AP Government Unit 4

Demographics

the characteristics of a population with respect to age, race, and gender.

Political culture

commonly shared attitudes, beliefs, and core values about how government should operate

Political socialization

The process by which we develop our political attitudes, values, and beliefs.

Core values

the important principles that will guide decisions and actions in the company

Individualism

giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications

Equality of opportunity

the idea that each person is guaranteed the same chance to succeed in life

Free enterprise

Economic system in which individuals and businesses are allowed to compete for profit with a minimum of government interference

Rule of law

principle that the law applies to everyone, even those who govern

Scientific polling

method of polling that provides a fairly precise reading of public opinion by using random sampling

Public opinion polls

interviews or surveys with samples of citizens that are used to estimate the feelings and beliefs of the entire population

Opinion polls

A method of systematically questioning a small, selected sample of respondents who are deemed representative of the total population.

Benchmark polls

initial poll on a candidate and issues on which campaign strategy is based and against which later polls are compared

Tracking polls

continuous surveys that enable a campaign or news organization to chart a candidate's daily rise or fall in support

Entrance polls

voters asked about which candidate they are going to vote for and why before walking into a caucus

Push polls

polls taken for the purpose of providing information on an opponent that would lead respondents to vote against that candidate

Exit polls

Polls conducted as voters leave selected polling places on Election Day.

Polling universe

the set of people that a particular poll is meant to represent

Random sample

a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion around

Representative sample

A sample that reflects the characteristics of the population from which it is drawn; more than 1,000

Mass survey

a way to measure public opinion by interviewing a large sample of the population

Focus group

A small group of individuals who are led in discussion by a professional consultant in order to gather opinions on and responses to candidates and issues.

Sampling error

the difference between the results of random samples taken at the same time

Reliability of data

the extent to which an experiment, test, or measuring procedure yields the same results on repeated trials

Political ideologies

sets of political values held by individuals regarding the basic goals of government and politics

Political spectrum

range of political views

Liberal ideology

A political orientation that favors a more assertive role in the redistribution of economic resources, but emphasizes individual freedom on a range of social issues.

Conservative ideology

An ideology that advocates minimal regulation of the economy and decreased emphasis on income redistribution.

Moderate

Person whose views are between conservative and liberal and may include some of both ideologies

Political polarization

The process by which the public opinion divides and goes to the extremes.

Democratic Party

One of the two major U.S political party;founded in 1828 by Andrew Jackson to support a decentralized government and state's rights

Republican Party

1854 - anti-slavery Whigs and Democrats, Free Soilers and reformers from the Northwest met and formed party in order to keep slavery out of the territories

Libertarian ideology

An ideology that seeks even more limited government in all facets of society than that promoted by conservatives.

Keynesian economic policies

The idea that government can smooth out the ups and downs of the free-market economy by stimulating the economy when private business investment is low and cooling down the economy when excessive investment is creating inflation

Supply-side economic policies

Supply-siders believe that lowering taxes on businesses and individuals will increase the incentive to work, save, and invest, leading to economic growth. They also believe that reducing government regulations will allow businesses to operate more efficiently, leading to increased productivity and economic growth.

Monetary policy

Government policy that attempts to manage the economy by controlling the money supply and thus interest rates.

Fiscal policy

Government policy that attempts to manage the economy by controlling taxing and spending.

Federal Reserve Board

an independent agency of the federal government established in 1913 to regulate the nation's banking and financial industry