1. What is Your Point of View?

2. What is a Paradigm? Paradigm: your attitudes and beliefs based on your past experiences. E.g. You don’t like dogs because one bit you when you were 5. Therefore, your paradigm is dogs are bad.

3. Your Paradigm As we’ve discussed, your life experiences include such factors as your age, family, education, religion, ethnic background, media, friends, travel and personal interactions. Your experiences will generally shape your paradigm from an early age to adulthood.

4. For categorization purposes, we are either 1. Right Wing or Left Wing when it comes to the government’s involvement in the economy 2. Authoritarian or Libertarian when it comes to the government’s involvement in social regulations 3. Centrist …this leaves us falling into 1 of 5 simplified categories Social & Economic Attitudes We tend to look at our point of view or paradigm in reference to where we fall in our social and economic beliefs.

5. 1. Right Wing Authoritarian Believes the economy works best if the government leaves it alone BUT that significant measures of social control is required to have fair society

6. 2. Left Wing Authoritarian Believes the economy works best if the government intervenes Significant measures of social control is required to have fair society

7. 3. Left Wing Libertarian Feel the government has an important role to play in economy BUT government should allow people to make their own social decisions

8. 4. Right Wing Libertarian Wants to minimize the role of government in all aspects of life

9. 5. Centrist Believe social and economic controls should be applied if they are in the public good …or dismantled if they do not benefit society

10. Where Does Your Political Compass Point? TAKE A TEST!!! Chapter 1, pg.5 and 6 http://www.politicalcompass.org / http://www.politicalcompass.org /

11. Scoring for The Textbook Test A score of zero means you are neutral (you might not identify with any political party).

12. On the Economic Scale A score of +20 means you believe that the government should not interfere with the operation of the free market economy (an economy in which the price of a good or service is determined by the supply and demand without interference from the government. A score of -20 means you believe that the government should play an active role in managing the country’s economy. How do governments influence our economy??

13. On the Social Scale A score of +20 means you feel that significant restrictions on personal freedoms can be justified if society benefits A score of -20 means you feel the government should not interfere unduly with personal freedoms.