Policy failure and public support: The Iran-Contra affair and public assessment of President Reagan

Brody, Richard A.; Shapiro, Catherine R.

doi:10.1007/bf01002142

Cited by 91 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…For instance, a number of studies conclude that the significant fall in President Nixon's approval ratings during 1973 to 1974 was caused by his involvement in the Watergate scandal (Sniderman et al, 1991;Yaffee, 1999;Yaffee and McGee, 2000). This relationship was also observed with regard to President Reagan and the Iran-Contra affair (Brody, 1991;Brody and Shapiro, 1989;Hurwitz et al, 1989;Krosnick and Kinder, 1990) as well as for other scandals during the Reagan and Bush presidencies (Bowler and Karp, 2004;Chanley et al, 2000) -but not for Clinton's Lewinsky scandal (Smyth and Taylor, 2003;Zaller, 1998). In addition, political scandals have more than once corrupted presidential images in terms of, for example, competence, honesty, credibility and morality (Arterton, 1974;Brody, 1998;Dennis and Webster, 1975;Hawkins et al, 1975;Hogan, 2003;Hurwitz et al, 1989;Jaros and Shoemaker, 1976;Joslyn, 1977;Joslyn and Galderisi, 1977;Krosnick and Kinder, 1990;Lupfer and Kenny, 1974;Robinson, 1974).…”

Section: Literature Reviewsupporting

confidence: 58%

The impact of political scandals on political support: An experimental test of two theories

Maier

2010

International Political Science Review

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One of the most obvious trends in Western democracies, during the past decades, has been the decline of citizens' political support (that is, the growth of negative attitudes toward political parties, politicians and democracy). One explanation for this trend is that the number of political scandals has increased. However, the impact of political scandals on political support is not clear. Whereas the dysfunctional theory assumes that political scandals in general have an unfavourable impact on the political system, functional theory claims that political scandals can have positive effects. Using data from an experiment, this article analyses which theory is superior. It finds support for the dysfunctional theory: support for politicians and political parties was significantly eroded after exposure to scandal coverage whereas trust in institutions as well as satisfaction with democracy were not affected. The article concludes that political scandals contribute to the decline of political support.

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Section: Literature Reviewsupporting

confidence: 58%

The impact of political scandals on political support: An experimental test of two theories

Maier

2010

International Political Science Review

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“…Calls from the Bush administration for a sustained war effort in Iraq have produced dueling claims on the meaning of patriotism: Republicans implying that Democrats display insufficient patriotism when suggesting that the United States withdraw its troops. At the same time, public criticism of the President was muted after the 9/11 attacks, as expressions of support and feelings of patriotism seemed to march hand‐in‐hand (Brody 2002; Coryn, Beale, and Myers 2004; Kam and Ramos 2008; more generally, see also, Mueller 1973; Brody and Shapiro 1989). It has even been suggested that the administration’s decision to cast the post‐9/11 struggle as a “war,” rather than a fight against “crime” was the aim of enlisting the symbolism of patriotism on behalf of the incumbent leadership (Lakoff 2008:126).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Sources of Patriotism: Survey and Experimental Evidence

Nincic

Ramos

2012

Foreign Policy Analysis

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Nincic, Miroslav and Jennifer M. Ramos. (2012) The Sources of Patriotism: Survey and Experimental Evidence. Foreign Policy Analysis, doi: 10.1111/j.1743‐8594.2011.00175.x Patriotism, as attachment to country, is the value on which most foreign policy attitudes ultimately hinge, yet very little in the academic literature addresses the implications of the way in which the foundations for this attachment are conceived. Two variants of patriotism can be identified: one absolute, the other contingent. For those holding the latter conception, patriotism must be justified by one’s country’s actions: the greater the approval of one’s country’s policies, the greater the degree of patriotic attachment that is warranted. For those holding the former conception, patriotism is an absolute and a constant value, and it is reflected in support for one’s country when the going gets tough. We seek to understand the circumstances that determine how critical or uncritical a patriot a person would be, given both specific conditions related to the individual and the international situation more generally. Moreover, we are interested in accounting for overall levels of patriotism. We use survey data from the PEW, as well as experimental data, to examine these matters. We find that factors internal to the individual, and not external conditions, determine the kind of patriot one is; at the same time, overall patriotism is found to be influenced by both internal and external circumstances.

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“…Numerous studies have indeed demonstrated the decline in approval ratings or vote shares of political leaders after scandals (e.g., Brody, 1991;Brody and Shapiro, 1989;Chanley et al, 2000;Praino et al, 2013). Some researchers thus extend the study of the political impact of scandals by examining whether scandals also affect public evaluations of other politicians and the political system at large (e.g., Bless and Schwarz, 1998;Bowler and Karp, 2004;Maier, 2011;Regner and Le Floch, 2005;Ulbig and Miller, 2012).…”

Section: Political Scandals and Public Opinion Toward Politiciansmentioning

confidence: 94%

How Citizens React to Political Scandals Surrounding Government Leaders: A Survey Study in Hong Kong

Lee¹

2014

Asian Journal of Political Science

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Public opinion research has suggested that the negative impact of scandals on public evaluation of the politicians involved is not always strong. Part of the reason is that people may hold varying perceptions regarding the nature, factuality, and importance of the scandals. According to the theory of motivated reasoning, people develop varying perceptions by processing information in ways that reconfirm their existing views. This study applies such insights to analyze how citizens react to political scandals surrounding government leaders in Hong Kong, where such scandals have arguably become increasingly prominent in recent years. This study constructs a theoretical model linking prior political attitudes, scandal-related perceptions, response evaluation, and evaluation of politicians. Analysis of survey data confirms most of the hypotheses in two cases. External efficacy and support for democracy substantially influence perceived factuality and acceptability of the scandals. Such perceptions shape people's evaluations of the responses by the government and the officials involved, which in turn affect evaluation of the officials.

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Policy failure and public support: The Iran-Contra affair and public assessment of President Reagan

Cited by 91 publications

References 4 publications

The impact of political scandals on political support: An experimental test of two theories

The impact of political scandals on political support: An experimental test of two theories

The Sources of Patriotism: Survey and Experimental Evidence

How Citizens React to Political Scandals Surrounding Government Leaders: A Survey Study in Hong Kong

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