apgov unit 4

key terms and vocab for lessons 4.1-4.10 by me!

conservative

the political group that believes in a small government, harsher punishments for lawbreakers, individual freedom, Christian values, national patriotism, traditional family roles, etc.

liberal

the political group that believes in a large government, leniency in punishments, protecting rights of accused, higher taxes for more government services, right to privacy (abortions, same-sex marriage, transgender rights), etc.

political culture

the set of attitudes that shape political behavior, comprised of four distinct cornerstones

individualism

a belief in the fundamental worth and importance of the individual, has different interpretations like self-centered and enlightened self-interest. ultimately, this is the value that encourages people to pursue their own best interest

equality of opportunity

the belief that every person should have the same chance as someone else without discrimination based on race, sex, national origin, color, religion, etc.

laissez-faire

meaning “let it be” in Latin; the approach to business where the government is out of the way, conservatives tend to agree with this approach

free enterprise

the belief that businesses and merchants would succeed or fail based on their own decisions, supporters of this belief are known as free-market advocates

rule of law

the principle that the government establishes and executes laws that apply to all members of society, prevents leaders from seeing themselves as above the law

limited government

a type of government that is kept under control by law, checks and balances, and separation of powers

political socialization

the process by which someone develops political beliefs, affected by family, school & college, peers, media, social environments, location, etc.

globalization

the process of an ever-expanding and increasingly interactive world economy; the US influences other countries while other countries influence the US as well, and this process causes people to think beyond national borders with problems like global warming

generational effects

the idea that the generation someone was born in plays a role in their political attitudes (younger tend to be more liberal, older tend to be more conservative)

generation Z

those born from 1997-2010, politically considered to be similar to millennials but are still being defined

millennials

those born from 1982-1996, politically considered to be extremely liberal and will stay liberal, even as time passes

generation X

those born from 1964-1981, politically considered to be more conservative

baby boomers

those born from 1946-1963, politically considered to be more conservative

silent generation

those born before 1946, politically considered to be more conservative, tend to be consistent voters

lifecycle effects

the variety of physical, social, and psychological changes that people go through as they age - can affect political socialization in several ways

the Great Depression (1929-1933)

the era of economic hardship that caused people to have a favorable attitude towards government involvement in social life

New Deal Coalition

the deal that created jobs for people using government money

Iraq invasion (2003)

the invasion that caused millennials to be reluctant about military interventions

the Great Recession (2007-2012)

the recession that caused millennials to have favorable attitudes for welfare and social security when it comes to government redistribution

public opinion polls

polls used to gauge attitudes on issues or support for candidates in an election in a cross-section of the population

benchmark polls

polls that are used to measure support for a candidate and to gather information about the issues that people care about

tracking polls

polls that ask prospective voters questions to measure how they feel about an issue and how they may vote, allows candidate to see how they are faring with voters

entrance/exit polls

polls conducted outside polling places on election day to publicly predict the outcome of the election after the polls close

approval ratings

the rating a president gets, determined by the people

focus group

a small group of citizens who gather to hold conversations about issues or candidates, allow for deeper insight on a topic

proper sampling techniques

techniques that are used to insure a poll is accurate

representative sample

a group of people meant to represent a larger group/the universe

random sample

a sample obtained following the standard that every member of the universe has an equal chance of selection into the sample

random-digit dialing

used to make telephone polling more reliable and efficient; a computer randomly calls possible numbers in a given area until enough people respond to establish a representative sample

weighting/stratification

the process of manipulating a sample to make sure that demographic groups are properly represented

sampling error/margin of error

the difference between poll results; sample is bigger, error is smaller and vice versa

push polling

a controversial and deceptive way to influence voters by pushing certain views on people; not really polls, actually political campaigning

bandwagon effect

a shift of support to candidate or position holding the lead in public opinion polls, and therefore believed to be endorsed by many people

social desirability bias

the tendency for respondents and declared voters to tell pollsters what they think the pollsters want to hear

Bradley effect

when white voters falsely report in polls that they’re going to vote for black candidates so they don’t appear bigoted, and then they end up voting for another candidate who is white; inflating poll predictions to make it seem like black candidates have a chance to win

non-response bias

occurs when those not willing or unable to take part in a research study are different from those who do

ideology

a comprehensive and mutually consistent set of political and personal ideas

valence issues

issues, concerns, or policies that are viewed in the same way by people with a variety of ideologies (ex. education for children, strong economy)

wedge issues

issues, concerns, or policies that sharply divide the public (ex. abortion, LGBTQ+ rights)

saliency

the term used to gauge how important an issue is to an individual or group

moderate

used the describe the in-between of the liberal-conservative spectrum

libertarian

voters that oppose government intervention and/or regulation, and have high regards for civil liberties; tend to be conservative on economic issues (min. wage) while liberal on moral/social issues (marijuana legalization)

populist

voters that are typically Christian and follow fundamental Christian ideas, made up of blue-collar workers; tend to be liberal on workplace safety protections, while conservative on moral/social issues (limiting obscene speech)

majoritarian

how democracy is reflected in policy making; the interaction of people and government to carry out the will of the majority

agenda

list of potential policy ideas, bills, or plans to improve society

fiscal policy

a collective term for the taxing and spending actions of the government

Keynesian economic theory

an approach to fiscal policy, the idea that the government should create the right level of demand; when demand is low, they should reduce taxes, increase government spending, and help the people. when demand is high, they should tax more and/or spend less

supple-side economics

an approach to fiscal policy, the idea that the government should leave as much of the money supply to the people, letting the laws of economics govern the marketplace (free-market theory/laissez-faire)

sixteenth amendment

the amendment that allows Congress to tax people’s incomes

monetary policy

how the government manages the supply and value of its currency (the dollar)

progressive tax

the idea that one’s tax increases as one’s income progresses (equity)

flat tax

the idea that everyone’s tax is the same rate (equality)

inflation

when the value of the dollar decreases, causing prices to rise

discount rate

the interest rate at which the government loans actual dollars to commercial banks

reserve requirement

the amount of cash commercial banks must keep in their vaults

government bonds/securities

government IOUs, when they have to take a loan from individual citizens or foreign nations

favorable trade balance

when a government exports more than it imports

social welfare

support for disadvantaged people to meet their basic needs (ex. New Deal policies)

entitlements

government services Congress has promised by law to citizens (mandatory spending, ex. Medicare and Medicaid)

Medicare

an entitled government-run health insurance program for citizens over 65 years old

Medicaid

an entitled government-run health care program for the impoverished who cannot afford necessary medical expenses