Unit 4 Questions

Describe + analyze some of the most central American political values and their sources in political socialization.

American political culture contains a number of core ideals and values. Not all Americans share the same views, of course, but the vast majority subscribes to these general ideals, including liberty, equality, democracy, individualism, unity, and diversity. Political debates tend to be over how best to achieve these ideals, not over whether these ideals are worth having in the first place.

Define internal and external feelings of political efficacy, and explain how the level of each of these has varied over the past generation.

Efficacy usually increases with age. There are two types of political efficacy: internal efficacy (the belief that one can understand politics and therefore participate in politics) and external efficacy (that the government will respond to one's demands)

Is ethnocentrism the same thing as racism?

Ethnocentrism describes an individual or group's tendency to see their own group or culture as superior in culture and practices. Racism is a belief that human beings can be divided into various races, and that certain races are inferior to others.

What role do educational opportunity, economic wealth, and religious freedom play in achieving the American Dream?

Everyone has an equal opportunity in America

Discuss the causes of the decline of social capital in the late 20th century.

Evidence for the decline of social capital and civic engagement comes from a number ... But if we examine our lives, not our aspirations, and if we compare ourselves not ... Reversing this trend depends, at least in part, on understanding the causes of .... And, second, the mysterious disengagement of the last quarter century ...

How does diversity affect social capital?

It can decrease social capital by separating people so their is not a common goal or any cooperation. Or it can bring people together as a whole and see each other as equals.

What effect will technology have on political socialization and political culture?

It lets us expand our knowledge, and not be limited in our knowledge.

Compare and contrast the major beliefs of liberalism and conservatism. Consider each ideology's approach to moral, economic, and national defense issues. How are they alike? How are they different? Which is more effective in today's world?

Liberalism's major beliefs are in change, social equality, and more government regulation with regards to the economy and social welfare. Conservatism's major beliefs are in supporting more of a traditional approach to society. They believe in smaller government (less gov't regulation) and are less prone to change.

Describe political diversity in the US and analyze its impact on the political process today.

Political diversity is separated by liberals and democrats.

Rank and describe the three main reasons social capital is declining.

Technology- people spend more time on technology and less on work and interacting w people. Mobility-takes longer to commute, negative 10% of social capital. Family sizes - family sizes are decreasing on average so families will be less likely to meet each other.

Describe the average American today.

The average American is about $131,000 in debt. The average American spends $69 a day. The average American has $34 in their pocket. The average American watches 33 hours of TV a wee

List the contributions to U.S. political culture made by the nation's religious heritage.

The church brought people together and made people more connected. Absence of an established religion leads to absence of political orthodox and more liberty.

Define what scholars mean by political culture, and list some of the dominant aspects of political culture in the United States.

are Liberty, equality, democracy, civic duty, and individual responsibility. Americans view liberty as freedom from government restraints and protection of rights. They view equality as an equal vote and an equal chance to participate and succeed

Explain how demographics (race, class, religion, age) are connected to voting patterns.

minority groups tend to vote more liberal in politics while White Americans tend to vote more conservative The lower class citizens tend to vote more liberal while upper class citizens tend to vote more conservative Non-religious individuals tend to vote more liberal while more Christian individuals tend to vote more conservative Young people tend to vote more liberal while older groups tend to vote more conservative.

What is the difference between cross-cutting cleavages and reinforcing cleavages?

Cross-cutting cleavage. In social sciences, a cross-cutting cleavage exists when groups on one cleavage overlap among groups on another cleavage. ... The term's antonym is reinforcing cleavages", which would be the case of one of the ethnic groups being all rich and the other all poor.

Explain the effects of low social capital on our political system.

People are connecting less with the people around them and in turn are sticking to their own beliefs causing a further divide in political parties.

Describe how conservatives and liberals differ on ideas about education, the military and welfare, and analyze the roots of their political sentiments.

Liberals: -Education: higher spending on education and equality of education -Military: less spending, no need for so much money being spent on the military. -Welfare: Wants the government to help people who need it through these welfare programs. Conservatives: -Education: does not want as much spending on education and school. -Military: likes big military and is safe to have strong military Welfare: Does not want the government to intervene or help people too much as it will create a lack of motivation to work hard.

List some ways the US could increase social capital.

More deliberation where people or elected official get together and discuss public matters.

Describe the average American in 2050.

Multiracial, non religious

List four dimensions of diversity in the American population.

Religion, Race/Ethnicity, Wealth, and Gender

Studies show that, after we control for socioeconomic status, many apparent racial divisions disappear. Explain how race and SES are related.

Socioeconomic characteristics of a population expressed statistically, such as age, sex, education level, income level, marital status, occupation, religion, birth rate, death rate, average size of a family, average age at marriage.

Explain why some observers are quite concerned about the growth of mistrust in government and why others regard this mistrust as normal and healthy.

Some people are fearful of the decline of trusts because it isn't good if the politician doesn't listen to the people. Other people say that the distrust is normal because in the past it was higher and now its averaged out.

How does the idea of The American Dream influence American politics today?

The notion of the American Dream influences the U.S. economy because it creates the driving force behind the free enterprise system. The engine of the U.S. economy is entrepreneurship and the concept of an open society in which people can prove themselves based on their own merits. The American Dream is basically the idea that anyone can come to America and create an extraordinary life with hard work and skill.

What effect does immigration (legal or illegal) have on the American political system?

The political debacle of the current immigration debate has left the United States of America divided along racial, ethnic and political lines, never seen before in our great country

Describe 3 current demographic trends in the US.

White Americans tend to be more conservative, other minority groups tend to be more liberal. Gender gap - women tend to be more liberal than men Those with a less than a high school diploma -tend to be conservatives

Describe the way population growth is changing American electoral politics.

With more and more immigrants migrating to this country, they will in turn become voters and many of them are economically or socially disadvantaged, which is more leaning to the liberal side of politics.

Explain the connection between trust and democracy.

You must be able to trust the government if there is going to be a good democracy.

Explain why a certain level of political tolerance is necessary in the conduct of democratic politics, and review the evidence that indicates just how much political tolerance exists in this country. Is any group truly free of political intolerance?

You need some level of political tolerance otherwise you wouldn't be able to have a change in democracy because only 1 person belief would be able to stay

Explain the way you think the US is most divided.

political parties

Describe how technology affects social capital.

structure; it provides a theoretical framework tounderstand whether use of the Internet can generate social capital through creation oflarger online ties, which defines wellbeing in older adults.