Political Beliefs and Behaviors

Political Culture  Distinctive and patterned way of thinking about how political and economic life ought to be carried out.

 Americans believe in liberty, democracy, equality and civic duty.  Mistrust of Government – mostly of leaders rather than the system.  Political efficacy – a citizen’s capacity to understand and influence political events.

Sources of American Political Culture  Participation in politics in permitted by the Constitution.  Absence of an established national religion.  Absence of class consciousness.

Political Ideology  A coherent and consistent set of beliefs about who ought to rule, what principles rulers ought to obey and what policies rulers ought to pursue.  Most citizens display little “ideology”, i.e. liberal, conservative, radical; except for activists.  Political elites display more ideological consistency.

Political Tolerance  Concrete v. abstract  Unpopular groups are able to survive because people rarely act on beliefs and the court system is “sufficiently insulated” from public opinion.

Public Opinion  The public’s attitudes toward a given government policy vary over time.  Public opinion places boundaries on allowable types of public policy.  Citizens are willing to register opinions on matters outside their expertise.  Governments tend to react to public opinion.

Polling Public Opinion  Exit Polls  Sampling  Random Samples  Distribution  Sampling Errors  Accuracy and Questioning  Consensus v. Polarization

The Origins of Political Attitudes  Role of the family  Schooling & information  Ideology  Job (Income)  Race & ethnicity  Religious tradition  Gender  Region

Political Participation  Conventional Participation 1. Supportive Behaviors 2. Influencing Behaviors  low-initiative  high-initiative  Unconventional Participation – behavior that threatens or defies  Group Politics v. Movement Politics  Techniques of movements include marches, rallies, sit-ins, petitions, use of spokespersons, non-violent disruptions

Voting The Rise of the American Electorate  1789 – white, male property owners  1850 – nearly all white adult males  1870 – 15 th amendment, all men over 21  1920 – 19 th amendment, all men and women over 21  1971 – all men and women over 18

Group Factors inn Voting  Party  Class, Occupation, Income (Standard Socioeconomic Model)  Education  Religion  Gender  Race/Ethnicity  Age

Impact of Progressivism  Direct Primary  Recall  Referendum  Initiative

Voter Turnout, a final thought…  Americans vote less, but participate more than people in other countries in other forms of political behavior.  Younger voters are the least likely to vote.  Restrictive laws and the burden of individual registration contribute to low voter turnout.  Americans may be happy with the “system” and less likely to feel the need to vote.