supreme Court has an effect on public opinion and that such effect is not always clearly determinable. In other words, "The Supreme Court can and does influence public attitudes toward highly salient issues, but its effect is conditional" (Johnson and Martin, 1998, 306). This is known as the Conditional Response Theory, as established by Johnson and Martin in their article The Public's Conditional Response to Supreme Court Decisions. Johnson and Martin assert that the Conditional Response Theory is based on three facts: First, the Supreme Court is viewed as a creditable institution and therefore a highly legitimate one. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• CBS News Poll. January 5-8, 2006. N=1,151 adults nationwide.
• Fox News/ Opinion Dynamics Poll. January 24-25, 2006. N=900 registered voters nationwide.
• Johnson, T. & Martin, A. The Public Conditional Responses to Supreme Court Decisions. American Political Science Review. Vol. 92, No. 2. 1998, pp. 299-307.
• Mishler, W. & Sheehan. R. The Supreme Court as a Countermajoritarian Institution? The Impact of Public Opinion on Supreme Court Decisions. American Political Science Review. Vol. 87, No. 1. March 1993, pp. 87-101.
• Rosenberg, G.N. (1991). The Hollow Hope: Can Courts Bring About Social Change? The University of Chicago Press; Chicago and London.

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