chapter 6 vocab

AP GOVERNMENT & POLITICS

CHAPTER 6: PUBLIC OPINION AND POLITICAL ACTION

KEY TERMS & PEOPLE

Activist-An individual who actively promotes a political party, philosophy, or issue she or he cares personally about

Americanism- A belief that Americans consider themselves bound by common values and common hopes.

Blue States- a state with a recent history of voting for the Democratic candidates in presidential races

Campaigners- Those who both vote in elections and get involved in campaigns

Census- A census is a systematic process of collecting and recording data about a population, primarily to understand its demographic characteristics and needs, which informs policy-making, resource allocation, and various other decision

Civic Competence- A belief that one can affect government policies.

Civic Duty- A belief that one has an obligation to participate in civic and political affairs.

Civil Disobedience- Opposing a law one considers unjust by peacefully disobeying it and accepting the resultant punishment.

Class Consciousness- The tendency to think of oneself as a worker whose interests are in opposition to those of management and vice versa.

Communalists- Those who join organizations and participate in politics but not in partisan campaigns

Congregational- Involving or done by the people who attend religious services; relating to a group of Christian churches that believe that the people who attend each church should make their own decisions, rules, etc.

Crosscutting Cleavages- When divisions in a society split into many potential groups that may conflict on one issue but cooperate on another.

Democrats- Party is generally associated with liberal policies that advocate for social justice, environmental reforms, and healthcare access

Demography- the study of population characteristics and changes, including factors like age, race, gender, religion, income, and education

Equal Opportunity- An economic value in American culture which maintains that all people should have the same opportunity to get ahead but that people should be paid on the basis of ability rather than on the basis of need.

Exit Polling- survey conducted with voters immediately after they have cast their votes on Election Day

Fifteenth Amendment- prohibits the federal government and each state from denying or abridging a citizen's right to vote "on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude,"

Gender Gap- the observed differences in opinions, preferences, and voting behaviors between men and women

Grandfather Clauses- Requirement that for an individual to automatically qualify to vote, his or her grandparent had to have voted (excluded former slaves and their descendants)

Ideological Constraint- how deeply ingrained political ideologies, like liberalism, conservatism, or libertarianism, can limit or shape the range of policies or actions a government or political actor can take. 

Inactives- Those who avoid all forms of political participation

Individualism- The habit or principle of being independent and self-reliant; a social theory favoring freedom of action for individuals over collective or state control.

Liberty- Americans are preoccupied with their rights. They believe they should be free to do pretty much as they please, with some exceptions, as long as they don't hurt other people.

Literacy Tests- Requirement that voters be able to read; formerly used in the South to disenfranchise blacks

Melting Pot- The mixture of cultures, ideas, and peoples that has changed the American nation. The United States, with its history of immigration, has often been called a melting pot. Sentence: New York is known as a Melting Pot.

Minority Majority- The emergence of a non-Caucasian majority, as compared with a White, generally Anglo-Saxon majority. It is predicted that by about 2060, Hispanic Americans, African Americans, and Asian Americans together will outnumber White Americans.Sentence: The minority majority will cause whites to be the minority.

Motor-Voter Law- requires states to allow voter registration by mail, when applying for a driver's license, and at some state offices that serve the disabled or poor

Nineteenth Amendment- Gave women the right to vote

Norm- A standard of right or proper conduct that helps determine the range of acceptable social behavior and policy options

Opposition Party- Comprises one or more political parties or other organized groups that are opposed to the government (administration), party or group in political control of a city, region, state or country.

Orthodox (Social)- A belief that morality and religion ought to be of decisive importance.

Parochial Participants- Those who avoid elections and civic organizations but will contact officials regarding specific problems

Party Identification- The political party for which one or one's family usually votes

Political Culture- A distinctive and patterned way of thinking about how political and economic life ought to be carried out.

Political Elites- People who have a disproportionate amount of political power

Political Ideology- A comprehensive set of political, economic, and social views or ideas concerned with the form and role of government.

Political Participation- the ways in which individuals engage in political processes and express their opinions on government policies and leadership.

Political Socialization- the process in which people develop their political values, beliefs, attitudes and ideology.

Political Tolerance- A willingness to extend basic constitutional rights -- the right to speak, to publish, to run for office -- to offensive groups and ideas.

Poll- A survey of public opinion

Poll Tax- Proof of tax payment, to be produced when voting; used to disenfranchise blacks

Progressive (Social)- One of two camps in the culture war that believes personal freedom is more important than traditional rules and that rules depend on the circumstances of modern life.

Protest- A form of political participation designed to achieve policy change through dramatic and unconventional tactics. Sentence: A form of protest is a riot

Public Opinion- The distribution of the population's beliefs about politics and policy issues. Sentence: Public opinion is based on political socialization

Random-Digit Dialing- A technique used by pollsters to play telephone calls randomly to both listed and unlisted numbers when conducting a survey. Sentence: Random-digit dialing polls over the phone.

Random Sample- The key technique employed by sophisticated survey researchers, which operates on the principle that everyone should have an equal probability of being selected for the sample. Sentence: Random Sampling includes random people that aren't all alike.

Reapportionment- The process of reallocating seats int he House of Representatives every 10 years on the basis of the results of the census. Sentence: Reapportionment is due to the census.

Red States- States that predominantly vote for or support the Republican party.

Registered Voters- Those citizens registered to vote

Republicans- promote a belief in limited government intervention in economic affairs and an emphasis on individual responsibility

Sample-A relatively small proportion of people who are chosen in a survey so as to be representative of the whole. Sentence: Only a sample of the population is chosen for surveys

Sampling Error- The level of confidence in the findings of a public opinion poll. Ten more people interviewed, the more confident one can be of the results. Sentence: Sampling error depends on the size of the sample.

Twenty-Sixth Amendment- you need to be 18 in order to vote in federal elections

Un-American- not in accordance with American characteristics.

V.O. Key- known for his work on political parties, public opinion, and realignment theory, particularly his concept of the "responsible electorate" and the three components of political parties: the party in the electorate, the party organization, and the party in office. 

Voter Apathy- The lack of interest among the citizenry in participating in elections

Voting-Age Population- The citizens who are eligible to vote after reaching a minimum age requirement

Voting-Eligible Population- All U.S. citizens age 18 and over, who are not excluded from voter eligibility due to criminal status (felony convictions, incarceration, or parole), or excluded due to being declared being incompetent to vote.

Voting Rights Act of 1970- The Voting Rights Act is a landmark piece of federal legislation enacted in 1965 aimed at overcoming legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote

Voting Specialists- Those who restrict their political participation to voting in elections

White Primaries- A southern expedient to keep blacks from participating in primary elections

Work Ethic- A tradition of Protestant churches that required a life of personal achievement as well as religious conviction; a believer had an obligation to work, save money, obey the secular law, and do good works. Max Weber attributed the rise of capitalism, in part, to this ethic