AP Government Review Questions
Political Beliefs and Behaviors
Sample Multiple Choice Questions
1. In the United States, the term “political culture” refers to
A. the environmental influences that shape a person’s political party
affiliation
B. a person’s interest group and association memberships
C. societal consensus around the values of democracy, liberty, and equality
D. the full spectrum of political ideologies, from extreme left to extreme right
E. the trend towards negative campaigning and political mud-slinging
2. The definition of political culture is
A. beliefs and attitudes about government and the political process
B. a set of beliefs and attitudes about the proper purpose and scope of
government
C. the substantive content of public learned opinion
D. concerts, operas, and art displays designed to gain support for the regime
E. beliefs and values learned by youngsters before they attend school
3. The term “gender gap” generally refers to
A. the greater proportion of men to women in Congress than in the population
as a whole
B. the greater support of female candidates by women and of male candidates
by men
C. the difference in the percentages of men and women who participate in
politics
D. the difference between Democrats and Republicans in defining women’s
rights
E. the difference in the percentage of women versus the percentage of men
supporting a particular candidate or issue
4. The preamble to the Constitution asserts that “We the People of the United
States” possess the political authority upon which our constitutional system of
government is based. This asserts
A. limited government
B. inalienable rights
C. popular sovereignty
D. pluralism
E. liberalism
5. The generational effect refers to
A. the dramatic changes in political preferences that individuals go through at
various stages in their adult life in response to world events
B. the long-term effect the events of a particular period have on the political
preferences of those coming of political age at that time
C. the tendency for individuals of the same generation to have opinions
opposite the prior generation
D. the effect friends of a similar age will have on an individual’s opinions
E. the tendency of individuals to become more conservative as they age
6. The most significant agent of political socialization is
A. religion
B. education
C. the media
D. race and ethnicity
E. the family
7. Inconsistent public opinion can result from which of the following:
I. A lack of accurate knowledge about public affairs
II. Misleading statements by officials
III. Insufficient knowledge about public affairs
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
I only
II only
II and III
I and II
I and III
8. Polling techniques that produce the most reliable or accurate results are
A. random samples
B. skewed samples
C. two-staged least squares samples
D. exit poll samples
E. survey samples
9. Which of the following statements about the stability of public opinion is correct?
A. Public opinion is unstable in the face of media coverage, but tends to be
more stable for issues the media ignores
B. Public opinion is frequently stable for periods of many years
C. The opinions of women tend to be more stable then those of men
D. Public opinion has been generally stable in the northeastern states, but
remarkably unstable in the south
E. Public opinion is always unstable
10. Which of the following is true about the expression of public opinion?
A. New communication technologies, such as the Internet, have not
introduced new opportunities to express public opinion
B. Interest groups don’t express public opinion, they only express the
opinions of interests
C. News media, activism, lobbying, polls, and elections all provide some
expression of public opinion
D. Political activism is an important part of a democratic society, but not as
an expression of public opinion
E. The single most important form of public opinion in a democratic society
is response to polls
AP Government Review Questions
Political Beliefs and Behaviors
Sample Free Response Questions
1. Select three of the following and explain how each of these components of U.S.
political culture manifests itself in the operation of Congress. Use an example to
illustrate each of the three items you select.
 Individualism
 Liberty and Freedom
 Economic Freedom
 Majority Rule/Minority Rights
 Citizen Responsibility
2. Which of these two models of democracy – pluralist or elitist – is correct in its
assumptions about public opinion? Outline the assumptions each makes about
public opinion and indicate how each view would consider or weigh opinion in
the course of making policy.