Vol. 39, Number 9 — September 2007

Report: Supreme Court Knowledge Linked to Knowing Judiciary’s Role

Americans are more likely to know and appreciate the Judiciary’s role as their knowledge of the U.S. Supreme Court increases, two political science professors have concluded in a report issued earlier this year.

Commenting on data from various national surveys, James L. Gibson of Washington University in St. Louis and Gregory A. Caldeira of Ohio State University said, “Most significant, those with the highest level of knowledge are those who distinguish the most between the Judiciary and other political institutions.”

Their report adds: “To know more about the courts may not be to love them, but to know them is to think that they are different from other political institutions (and often therefore more worthy of trust, respect, and legitimacy). We contend that this process is one of social learning whereby citizens come to understand and appreciate the role of the Judiciary in the American political system.”

The report faults the “flawed measures and procedures” of surveys that have attempted to gauge the public’s knowledge of law and the courts. “The use of open-ended questions leads to a serious and substantial under-estimation of the extent to which ordinary people know about law and courts,” it says.

In two surveys of their own, conducted in 2001 and 2005, the professors asked Americans three questions about the Supreme Court: How justices are selected, the length of their terms, and which institution has the “last say” when it comes to interpreting the Constitution.

“Remarkably, large percentages of Americans correctly answer these questions about the Court,” the report says. In 2001, nearly three out of four Americans knew that the justices of the Court were appointed; and, despite having to choose from among the Court, the Congress, and the President, more than 60 percent asserted that the Supreme Court has the ultimate “say” on the Constitution. Only 13.6 percent of the respondents got none of these questions correct; 44 percent answered all three accurately.

“These data,” the report says, “suggest that Americans are far more knowledgeable about the Supreme Court than many scholars and commentators suggest or imply.”

The report draws a line from such knowledge to views about courts in general. “Those most knowledgeable are less likely to assert that judges’ values and political views are unimportant… Only 32.2 percent assert that the judges’ political views are irrelevant to decision making. But they are also much more likely to reject the idea that judges are nothing more than politicians in robes,” the report says.

To read an abstract of the report and learn how to access the report, go here.