Unit 2: Political Participation and
Measuring Public Opinion
Political Culture - Key Terms
Political Culture –
Widely or commonly held beliefs/attitudes within a
society.
●Political Socialization –
The process by which citizens acquire their political
beliefs. (what are the 4 agents?)
-family
-schools
-religious institutions
- media (be careful…selective perception)
●Political Ideology –
A set of principles that provides guidance on the
proper behavior of government.
●
What is unique about American political culture?
● Efficacy –
citizen’s belief in their ability to impact government.
●
●
●
Legitimacycitizen’s belief that the government has the right to rule.
Individualism/limited government/American dream –
the individual is responsible for finding prosperity.
Patriotism –
Rally around the flag.
Trends in US Political Culture
●
Patriotism and “rally around the flag”during WW I, WW 2 through 1950s, 1976
bicententual and most recent surge after
9-11
Polls
• Relied upon by news services
• Dev. In the early-mid 1900s
• Good polling includes asking objective questions
to to a small group,
• a sampling to find out what a larger group
thinks.
• Straw polls-non-scientific tallies to make
predictors of upcoming elections
• http://ballotpedia.org/Presidential_election,_201
6/Straw_polls
Gallup Poll and others
• George Gallup-father of modern public opinion
polling-Gallup Poll
Other respected polls
• Zogby Poll
• Rasmussen Poll
• Quinnipiac Polls
News organization polls-NBC, Washington Post,
CNN, Fox News-methodology can be questionable
Characteristics of a valid scientific pollgood methodology
1. Avoids open-ended questions-allow for more
conclusive results
2. Phrasing questions not to skew results---a
bad question: “Should the US give foreign aid
to other children to other nations to help
them resist temptation.”
3. Obtaining a random sample
4. Accounting for margin of error
Kinds of Polls
1. Tracking Polls-track path of
public opinion on certain
issues
2. Exit Polls- conducted outside
voting centers as people
leave-predict outcome of
election
3. Focus Groups-groups of
citizens who meet w/
candidate…Mitt Romney on
jeans (2012)
4. Approval Ratings-for
president or congress
Trust in Government
Which presidencies and historical events correlated with the increase and
decrease in trust for the US government?
Trust in Government
a story on NPR
Do Americans trust the government?
How has trust in government changed over
the years?
What factors impact trust in government?
What occurred in trust immediately after 9/11
& why?
Ideology – size of government
●
Conservatism
- small government on economic matters
- large government on moral matters
●
Liberalism
- small government on moral matters
- large government on economic matters
●
Libertarianism
●
●
Small government on moral matters
Small government on economic matters
The issues
Democrats
Republicans
●
Liberal
●Pro spending on social programs
●Pro choice
●Gay rights
●Secular
●Relax immigration rules
●Gun control
●Affirmative Action
●Campaign regulations
●Anti death penalty
●Federal government power
●Proactive on environment
●
Conservative
●Pro spending on military
●Pro life
●Pro traditional marriage
●Allow religion in public life
●Border control
●Second Amendment rights
●Individualism
●Economic freedom on campaigns
●Pro Death Penalty
●State government power
●Environmental regs hurt businesses
Embrace change
●
Embrace Tradition
Voting Coalitions/Blocs of the
Two Parties:
Democrats
Young (18-21)
●Women
●African American
●Jewish
●North Eastern &
Western Regions
●Urban
●Union
●
Republicans
Upper Income
●Protestant/church
going
●Military families
●South
●Midwest
●Rural
●
Poll/Survey: which candidate
would you most identify with?
http://www.isidewith.com/
Strengths of this Poll?
Weaknesses of this poll?
African American voters in the 2004
Election
Race in 2010
Mid Terms:
Religion in 2010 elections:
http://pewresearch.org/pubs/179
1/2010-midterm-elections-exitpoll-religion-vote
Religion in the US in Maps
Political Participation
Forms:
- voting
- protest
-grass roots
-boycotts
- joining an interest group or party
- working on a campaign
-donating money
●
Political Participation
Forms:
-Social Movements
What is a social movement?
What are examples of social movements?
-How have social movements changed over
time?
Gladwell article on social media’s influence
Political Participation
Contemporary
Social Movements
Occupy Wall Street
Gay marriage
Americans for Tax Reform
Voter Turnout
What is an average turnout in a Presidential
election?
● In a “mid term” election?
● Off year?
● Primary? Closed primary?
● What types of voters vote in low turnout elections?
62% of voting age population turned out to vote in 2012
(highest since 1960-JFK v Nixon)
Mid-term voter turnout down
●
Reasons for Low Voter
Turnout
1. Voter Registration
2. Absentee Ballots
3. Single Day, Tuesday Voting
4. Young (18-21)
5. Low income
6. Expansion of suffrage
7. Voter Apathy-satisfied or dissatisfied w/ govt
What is the impact of low turnout?
Expansion of Suffrage and the
Electorate
13th amendment
• 1865
• The abolishment of slavery
• Slavery is made illegal in the
United States
14th amendment (Rights of the
Citizens
• 1868
• Every citizen of the United States is a citizen
of the state in which he or she lives. No state
may pass a law limiting the rights of citizens
take away someone’s life to life, liberty and
property unfairly
• Every citizens must be treated equally under
the law
• Officially made former slaves citizens
15th Amendment (Voting Rights)
• No person may be denied the right to vote
b/c of race
• Officially gave African American men the
right to vote
1. Poll Taxes- a special tax blacks had
to pay to vote-many couldn’t afford
it
2. Literacy Tests- some in other
languages-if you couldn’t pass it,
you couldn’t vote
3. Grandfather clauses- if your
grandfather wasn’t eligible to vote,
you couldn’t vote
4. White primary
19th amendment
• 1920
• Gave all women the right to vote
23rd amendment
• (1961)
• Gave people of Washington DC the right to
vote for President and Vice President
26th amendment (Voting Age)
• 1971
• Gave 18 year olds the right to vote in all US
elections
Political Behavior (Unit II)