American Politics Exam 2- TLU

interest groups

an organization of people who share a common concern or value and who engage in collective action to make demands on others in society with respect to those interests.

collective action

action in which a group of people working together for the provision of public goods

free riders

someone who makes the rational decision to enjoy the benefits of a public good without incurring the costs of providing them

interest group tactics

-lobbying
-coalition building
-shaping public opinion
-campaign support

public goods

a benefit that is provided to everyone and cannot be withheld from those who did not participate in its provisions

interest group reasources

-membership
-money
-leadership
-expertise

political parties

organize people with at least roughly similar political aims and opinions to elect candidates to public office

democratic party

-a political party formed by supporters of Andrew Jackson after the presidential election of 1824.
-a person who believes in and practices the principle of equality of right, opportunity, and treatment

republican party

-a political party formed in 1854. Its main goal was to stop the spread of slavery.
-a political ideology centered on citizenship in a state organized as a republic

winner-take-all electoral system

the electoral system that US has where the candidate with the most votes (even only slightly) wins all the power

proportional representation

an election system in which each party running receives the proportion of legislative seats corresponding to its proportion of the vote.

polarization

the presence of increasingly conflicting and divided viewpoints between the Democratic and Republican Parties

public opinion

the sum of individual attitudes or beliefs about an issue or question

how to read public opinion survey

how to know if a survey is a reliable indicator of public opinion

-did the poll ask the right people?
random sample, biased sample

-what is the margin of error?
the margin of error is determined by size of sample (bigger sample, smaller error)

-what was the Questions?
the process of designing survey questions is called instrumentation. Questions that mislead, confuse, or prompt off-topic responses are to be avoided.

-which question came first?
the order of questions in a survey can also affect answers.

sources of political values

-political culture
-ideology
-political socialization
-biology

elements of public opinion

-direction
-stability
-intensity
-salience

ideology

consistent set of values, attitudes, and beliefs about the appropriate role of government in society.

political culture

shared beliefs that include a broad agreement about basic political values, the legitimacy of political institutions, and broad acceptance of the process government uses to make policy

liberalism

a political ideology that emphasizes the civil rights of citizens, representative government, and the protection of private property. This ideology, derived from the Enlightenment, was especially popular among the property-owning middle classes.

conservatism

a political philosophy based on tradition and social stability, favoring obedience to political authority and organized religion

political socialization

the process through which a younger generation learns political values from previous generations.
-family
-school
-peers
-events/ experiences
-mass media

biological basis of political values

attitudes and opinions have a genetic component (predispositions have a genetic basis but how they are expressed is environmental)

primary election

nominating election held to choose party candidates who will run in the general election

general election

is where the two parties' candidates face each other

electoral college

the institution responsible for selecting the president

redistricting

redrawing district lines

gerrymandering

drawing district boundaries to benefit a particular interest

incumbency advantage

the electoral edge afforded to those already in office

voter turnout

the percentage of eligible citizens who actually vote in a given election

models of voting behavior

-sociological model
-social-psychological model
-rational choice model

sociological model

a model explaining voter choice by considering such factors as religion, place of residence, and socioeconomic status.

social-psychological model

a model explaining voter choice that focuses on individual attitudes

rational choice model

a model of voter choice that suggests that voters first decide whether to vote and then base candidate selection on rational calculation.