U.S. Gov. Chapter 1-3
What era in American politics is notable for a high level of bipartisanship?
1945-1960 (post-WWII)
In what year was discrimination against Chinese, Japanese, and other Asian immigrants finally removed from U.S. immigration law?
1965
Approximately what share of Americans refuses to believe that Russia interfered in the 2016 elections?
25%
The text suggests that Americans tend especially toward selective memory and recasting history because ______.
Americans beliefs are so idealistic
What is an accurate description of the prevalence of college education in the U.S.?
Among the adults 25 years of age and older, nearly one in three is a college graduate
Who was the chief architect of the U.S. Constitution and also one of America's top political scientists?
James Madison
What describes socialism as practiced today in Sweden?
The government does not attempt to manage the overall economy but owns a number of major industries and provides for people's basic economic needs
The U.S. has certain rules in place to keep politics within peaceful bounds. These rules include all of the following EXCEPT a. autocracy b. democracy c. constitutionalism
a
What best explains why European governments gave the American colonies a degree of self-determination? a. the geographical distance that separated them was too great to do otherwise b. there was no political will in Europe to rein in the colonies c. the Catholic and English churches both supported self-determination d. none of the answers are correct
a
Which of the following statements about cultural or political beliefs in America is FALSE? a. America's origins as a wilderness society led to the belief that government is responsible for providing material assistance to its citizens b. Americans believe that individual should be free to act and think as they choose c. Americans reject European notions of aristocratic privilege
a
Which of these is not considered to be a core value of American political ideals? a. collectivism b. equality c. liberty d. self-government
a
Which of the following statements are true about American ideals and government? a. americans believe that their government should have a high purpose b. throughout U.S. history, the ideals of liberty and equality have been upheld for all americans c. american ideals are pessimistic d. americans generally believe that government power should be widely shared
a and d
The Bill of Rights added to the Constitution, among other things
a guarantee of freedom of speech
Which of the following accurately describe higher education in the United States? a. The U.S. has the most elaborate system of higher education in the world. b. The U.S. ranks second only to Canada in the number of people over 25 with a college degree. c. U.S. states with the lowest proportion of college grads have more residents with a bachelor's degree than the typical European country. d. Every American youth has a realistic chance of attending college or university
a, b, and c
Elements of constitutionalism include ______. a. the protection of individual rights b. lawful restrictions of governmental power c. immunity from prosecution for elected officials d. officials being required to follow the laws
a, b, and d
Which of the following statements are true about the motivations for creating American democracy? a. colonists, following enlightenment ideas, wanted to overturn the European way of governing b. the idea of individual potential could be achieved more easily in the New World than in the Old World c. the American Revolution sought to create a similar form of society as that of England d. the American Revolution sought to create a radically different form of society
a, b, and d
Which of the following were periods with high levels of bipartisanship in American history? a. WWI b. George Washington's first years as president c. the Civil War d. WWII
a, b, and d
Politics are necessary for which of the following reasons? a. society's resources are limited b. the people in a country all share the same thoughts c. people do not all think alike d. conflict in a society is inevitable
a, c, and d
Under an authoritarian government, ______. a. the regime is usually backed by military or police b. the media is encouraged to freely report what they wish c. opposition leaders are sometimes brutalized or imprisoned d. political opposition is openly repressed
a, c, and d
Political culture in the United States is based upon Americans' ______.
allegiance to common goals
As a discipline, political science relies upon ______, which requires critical thinking.
analysis
What type of government suppresses individuality, forcing people to think and act in prescribed ways or risk punishment?
authoritarian
The text cites President Trump's decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change—even though two-thirds of Americans polled disagreed with the decision—as an example of ______.
authority
______ is the recognized right of officials to exercise power.
authority
A single individual controls governance in which of these forms of government?
autocracy
Which of the following statements are true of economic power in the United States? a. business firms are prohibited from making political contributions that might influence government officials b. roughly two-thirds of all lobbyists in the nation's capital represent business firms c. firms have greater control of wages and working conditions than in other Western democracies d. corporate power operates in part through the influence that firms have with government officials.
b, c, and d
Which of the following were placed in the U.S. Constitution in order to prevent the tyranny of the majority? a. supremacy clause b. checks and balances c. separation of powers d. a bill of rights
b, c, and d
The "two Americas" referenced in the text are ______.
black and white
Roughly two-thirds of all lobbyists in the nation's capital represent
business firms
Which of the following is true about a democracy? a. it allows citizens to engage in wishful thinking, not critical thinking b. it requires people to think in a certain way or risk punishment c. it lets people decide for themselves what to think, and how much effort to put into it d. it does not allow citizens to engage in wild thinking as they cannot be blamed if things go wrong
c
Which of the following statements about political institutions and interests in the United States is true? a. the executive branch of the government wields almost all power in the U.S. b. corporate leaders have little power in the U.S. compared to other countries c. few nations have as many competing interests and institutions as the U.S. d. most nations have more competing interests and institutions than the U.S.
c
Critical thinking should involve which of the following? a. putting aside one's own values and interests b. stating an opinion without fear of disapproval c. recognizing how choices will affect one's interests and values d. evaluating information carefully
c and d
What has most recently proven to serve as a significant obstacle to critical thinking?
changes in the media landscape
What do behavioral scientists Gordon Pennycook and David Rand call the habit of judging the accuracy of a claim on the basis of who's saying it or whatever we've heard it before?
cognitive laziness
What is the difference between communism and socialism?
communisim: the government assumes total management of the economy socialism: the government does not try to manage the overall economy
Which of the following is a system based on rule of law, including legal protections for individuals, empowering individuals by enabling them to claim their rights in court? a. democratic b. constitutional c. free market d. authoritarian
constitutional
In an oligarchy,
control rests with a small group, such as military officers or a few wealthy families
According to sociologist C. Wright Mills, who or what has greater control over economic policy than even elected officials have?
