Government 2305 Exam 2 Review
Volunteer activity in the United States is LOWEST in the
South
To have great influence, an outside lobbying group must generally have one of two things: a lot of money or
a committed membership
Which of the following is an interest group more likely to champion than a political party?
a controversial issue
"Agency capture" occurs when
regulatory agencies side with the industries they are supposed to regulate rather than with the public
Democrats and Republicans have endured as the two major U.S. parties primarily due to
their ability to adapt to changing circumstances
Political scientist Theodore Lowi has questioned pluralist theory by suggesting that
there is no concept of the public interest in a system that gives special interests the ability to determine the policies affecting them
Ticket splitting was most recently prominent during which decade
1970s
Eighteen-, nineteen-, and twenty-year-old Americans were granted the right to vote by the passage of the ________ Amendment.
26th
A properly drawn sample of one thousand individuals has a sampling error of roughly plus or minus
3 percent
What percentage of states hold their gubernatorial elections in nonpresidential years?
75 percent
Political parties in the United States originated partly as a political feud between
Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson
15th Amendment (1870)
All men can vote
Which of the following is a reason that Americans are more likely to work for a political campaign than are citizens in Europe?
America's federal system provides more campaign opportunities
Which of the following organizations is NOT an example of a single-issue group?
American Conservative Union
Friedrich Engels believed that communism would not take root in the United States because
American workers lack sufficient class consciousness
What did Mayer and Cornfield have to say about the modern media?
Pros are independence, interactivity, and depth Cons are access, filterlessness, overload, and cocooning
One consequence of today's high-choice media system is
an increase in the number of people who use partisan outlets as their primary news source
Local party organizations
are still important, but their role in congressional, statewide, or presidential campaigns is secondary to that of candidates
Voter registration in the United States
began as a way of preventing voters from casting more than one ballot on election day.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has regulatory oversight over which of the following?
broadcast radio
The largest number of PACs are those associated with
business
The most numerous economic groups are
business groups
During the early 20th century, which newspaper developed a reputation as the country's best newspaper?
New York Times
Where in the Constitution are political parties discussed?
No where
Students are most likely to hear stories about America's heroes and greatness when they are in
elementary school
The news provides a refracted version of reality because it
emphasizes dramatic and compelling news stories
What did de Tocqueville believe was a requisite for equal opportunity to exist?
equal rights
Of the following, the news media are most likely to focus on
events that are timely
In 20th-century American history, the most important minor parties were
factional parties
Which of the following groups in the U.S. shows a higher level of support for collective bargaining?
factory workers
James Madison argued
for regulation of interests through a governing system of checks and balances.
In terms of party identification, slightly more than half of adults call themselves
fully republican or democrat
Which of the following is a consequence of the high-choice media system?
general control by people over what they see and hear
The accuracy of polling is diminished when respondents
give what they regard as the socially correct response to certain questions even though they think differently
An informal grouping of officials, lobbyists, and policy specialists who come together temporarily around a policy problem is a(n)
issue network
Reputational Cascades
people do not subject themselves to social influences because they think that others are more knowledgeable
What does Sunstein claim is the result of polarization
people tend to have stronger feelings after talking with people that have the same ideas
Informational Cascades
people with little personal information about a particular matter base their own beliefs on the apparent beliefs of others
A sustained action taken by citizens disenchanted with government in order to express their opposition and work to bring about social or political change is a
political movement
The process of which individuals acquire their political opinions is called
political socialization
What are the two distinguishing characteristics of political socialization
political socialization is cumulative and is most heavily developed during childhood
Public Opinion Polling
polls can be erroneous at times sampling error decreases as the size of sample increases opinion polls are the most relied upon method of measuring public opinion polling accuracy diminishes when respondents are unfamiliar with the issues in question
A person who favors government intervention in both social and economic affairs is a(n)
populist
Grassroots lobbying is based on the assumption that officials will respond to
pressure from constituents
George W. Bush attempted to ____________________________________, only to ______________________________________________
privatize aspects of Social Security: back down in the face of determined resistance
The term framing is used to describe the
process of selecting certain aspects of reality and making them the most salient part of the communication, thereby conveying a particular interpretation of a situation
The FCC's requirement for radio stations relating to equal airtime
prohibited broadcasters from selling or giving time to political candidates without offering the same to their opponents
Effective inside lobbying is based upon
providing useful and persuasive information to key officials.
