Research demonstrates that people are motivated to seek information on political issues for social utility, rather than to resolve private indecision or candidate choice. (RB)

Discusses results of a Wisconsin panel study supporting the hypothesis that public confidence in governmental institutions would increase during the campaign period and associates this increase with heavier exposure to the campaign and the Ford-Carter debates. Improved evaluations of candidates are associated with interpersonal discussion rather…

The usefulness of presidential debates to the electorate and to the total political system is evaluated in this paper. The paper first reports the results of opinion polls concerning the value of the 1976 debates and cites studies showing the types of information that people obtained from watching the debates. It then considers whether voters'…

Data from a series of surveys of voters in the Midwest, conducted during the 1976 presidential election campaign, were used to explore the effects of the campaign in relation to when people decided for whom to vote. A second purpose was to consider the adequacy of the traditional dichotomous model of voters: people who make up their minds early…

A study examined the effects on political socialization of students in grades 5-6, based on teachers' use of local newspapers in classrooms throughout Argentina (except in Buenos Aires) during the 1995 school year. The newspaper program was sponsored by the Association of Dailies of the Interior Region of Argentina. Data were collected by…