Chapter 8 > Leaders and the Public > Overview

U.S. Report - pdf version Leaders Questionnaire - pdf version Public Questionnaire - pdf version

Overview: Leaders and the Public

Previous chapters have dealt with the foreign policy opinions and perceptions of the general public. This chapter examines the attitudes of a set of influential foreign policy leaders and assesses how well those attitudes do or do not align with the views of the public.

The leaders surveyed agree with the public on a number of issues, including some that are controversial in policy-making circles. On many other issues, however, this consensus breaks down. Many of the divergences between the public and the leaders are large and have endured for decades. Some probably reflect informational differences, but others appear to reflect genuine discrepancies between the values and interests of foreign policy leaders and those of the American citizenry.

This analysis is based on a comparison of views expressed in the Chicago Council/GMF public survey with the views of a sample of “leaders” with foreign policy power, specialization, and expertise, who were asked many of the same questions as the public. Specifically, 397 U.S. opinion leaders and decision makers were interviewed by telephone between May 17 and July 15, 2002. They were drawn from eight distinct groups in society: administration officials in the State, Treasury, Commerce, and other departments and agencies dealing with foreign policy; members of the House and Senate or their senior staff with committee responsibilities in foreign affairs1; senior business executives from Fortune 1000 firms who deal with international matters; university administrators and academics who teach in the area of international relations; presidents of major organizations or large interest groups active in foreign affairs; presidents of the largest labor unions; religious leaders; and journalists and editorial staff who handle international news. For purposes of analysis, data for each of the individual groups were also reviewed separately for comparisons among them and with the leader sample as a whole as well as with the public.

The individuals interviewed (or their immediate superiors) hold key leadership positions. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the inner circle of foreign policy decision makers in the White House or the Department of Defense, few of whom were interviewed. However, many of the interviewees exercise direct authority over U.S. foreign policy, while others may affect policy indirectly, through lobbying, expert writing and testimony, and contributions to public debate.

In all seven previous Chicago Council studies, starting in 1974, simultaneous surveys of leaders and of the general public were conducted, using many identical questions. This chapter focuses on the 2002 data but draws upon surveys from previous years as well.

1 - Although several members of Congress completed the survey, most of our congressional respondents were senior staff, who we believe largely reflected the attitudes of the members for whom they work.