The most powerful religious force in contemporary American society is the
religious right
What was Madison's solution to the mischief of factions
removing its causes and controlling its effects
Americans who attend religious services at least once a week are most likely to vote for which political party?
republican
The accuracy of a poll is usually expressed in terms of
sampling error
Agenda-setting is an action that falls under which of the major roles played by the press?
signaling
Regarding state party organizations, the day-to-day operation is usually the responsibility of the
state chairperson
According to a recent Pew Research Center poll, young adults are substantially more likely than senior citizens to support
stronger environmental regulations
In recent decades, lobbyists in Washington, D.C., have increasingly
targeted the executive branch in their efforts to influence policy decisions
The reason the news product is designed to fascinate as well as to inform is
that news organizations are fundamentally business and must obtain revenue to survive
What was the primary cause for an increase in the public's support for a military invasion of Iraq during the six-month period leading to the start of the war?
the Bush administration's efforts to press the case for war
Which of the following is true of age differences in news consumption?
the average cable news viewer is over the age of 50
Which of the following represents the greatest blow to the organizational strength of U.S. parties
the direct primary
Negative campaigning was first used in
the early years of the country
The yellow journalism of the late 19th century was characterized by
the emphasis on sensationalism as a way of selling news papers
A basic reason for the existence of so many interest groups in the United States is
the extent of diverse interests in American society America's federal system of government the American tradition of free association the separation of powers in American government
Why have issue networks become more prevalent?
the increasing complexity of policy problems
A flaw in pluralism theory is the fact that
the interest group system is unrepresentative because some interests are far better organized and more powerful than others
Some analysts predict that soon the most important medium of election politics will be
the internet
The most recent party realignment had a realigning election in
the most recent party realignment had no single realigning election
What does King claim are three effects of the vulnerability of American politicians?
the power it accords to lobbyists and special- interest groups, more likely than those in other countries to engage in symbolic politics, and it's even harder for them to take tough decisions
The news media's common-carrier role is based on the idea that
the press should provide a channel through which political leaders can communicate their views to the public
Occupy Wall Street's main target has been
the private wealth of the wealthiest Americans
To accurately poll the citizens of the United States as opposed to the citizens of a single state,
the sampling requirements will nearly be the same
A purposive incentive is defined as
the satisfaction of contributing to a worthy goal or purpose
The key factors in determining the accuracy of an opinion poll are
the size of the sample and whether the sample was selected from the population by a random method
Economic groups have an advantage over noneconomic groups in part because
they have greater access to financial resources
Which of the following statements about political participation and lower-income Americans is true?
they need the most government help but are least likely to engage in collective action to seek it
Unlike other democracies, the United States
uses primaries to select political candidates
The adoption of voter identification card requirements by states
will likely cause a decline in voter turnout
Proportional representation systems encourage the formation of smaller parties by enabling parties to
win legislative seats even though they do not receive a majority of votes in elections
Voter turnout is LOWEST in which age group?
young adults
What demographic is most likely to support the new party during a major realignment
younger voters
Scholars estimate that turnout would be roughly ________ percentage points higher in the United States if the U.S. had European-style registration.
10
African American men technically gained suffrage with passage of the ________ Amendment.
15th
The most embarrassing Gallup poll failure in predicting a presidential election was
1948 Truman-Dewey
Partisan talk radio got its start
after the abolition of the Fairness Doctrine
PACs tend to contribute the most money to
incumbents
The dominant labor interest group is
AFL-CIO
The limits of interest groups' use of extreme tactics might be gauged by the congressional Democratic backlash against the ________, which tried to block the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1993.
AFL-CIO
A general belief of about the role and purpose of government is called
an ideology
When democratic governments came into existence, tax and food riots and other forms of protest greatly diminished. Why?
Citizens had less disruptive ways to express themselves
The Democratic Party's long-time regional stronghold, "The Solid South" stemmed from a realignment during which historical time period
Civil War era
What did political scientist Larry Bartels demonstrate in his book Unequal Democracy?
Elected officials are substantially more responsive to the concerns of their more affluent constituents than to those of their poorer constituents
What are the two opposing ideals that run against each other throughout American history?
Equality v. Freedom
Influences on a person's political socialization
Family, Media, Peers, Education level, Where you got an education, Geography, Income, Ethnicity, Gender, Opinion leader, Religion - denomination, religion - commitment, and Lifestyle - generation effect
Who was the leader of the Federalists? Who was the leader of the early Republicans?
Feds- Alexander Hamilton Rep- Thomas Jefferson
Which of the following states is a competitive state, meaning that it could potentially vote either Democratic or Republican?
Florida
Which of the following groups is not typically a part of the Democratic coalition
Fundamentalist Christians
Who warned Americans of the baneful effects of factions in his 1797 farewell address
George Washington
Which of the following states had its voter ID law upheld by the Supreme Court despite the Court's admission that the law was created with partisan intentions?
Indiana
According to David Brooks, how do the left and right explain the divide in America? How does Brooks explain the divide?
