Transcript AP Government & Politics Chapter 5 Notes

Political Beliefs and Behaviors
American political ideology
Chapters 4 and 5
American Political
Culture
• The United States Constitution has rarely
survived an ocean crossing
• So, why did it work here?
• No feudal aristocracy to monopolize the
land
• Minimal taxes imposed by the govt.
• Political culture
American Political
System
• 5 Important elements
– Liberty
– Equality
– Democracy
– Civic Duty
– Individualism
Goals of the Framers
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Form a more perfect UNION
Establish JUSTICE
Ensure DOMESTIC TRAQUILITY
Provide for the common DEFENSE
Promote the general WELFARE
Secure LIBERTY
What’s your political
belief?
• Survey given to 10-14 year olds
• One day the President was driving his car
to a meeting. Because he was late, he was
driving very fast. The police stopped the
car. (Finish the story)
• Different countries answer differently
– England – Queen would be released
– France – President would be excused
– US – President would get a ticket like everyone
else
Public Opinion
• The distribution of individual attitudes
about a particular issue, candidate,
political institution, etc.
George Gallup
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Developed “Gallup Polls”
Started in 1932
1st “pollster”
Since 1936, agency has picked one
general election result incorrect
Political Socialization
• Factors that influence a person’s opinion
• People in different social “groups” tend to
share certain opinions: group identification
Family
• #1 influence of political attitude
• Very strong correlation for Political Party
support
• Evidence suggests that children are more
independent of their parents in policy
preference than in party identification
Gender
Examples
• More men support military
• More women consider sexual harassment
a serious problem
• Since ’60s, women vote Dem more than
men, and vice versa
• Not as significant of an indicator as
marriage (married vs. unmarried)
Religion
Example
• Protestants are more conservative on
economic matters than Catholics or Jews
• Jews tend to be liberal on economic and
social issues than Catholics or Protestants
• Catholics tend to be more liberal on
economic issues than they are on social
issues (Catholics becoming more
conservative)
• Christian Coalition- Conservative Evangelical
Christians
Education
Example
• College- usually makes an individual more
liberal
• The longer a student stays in college the
more liberal they become
Divides in Public
Opinion
• In American society, there are many
divides in public opinion, including:
– Race and ethnicity
– Religion
– Region
– Education
– Income
– Occupation
– Class
Social Class
• “Blue collar” (Laborer) typically Democrat
• “White collar” (Businessmen) typically
Republican
Relationship is becoming less clear, and in
recent years our political posture has been
shaped by the position we take on certain
issues such as abortion and race relations
Race and Ethnicity
Examples
• African Americans – 90% Democrats
• Hispanic Americans – tend to affiliate with
Democrats, but less likely than African
Americans
• Asian Americans – less liberal than
Hispanic Americans or African Americans,
but still consistently vote Democrat
• White, more divided, fluctuates by election
Race and Ethnicity
• An issue that divides African Americans
and White Americans is affirmative action
• However, African Americans and White
Americans are similar:
– Want courts to be tougher on criminals
– Oppose making abortion legal in all cases
– Want Census Bureau to stop collecting data
on race and ethnicity
– Racial quotas
Geographic Region
Example
• East and West Coasts – more liberal
• Mid-West – more conservative
• Urban - liberal
• South – 1870-1950s - Democrat “Solid South”
but today they are primarily social
conservatives
• White Southerner always less liberal
Political Ideology
• Coherent and consistent set of values and
beliefs about who should rule, what
principles rulers should obey, and what
policies rulers should pursue
• Changes over time for all people
• Liberal and conservative mean different
things at different time periods
Liberal v.
Conservative
• Pure Liberal
– Supports government initiatives concerning
the economy and opposes government
initiatives to coerce individuals into traditional
ethical behavior
• Pure Conservative
– Opposes government initiatives concerning
the economy and supports government
initiatives to coerce individuals into traditional
ethical behavior
Consistent Attitudes
• Scholars have discovered that people
have “inconsistent” opinions
• They often express ideas that are at odds
with the ideological label they attach to
themselves
Political Elites
• People who have a disproportionate amount of
some valued resource such as schooling,
wealth, prestige, athletic ability, etc.
• This group is likely to display a consistently
liberal or conservative ideology
• Elites influence public opinion in 2 ways:
– Raise and frame political issues
– State the norm by which issues should be
settled
Is There a “NEW
CLASS”
• Power and status and increasingly based
on education and technical skills
• Some suggest that the middle class has
been split in 2:
– Traditional middle class
– Liberal middle class
• The strain within the middle class has
been felt by the Democrats