Mistrust, Efficacy, and Tolerance Political Beliefs and Behaviors #2 (Shortened due to Time Constraints)

How do you think this has changed over time? Trust in Government The question usually asked in polls is the following... “Do you trust that the government in Washington will do what is right for the citizens of the United States?” How do you think this has changed over time?

Trust in Government

Explaining the Trend Line Explaining the Trend Line Trust in Government Explaining the Trend Line Explaining the Trend Line The Rise in the 90s goes along with economic boom. The high peak is in the few years after 9/11. The drop is as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq drag on Drop in 1960s and 1970s due to experiences with Vietnam and Watergate.

Trust In Government Context Mistrust is tied to specific leaders and policy and not in the system Mistrust of government has trended along with mistrust of other institutions (big business) Role of Media?

A citizen’s ability to understand and influence political events. Political Efficacy A citizen’s ability to understand and influence political events.

Types of Efficacy Internal Efficacy External Efficacy One’s own confidence in their ability to understand and influence events in the political realm. Remains about the same as it was in the 1950s. Consequences? One’s belief that the government will respond to its citizens. Declined since 1970s. Wilson speculates this is a reflection of the growth in the size of government. Consequences?

Political Tolerance It’s existence is crucial to democratic government Allows for free exchange of ideas Allows to select leaders without oppression In abstract we are very tolerant But in concrete situations we often would deny rights

Political Tolerance How do unpopular groups survive? Most people do not act on their beliefs Officeholders tend to be more tolerant than others No consensus on whose rights to deny Courts are insulated from public opinion.

Chapter Quiz All of the following are basic elements of the U.S. political culture EXCEPT Liberty Democracy Individual Responsibility Civic Duty Equality of Results

Chapter Quiz 2) Political conflict can occur over specific policies even among those who share common beliefs. One reason for this is While beliefs may commonly be held, interpretations of those beliefs may differ Political culture typically takes precedence over political ideology in U.S. society A unitarian political system allows little room for compromise Political values are closely tied to specific controversies Ideology is rarely a feature of political conflict

Chapter Quiz 3) One strong source of the sense of civic duty that grew up in the United States was its Commitment to social equality Sense of national independence Pride in political parties Unitary system Protestant (work) ethic

Chapter Quiz 4) Americans have a comparatively low degree of Material acquisitiveness Social conformity Class consciousness Geographic mobility Capitalist instinct

Chapter Quiz 5) Which of the following groups of issues are areas of conflict in the “culture war”? Abortion, school prayer, foreign policy Gay rights, taxes, business regulation School prayer, foreign policy, pornography Drug use, school prayer, abortion Business regulation, foreign policy, space policy

Chapter Quiz 6) Which of the following MOST ACCURATELY describes the progressive view in the culture war? Morality is more important than self-expression and is based on unchanging rules from God. Personal freedom is more important than tradition, and the rules for morality vary with circumstances Morality is more important than self-expression, and the rules vary with circumstances Personal freedom is more important than tradition, and morality is based on unchanging rules from God. Morality is irrelevant to personal freedom, even when there are objective standards by which to judge

Chapter Quiz 7) Which of the following statements about the level of confidence that Americans had in their social institutions throughout the late 1960s and 1970s is correct? Confidence in government declined, as did confidence in other social institutions Confidence in government declined, while confidence in other social institutions remained steady Confidence in government grew, as did confidence in other social institutions Confidence in government grew, which confidence in other social institutions declined None of the above.

Chapter Quiz 8) One’s own confidence in one’s ability to understand and take part in politics is referred to as External efficacy Internal efficacy Political ideology Political culture Political reciprocity

Chapter Quiz 9) In the past generation, Americans’ sense of political efficacy has Remained unchanged overall Declined for external efficacy, remained unchanged for internal efficacy Declined for internal efficacy, remained unchanged for external efficacy Increased substantially overall None of the above

Chapter Quiz 10) All of the following are reasons certain groups survive in the face of political intolerance EXCEPT Most of us do not act on our beliefs People usually cannot agree on which group to suppress Americans have become more tolerant Such groups receive protection from the courts Such groups are able to go underground