In Time of War
Understanding American Public Opinion from World War II to Iraq
- Contents
- Review Quotes

List of Figures
List of Tables
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1. Introduction: America at War
Part I. Historical Perspective
Chapter 2. Public Opinion and War: A Historical Perspective
Chapter 3. The Myths and Meaning of Public Opinion and World War II
Part II. The Structure of Support for War
Chapter 4. The Calculation of Costs: An Innocent Public
Chapter 5. Partisan Structure of War Support: Events, Elites, and the Public
Chapter 6. Ethnic Groups: Attachments, Enmities, and Support for War
Part III. Public Opinion and War: Back to the Water’s Edge
Chapter 7. Civil Liberties and War
Chapter 8. Elections during Wartime
Chapter 9. Conclusions
Appendix A: Description of Data and Weighting
Appendix B: Iraq War Casualty Survey Analysis
Appendix C: Congressional Record Content Analysis
Appendix D: Statistical Significance of Ethnic Variables
Appendix E: Relationship between Support for War and Support for Restricting Civil Liberties
Appendix F: NES Analysis of Retrospective War Support
Notes
References
Index“In Time of War is a must read for students of public opinion and American political history and foreign policy. Berinsky’s careful research shows decisively the value of public opinion data—both new and old—and how such data can correct misperceptions about recent history as well as challenge misperceptions, if not myths, about the past and its often idealized politics.”
“Adam Berinsky’s core insight, that citizens respond far more to elite discourse about events than to the events themselves, persuasively refutes the dominant perspective in the literature on public opinion and American foreign policy. Rather than relying solely on a reanalysis of data from recent conflicts, Berinsky also undertakes a unique historical expedition into public opinion during World War II. This allows him to present a comprehensive picture across seven decades, resulting in a tour de force of methodologically rigorous and theoretically rich public opinion research.”
“Adam Berninsky’s In Time of War represents a major step forward in our understanding of American public opinion and foreign policy. His penetrating analysis of survey data on public reactions to wars ranging from World War II through Afghanistan and Iraq casts new and provocative light on a variety of controversies in the literature. It is essential reading for anyone with an interest, scholarly or otherwise, in the subject.”
History: American History
Political Science: American Government and Politics | Diplomacy, Foreign Policy, and International Relations | Political Behavior and Public Opinion
Sociology: Social Change, Social Movements, Political Sociology
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