American Political Culture Chapter Four American Political Culture

Objectives Define what scholars mean by political culture, and list some of the dominant aspects of political culture in the United States. Discuss how American citizens compare with those of other countries in their political attitudes. List the contributions to United States political culture made by the Revolution, by the nation’s religious heritages, and by the family. Explain the apparent absence of class consciousness in the U.S. Define internal and external political efficacy, and explain how the level of each of these has varied over the past generations. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

(THEME A: WHAT IS “AMERICAN POLITICAL CULTURE”?) Political Culture: A distinctive and patterned way of thinking about how political and economic life ought to be carried out For example, Americans generally believe more strongly in political than in economic equality Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

American Political Values Liberty – rights Equality – equal vote; equal chance to participate and succeed; equality of opportunity and justice Democracy – government is accountable to the people Civic duty – take community affairs seriously and become involved when possible Individual responsibility – individuals responsible for their own actions and well-being Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Questions About Political Culture How do we know people share these beliefs? How do we explain behavior inconsistent with these beliefs? Why is there so much political conflict in U.S. history? Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Beliefs About Economics Americans support free enterprise, but support some limits on marketplace freedom Americans believe in equality of opportunity but not equality of result Americans have a widely shared commitment to economic individualism Industrial Revolution: clash between free enterprise and equality (rise of monopolies) 1930s: rise of beliefs about government ensuring fair treatment and gov’t responsibility for the “general welfare” of the people Are we a classless society? Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

American Political Culture Americans tend to assert their rights Emphasize individualism, competition, equality, following rules, treating others fairly but impersonally Some other countries put more emphasis on harmony and equality Example: CEO pay in U.S. 364 times average worker. In Europe: about 50 X. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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Table 4.2: Patriotism in America, France, and Germany Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Table 4.3: Attitudes Toward Economic Equality in America and Europe Insert table 4.3 Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Table 4.3: Commitment to Income Equity in Sweden and the United States Conservative William F. Buckley discusses American values on the Charlie Rose Show Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Civic Duty and Competence Civic duty: a belief that one has an obligation to participate in civic and political affairs Civic competence: a belief that one can affect government policies Americans tend to think they can affect change in government more than people in other countries Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Religion and Politics Religious beliefs have played an important role in American politics Both liberals and conservatives use the pulpit to promote political change Candidates for national office in most other contemporary democracies rarely mention religion; drastically different in the U.S. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Table 4.7: Religion in Industrialized Nations, 1990-1993 Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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Table 4.8: American Beliefs about Faith-Based Programs http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4564351n Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Discussion Questions for Theme A Since de Tocqueville, the United States has experienced waves of immigration from cultures contrasting with the ethnic identities present at the country’s founding. How have these groups changed the political culture of the nation? What kinds of political, social, legal and economic problems are unique to (or more prominent in) the U.S. than they are in other places? What role does American political culture play in creating and/or exacerbating these problems? What potential solutions to these problems are also not viable because of the constraints of political culture? As communications systems and the economy become increasingly global, what changes might be predicted in the political culture of the United States? Or, as some predict, will the political culture of the United States impose itself on other nations? Consider the influence of American pop culture—movies and entertainment, fast food, and so forth—in answering this question. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Sources of Political Culture THEME B: DIVISIONS IN AMERICAN POLITICAL CULTURE Sources of Political Culture American Revolution was essentially over liberty—asserting rights Widespread (not universal) participation permitted by Constitution Absence of an established national religion made religious diversity inevitable Family instills how we think about world and politics Not a high degree of class consciousness Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

The Culture War The cultural clash in America is a battle over values The culture war differs from political disputes The culture conflict is animated by deep differences in people’s beliefs about morality I'm a Democrat I'm a Republican Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Two Cultural “Camps” Orthodox: morality is as, or more, important than self-expression; morality derives from fixed rules from God Progressive: personal freedom is as, or more, important than tradition; rules change based on circumstances of modern life and individual preferences Clips regarding the Culture War: Pat Buchanan's 1992 Election Speech Comments by Rabbi Michael Lerner Comments about the potential end to the Culture War James Dobson on Andersen Cooper/Culture Wars Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Mistrust of Government There is evidence that mistrust has increased since the late 1950s Causes: Watergate, the Vietnam War and Clinton impeachment Public confidence is likely to ebb and flow with circumstances No dramatic change in confidence in Americans Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Figure 4.1: Trust in the Federal Government, 1958-2002 Insert figure 4.1 University of Michigan, The National Election Studies. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Table 4.9: Public Confidence in Institutions, 1973-2001 Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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Political Efficacy Political efficacy: citizen’s capacity to understand and influence political events Internal efficacy: confidence in one’s ability to understand and influence events External efficacy: belief that system will respond to citizens Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Figure 4.3: Changes in the Sense of Political Efficacy, 1952-2000 Insert figure 4.3 University of Michigan, The National Election Studies. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Political Tolerance A minimal level of tolerance is crucial to democratic politics Most Americans support tolerance in the abstract Most Americans would deny these rights in specific cases Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Figure 4.4a: Views of Toleration & Morality Source: The American Enterprise (January/February 1999): 37, reporting data from Roper, Washington Post, Harvard, and Kaiser Family Foundation polls. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Figure 4.4b: Views of Toleration and Morality (cont’d) Source: The American Enterprise (January/February 1999): 37, reporting data from Roper, Washington Post, Harvard, and Kaiser Family Foundation polls. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Figure 4.5: Changes in Levels of Political Tolerance, 1930-1999 Source: Gallup poll data, various years, as compiled by Professor John Zaller, Department of Political Science, UCLA; The Gallup Organization, Poll Releases (March 29, 1999), 2-6. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

How Very Unpopular Groups Survive Most people do not act on their beliefs Officeholders and activists are more tolerant than the general public Usually there is no consensus on whom to persecute Courts are sufficiently insulated from public opinion to enforce constitutional protections Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Discussion Questions for Theme B States and regions typically have their own distinctive political cultures. What are some of the cultural contrasts you have experienced if you have moved or traveled from one state (or region) to another? How significant are these cultural differences? Shouldn’t both Vietnam and Watergate have increased the sense of political efficacy in the United States, since the system did respond? What about the Iran-contra and Whitewater investigations? What policies could public officials adopt to increase political efficacy among citizens? Cite some possible examples. What issues are most divisive in America at this time? How do citizens’ responses to these issues reflect regional differences in American political culture? What other cultural differences might these divisions reflect? Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.