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In the early decades of the 20th century, perceptions on the role of public opinion in political systems underwent a profound change. Where liberal systems saw public opinion mostly as a source of criticism –as the voice of the people keeping an eye on their rulers-, mass politics turned it into an instrument of political pressure ready to be manipulated. This essay focuses on how concerns for the consequences of mass politics led to a reflection on the role of public opinion in democratic regimes, which in turn gave birth to a new field of expertise dedicated to measuring and orienting it at the benefit of the States’ higher interests.

This paper tries to analyze the process in which public opinion, a philosophical notion born as a political ideal during the Enlightenment, turns into an operative and pragmatic concept, systematically observed and functional for the empirical polling research in the first decades of the 20th century. The meanings that this concept acquires have indeed social consequences which imply the inclusion or exclusion of certain groups who use expressive ways of different political legitimacy. This process will let us understand the conceptual trajectory of public opinion just before the notion is ready to become a polling research object.

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Copyright of Cuadernos de Historia Contemporanea is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)