Left/Liberals: social class ranks and haves/have nots Right/Conservative: conception of self and religion and morals Brooks: sensibility, not class and culture
26th Amendment
Lowered the voting age from 21 to 18
Which of the following statements has been shown by scholarly research to be true?
Network journalist tend to be negative
The issue of slavery gave birth to what party as a major political party
Republican Party
Voter identification cards find the most support among
Republicans
Which region of the country overall has the LOWEST connectivity to the Internet?
South
Harper v. Virginia State Board of Elections
Supreme Court held the use of poll taxes in state elections violates the 14th amendments equal protection clause
Smith v. Allwright (1944)
The denying of African Americans the right to vote in a primary election was found to be a violation of the 15th Amendment
What does it mean when the text suggests that parties are "linkage institutions"
They connect citizens and the government
Citizens in which of the following countries are most likely to talk to people about politics?
United States
In which of the following countries are rates of protest the LOWEST?
United States
The citizens of ________ are most likely to take an active part in campaigns during an election.
United States
Which of the following countries had the LOWEST estimated voter turnout in major national elections in recent decades?
United States
Who does not have a competitive multiparty system
United States
Which of the following states is Democratic; Georgia, Texas, Washington, Idaho, or Utah
Washington
19th Amendment (1920)
Women gain the right to vote
What state became the first to enfranchise women
Wyoming on January 27, 1920
As distinct from alienation, apathy is
a general lack of interest in politics
Party Identification refers to
a person's sense of loyalty to a political party
Historically, the American press has shifted from
a political to a journalistic orientation
A member of Congress who wants to act on what the majority of his or her constituency thinks on a particular issue would be advised to respond to which of the following indicators
a poll based on a random selection sample of constituents
The term iron triangle refers to
a small and informal but relatively stable set of bureaucrats, legislators, and lobbyists who are concerned with promoting a particular interest.
Regular voters tend to be characterized by a
a strong sense of civic duty.
Some groups pursue collective goods. A collective good is one that
cannot be selectively granted or denied by individuals; it belongs to all
Prospective voting is characterized by
choices based on what candidates promise to do if elected
Which of the following would not be considered a secondary socializing agent? Peers, church, leaders, and the media
church
The air we breathe is an example of a
collective good
Which of the following statements about party identification is true?
currently more people identify as democrats than republicans
Americans' pride in their democracy has _________ rapidly in recent decades, largely as a result of _______________________.
decreased; increasing partisanship
Literacy tests were used to
disenfranchise African Americans in the South
What are the two interpretations of democracy mentioned by Anthony King
division of labor and the agency view
Women gained the right to vote
early 20th century
Journalist Walter Lippmann suggested that
effective government cannot be run by politicians that base their public opinions on poll results.
Which of the following is associated with people's exposure to partisan news outlets?
greater political interest and engagement
Presidential candidates in the 1960s, compared with today,
had longer sound bites, on average, in broadcasts television newscasts
One special contribution of Internet-based news is that it
has expanded freedom of press to a larger number of Americans
A conservative is opposed to government intervention
in an economic sphere, but not in a social sphere
The frequency of elections in the United States reduces voter turnout by
increasing the personal effort needed to participate in all elections
In the United States, the primary responsibility for registration of the individual voter rests with the
individual
The media perform the signaling role by
informing the public of breaking events and new developments.
public opinion
is strongest during a presidential election
Aeschylus shows that a democratic legal order can't just put a cage around retribution; it must also... What is " Transition Anger"?
it expresses a protest, but faces forward: it gets to work finding solutions rather than dwelling on the infliction of retrospective pain.
The chief obstacle to Americans' participation in community activities is the
lack of personal motivation to get involved
Historically, dramatic change in party identification is uncommon and is almost always a consequence of
major upheaval
Scholarly research has shown that, overall, the traditional media
might have a slight liberal bias, and it depends on the outlet
Education and income affect voter turnout
more in the United States than in Europe
Compared with U.S. citizens of higher incomes, those of lower incomes are
much less likely to vote in elections
What term do scholars use for a purported opinion offered by a respondent who is unfamiliar with the specific issue?
nonopinion
The process of political socialization in the United States is
normally cumulative, political beliefs attained earlier in life tend to be retained to a substantial degree
Which of the following is true of the relationship between public opinion and shifts in major government policies?
on highly salient and emotional issues in particular, public opinion tends to affect policy to a greater degree than policymakers' agendas affect public opinion
When the nation was founded, who was eligible to vote?
only males who owned property
letter writers and demonstrators
opinions tend to be more extreme than those of the population as a whole
The Tea Party's key initial issue was
opposition to high taxes.
As an agent of political socialization, the American family will likely have its greatest effect on an individual's
party identification
The main reason for the high cost of American political campaigns is the cost of
paying for television ads
Which of the following is not a primary socializing agent? peers, family, school, and church
peers