corporate elites
What term refers to the influence of business firms on public policy?
corporate power
What best describes the ways in which our media system has presented obstacles to critical thinking in recent history? a. media consumers fail to question media sources b. some sources purposely hide contradictory information c. some sources invent information that suits their purpose d. all the answers are correct
d
Which of the following is NOT among the frameworks used in political science? a. rational choice theory b. liberalism c. institutional analysis d. historical reasoning e. behavioral science
d
Individualism in the United States is best described as ______.
deeply ingrained
A form of government in which the power to govern is in the hands of the citizens, either directly or through representatives, is called a(n) ______.
democracy
Which of the following is a system of majority rule through elections, empowering majorities, groups, and officials?
democratic
Despite the existence of institutions that encourage widespread participation, wealth gives rise to ______, which is the power possessed by well-positioned and highly influential individuals.
elitism
What does the text describe as "America's most elusive ideal"?
equality
What is critical thinking?
forming an opinion after weighing the relevant facts
The U.S. economy operates primarily as a
free-market system
What describes Americans' "unalienable rights," as described in the Declaration of Independence?
freedoms belonging to every citizen that cannot be legally taken away by the government
What new policy was established by the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Gideon v. Wainwright ruling?
government provision of free legal counsel to the accused if they are too poor to hire a lawyer
West Virginia, the state with the lowest percentage of college graduates in the U.S.
has a higher proportion of college graduates than most European countries
In recent years our politics
have become more divisive and heated, leaders have lied more readily, and we have come to tolerate it more.
The obstacles to critical thinking have ______ in recent decades.
increased
______ is a commitment to personal initiative and self-sufficiency.
individualism
A government's authority
is evidence when government officials use their right to exercise power
Pluralism contends that, on most issues
it is the preference of special interest that largely determine what government does
The use of the courts as a means of asserting rights and interests is known as ______.
legal action
________ is the principle that individuals should be free to act and think as they choose, provided they do not infringe on the freedoms of others.
liberty
When political leaders respond to the policy desires of more than half of the people, that system is referred to as ______.
majoritarianism
What has democracy come to mean in practice?
majority rule through the free and open election of representatives
What is the likely result of spending hours listening to partisan talk shows?
misinformation
What best characterizes American's knowledge of public affairs today?
misinformation is now at its highest level in the history of polling
Compared to other countries, the United States holds ______.
more elections
Individualism is the idea that
people should take initiative and be self-sufficient.
The fact that farmers have more influence over agricultural price-supports than do other groups is an example of
pluralism
Which concept refers to the widely shared and deep-seated beliefs of people about their politics?
political culture
Basic to politics is ______, which is needed to influence political developments.
political power
The process by which a society settles its conflicts and allocates the resulting benefits and costs is called
politics
________ is the ability of persons, groups, or institutions to influence political developments
power
Who or what owns the means of production in a free-market economic system?
private firms
The state of California barred individual of Japanese descent from doing what?
purchasing property
The tools of political science attempt to ______.
sharpen students' understanding of American politics
As practiced today, Blank______ is a system in which the government stresses economic equality and owns a number of major industries.
socialism
Pluralism asserts that, on most issues, the actors who exercise the most influence over government policy are ______.
special interest groups
Which important aspect of European thought had the greatest impact on the formation of the political culture of America?
the Enlightenment
To what aspect of America were William Watts and Lloyd Free referring when they labeled it "the country of individualism par excellence"?
the ability of the individual to join in labor unions and interest groups to pursue his or her political and financial slef-interests
Who should be blamed for a bad outcome when citizens of a democracy engage in wishful thinking?
the citizens themselves
What is an example of politicians' deliberate slanting of facts?
the claim that free trade is the cause for the loss of millions of manufacturing jobs
According to the Declaration of Independence, governments get their "just powers" from
the consent of the governed
What document proclaimed that "Governments deriv[e] their just powers from the consent of the governed"?
the declaration of independence
In what way is the U.S. free-market system distinct from European economies?
the extent to which private transactions determine the allocation of economic costs and benefits
In the U.S., who or what is the ultimate source of governing authority?
the people
Who is the "self" in the political ideal of self-government?
the people
The Greek words demos and kratis together mean
the people rule
Critical thinking is best described as
the process of forming an opinion after weighing the relevant facts
In a pluralist system, who or what would have the most influence on policies regarding regulation of Internet service providers?
the providers themselves
What is a major limit on majoritarianism, as suggested by the text?
the public as a whole takes an interest in only a few of the hundreds of policy decisions that U.S. officials make each year
The term party polarization refers to ______.
the situation resulting from the intense conflicts between Republicans and Democrats in recent years
A defining characteristic of American politics is:
the widespread sharing of power
In a constitutional system,
there are lawful restriction on a government's power
How are the media treated under an authoritarian government?
they are tightly controlled
In America, majoritarianism occurs mainly ______.
through competition between the republican and democratic parties
A country's political culture derives from its ______.
traditions
True or false: Americans turn to the courts to make rights claims more often than people elsewhere in the world.
true
True or false: When large numbers of Americans are misinformed and base their behavior on that misinformation, democracy is at risk.
true
U.S. firms have greater power than firms in other Western democracies over which of the following?
wages and working conditions
French philosopher Michel Foucault referred to politics as "________."
war by other means
Europeans have a greater acceptance than Americans of
welfare policies that could relieve people of the responsibility to care for themselves
What is an example of an authoritarian regime?
China
Upon what assumption was Chinese immigration to the United States suspended in 1882?
Chinese were inferior
