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Elite Military Cues and Public Opinion About the Use of Military Force

Publication ,  Journal Article
Golby, J; Feaver, P; Dropp, K
Published in: Armed Forces and Society
January 1, 2018

Do military endorsements influence Americans’ political and foreign policy views? We find that senior military officers have the ability to nudge public attitudes under certain conditions. Through a series of large, survey-based experiments, with nearly 12,000 completed interviews from national samples, we find that participants respond to survey questions in predictable ways depending on whether they have been prompted with information about the views of senior military leaders on the very same questions. When told that senior military leaders oppose particular interventions abroad, public opposition to that intervention increases; endorsements of support boost public support but by a smaller magnitude. Subsequent causal mediation analysis suggests that military opinion influences public opinion primarily through its impact on a mission’s perceived legitimacy and, to a lesser degree, it’s perceived likelihood of success.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Armed Forces and Society

DOI

EISSN

1556-0848

ISSN

0095-327X

Publication Date

January 1, 2018

Volume

44

Issue

1

Start / End Page

44 / 71

Related Subject Headings

  • Strategic, Defence & Security Studies
  • 4408 Political science
  • 1608 Sociology
  • 1606 Political Science
 

Citation

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Golby, J., Feaver, P., & Dropp, K. (2018). Elite Military Cues and Public Opinion About the Use of Military Force. Armed Forces and Society, 44(1), 44–71. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X16687067
Golby, J., P. Feaver, and K. Dropp. “Elite Military Cues and Public Opinion About the Use of Military Force.” Armed Forces and Society 44, no. 1 (January 1, 2018): 44–71. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X16687067.
Golby J, Feaver P, Dropp K. Elite Military Cues and Public Opinion About the Use of Military Force. Armed Forces and Society. 2018 Jan 1;44(1):44–71.
Golby, J., et al. “Elite Military Cues and Public Opinion About the Use of Military Force.” Armed Forces and Society, vol. 44, no. 1, Jan. 2018, pp. 44–71. Scopus, doi:10.1177/0095327X16687067.
Golby J, Feaver P, Dropp K. Elite Military Cues and Public Opinion About the Use of Military Force. Armed Forces and Society. 2018 Jan 1;44(1):44–71.
Journal cover image

Published In

Armed Forces and Society

DOI

EISSN

1556-0848

ISSN

0095-327X

Publication Date

January 1, 2018

Volume

44

Issue

1

Start / End Page

44 / 71

Related Subject Headings

  • Strategic, Defence & Security Studies
  • 4408 Political science
  • 1608 Sociology
  • 1606 Political Science