Public Opinion and Superpower Strategic Amns

Abstract

This article combines a theoretical context with longitudinal and cross-sectional data to examine public opinion in the United States and Western Europe spanning roughly 1978 to 1986 on issues related to superpower strategic arms. The findings include that in the early 1980s the public's high emotional fear-of global nuclear war, Soviet military superiority, and the threat of possible Soviet attack-converged with a preference for confrontation-for American military superiority, arms escalation, and nuclear retaliation against an attack-and that Britain, France, and the United States exhibited this high emotional fear and confrontational preference considerably more than did Italy.