Chapter 4: American Political Culture

Objectives:

1. Define what scholars mean by political culture, and list some of the dominant aspects of political culture in the United States.

   1. Political culture can be defined as an overall set of values which are widely shared within a society. There are five most dominant aspects of political culture in the United States: liberty (people are preoccupied with their rights and should be free to do as they please), equality (everybody should have an equal vote and equal chance to participate and succeed), democracy (government officials should be accountable to the people), civic duty (people should take community affairs seriously), individual responsibility (individuals are responsible for their own actions and wellbeing).
   2. We know what makes up the political culture of America through examination of opinion polls, books, speeches, slogans to which they respond, and political choices they make. However behavior can be inconsistent with these political beliefs because besides values, self interest and social circumstances also shape behavior.

2. Discuss how American citizens compare with those of other countries in their political attitudes.

   1. In Sweden, which has a similar democratic form of government, citizens have very differing political attitudes when compared to the United States. Although most Swedes do vote, they hardly participate in politics in any other way. This is quite the opposite in America, where there is a stronger sense of civic duty and a stronger sense of civic competence. In Sweden, democracy is more deferential than participatory, as people tend to defer to the decisions of government experts and specialists, so Swedes rarely challenge governmental decisions.
   2. Japanese culture puts strong importance on the values of maintaining good relations, having decisions made by groups, preserving social harmony, and displaying respect for the hierarchy. Some of this is similar to America, as Americans emphasize equality, following rules, and treating others fairly. However, Americans also tend to value individualism and competition, and are not afraid to question authority. These varying cultural differences shape the unique political and governmental systems in each of these countries.

3. List the contributions to United States political culture made by the Revolution, by the nation’s religious heritages, and by the family. Explain the apparent absence of class consciousness in the U.S.

   1. Compared to many European countries, America has been one of the most religious countries.  Studies show that the average American is more likely to believe in God, to pray on a daily basis, and to acknowledge clear standards of right and wrong. The nation’s religious heritages have affected the political culture of the US, and a prominent example is the religious revivalist movement of the 1730s - 1740s, also known as the “First Great Awakening.” This movement transformed the political life of American colonies, as it caused the colonists to alter their views about government and society at large. Ultimately, these Religious ideas fueled the break with England, as England violated “the laws of nature and nature’s God”
   2. Many founding experiences, such as the Revolution, have contributed to American political culture a preoccupation with the assertion and maintenance of rights. Long-standing distrust of authority and/or people who wield power stem from colonies’ experiences with British rule. After America split from Britain and established their own country, the Constitution was written and designed to curb the darker side of human nature, which is connected to the religious belief that human nature is fundamentally depraved (mankind suffered from original sin: Adam and Eve eating forbidden fruit).
   3. In addition, because there is an absence of established religion (establishment clause in the First Amendment), this meant religious diversity was inevitable, leading to religion having an impact on political culture. For example, conflict in Puritan tradition (emphasis on faith and hard work) and the Catholic Church (devotion to sacraments and priestly authority) gave a recurrent source of cleavage in American public life. Churches were like miniature political systems - participatory religious culture.

4. Define internal and external political efficacy, and explain how the level of each of these has varied over the past generations.

   1. Internal political efficacy can be defined as the confidence in a citizen’s ability to understand and influence political events. External political efficacy is the belief that the governmental system will respond to the citizens. Internal political efficacy has been about the same since the 1950s, but external political efficacy has had a steady decline since through the 1960s and 1970s. This can be attributed to the government expanding and becoming too large to respond to individuals. There are also many competing demands coming from citizens, and it would be impossible for the government to respond to most or all.

The Political System:

• American view of the political system contains five important elements
  • Liberty: People are preoccupied with their rights and should be free to do as they please.
  • Equality: Everybody should have an equal vote and equal chance to participate and succeed.
  • Democracy: Government officials should be accountable to the people
  • Civic duty: People should talk community affairs seriously
  • Individual responsibility: Individuals are responsible for their own actions and wellbeing.
• How do we know American people share these beliefs?
  • Close study of kinds of books read, speeches heard, slogans to which they respond, and political choices they make.
• If these values are important to Americans, how can we explain the existence in our society of behavior that is inconsistent with them?
  • Besides values, self interest and social circumstances also shape behavior.
• If there is agreement among Americans on certain political values, why has there been so much political conflict in our history?
  • Conflict can occur over specific policies even among those who share common beliefs.
  • Although we have strong beliefs, we interpret them differently.

How We Compare: The Political System:

• Americans support the idea of a free enterprise economic system, but there are limits to how much freedom they think should exist in the marketplace.
• Americans are more willing to tolerate economic inequality than political inequality.
  • Belief in “equality in opportunity” in the economy but not “equality of results.”
• Americans are willing to support programs for the disadvantaged but are strongly opposed to anything that looks like preferential treatment.
  • Leaders of liberal political groups are more willing to support preferential treatment.
• Popular commitment to economic individualism and personal responsibility

How We Compare: The Political System:

• Sweden has a well-developed democratic government, but their political culture is more deferential than participatory.
  • Most Swedes vote but they hardly participate in politics in any other way.
  • They defer to the decisions of experts and specialists who work for the government
• Japanese attach greater value to maintaining good relations, having decisions made by groups, preserving social harmony, and displaying respect for the hierarchy.
• Americans have a stronger sense of civic duty and a stronger sense of civic competence.
  • Belief that citizens ought to be active in one’s community

How We Compare: The Economic System:

• Sweden is more inclined to favor equality of results over equality of opportunity.
• Americans are more likely to think that freedom is more important than equality.
• Americans are less likely to think that hard work goes unrewarded or that the government should guarantee citizens a basic standard of living.

The Civic Role of Religion:

• America has been one of the most religious countries.
  • Average American is more likely to believe in God, to pray on a daily basis, and to acknowledge clear standards of right and wrong
• Religious revivalist movement of the 1730s - 1740s (First Great Awakening) transformed the political life of American colonies.
  • Religious ideas fueled the break with England (violated “the laws of nature and nature’s God”)
  • Religious leaders were central in the struggle over slavery and the temperance movement

Sources of Political Culture:

• Founding experiences, such as the Revolution, have given to American political culture a preoccupation with the assertion and maintenance of rights.
• Long-standing distrust of authority and people wielding power stem from colonies’ experiences with British rule.
  • Religious belief that human nature is fundamentally depraved (mankind suffered from original sin: Adam and Eve eating forbidden fruit)
  • Constitution was designed to curb the darker side of human nature
• Absence of established religion meant religious diversity was inevitable.
  • Conflict in Puritan tradition (emphasis on faith and hard work) and the Catholic Church (devotion to sacraments and priestly authority) gave a recurrent source of cleavage in American public life.
  • Protestant church encouraged life of personal achievement as well as religious conviction.
  • Churches were miniature political systems - participatory religious culture
• Combined effect of religious and ethnic diversity, an individualistic philosophy, fragmented political authority, and egalitarian family are seen in absence of a high degree of class-consciousness among Americans.

The Culture War:

• Two cultural classes in the US: the orthodox and the progressive
• Culture ware differs from other political disputes because:
  • Money is not always at stake
  • Compromises are almost impossible to arrange
  • The conflict is more profound and animated by deep differences

Civil Society:

• American individualism and increasing distrust in government makes civil society especially important.
• More social capital a community has, the greater the level of trust. The more trust, the easier it is to achieve common goals.

\