Episode Details

In democratic countries, foreign policy is often assumed to be shaped, at least in part, by public preferences. But that raises an important question: do policymakers have an accurate understanding of public opinion?

Research on domestic policy suggests that political elites can significantly misjudge what the public thinks, despite the abundance of polling and other sources of information available to them. But until recently, we have known much less about whether the same problem applies to foreign policy.

In this episode, we explore new research examining both American public opinion on foreign policy and policymakers’ perceptions of that opinion. The findings offer new insights into the relationship between citizens and political elites — and into how misunderstandings about public preferences might shape foreign policy decisions.

Joining us is Dr Jonathan Monten, Associate Professor in Political Science at the UCL Department of Political Science and co-author of the study.

Mentioned in this episode:

• Kertzer JD, Busby J, Monten J, Tama J, Kafura C. Elite Misperceptions in Foreign Policy. British Journal of Political Science.