Approval ratings are a particularly versatile class of survey questions that measure public evaluations of a politician, institution, policy, or public figure as well as judgments on public issues. This type of question was first developed by the Gallup Organization in the late 1930s to measure public support for the U.S. president. Today, the presidential job approval question is believed to be the single most frequently asked question in political surveys. Many members of the political community, journalists, and academics consider the job approval question to be among the most reliable and useful barometer of a president's public standing.

Basic Question Format

While versions of the job approval question were asked by George Gallup in the late 1930s, the modern form of the presidential approval question was ...

  • Loading...
locked icon

Sign in to access this content

Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL

  • Watch videos from a variety of sources bringing classroom topics to life
  • Read modern, diverse business cases
  • Explore hundreds of books and reference titles