American Political Ideologies and Beliefs - Chapters 4,7,16,17, Unit 4 Flashcards
CHAPTER 4: DEMOGRAPHIC GROUPS -cards (1-26)
Amercian exceptionalism
view that many factors make the US different from the rest of the world
manifest destiny
refers ti a notion from the nineteenth century that the US was destined to rule the north American continent
urban
-big cities or towns
Main demographic groups:(?)
-low income/lower class
-democrats
-african americans
suburban
-right outside of a big town or city
Main demographic groups:(?)
- middle class
-republicans
-white people
rural
-farms and stuff
(equal split with demographic groups)(?)
The sun belt
the region in the south and southwest
-has seen population growth
-mainly retired old people
The bible belt
the south and states bordering the south
-have large numbers of committed protestants who see a public role in religion
The rust belt
region in the midwest
-once known for its industrial output
-factories have closed and there are high rates of unemployment there
race
grouping of people by characteristics determined by genetics
ethnicity
grouping of people based on national origin, religion, language and race
fundamentalist
conservative Christians that have become more active in recent decades (especially 2000 and 2004 elections)
gender gap
the difference between political opinions and behaviors of men and women
gross domestic production (GDP)
the total output of all economic activity in the nation, including goods and services
socioeconomic status (SES)
a division of population based on occupation, income and education
Demographic Groups Ideologies/ Party Affiliation:
1) Religion
believe in god more: lean conservative
less religious: lean moderate/ liberal
Demographic Groups Ideologies/ Party Affiliation:
2) Race/ Ethnicity
African Americans: more democratic
Hispanics: more democratic (but its declining)
White: more republican
Asian: more democratic
Demographic Groups Ideologies/ Party Affiliation:
3)Education
Higher Education (all): more democratic (and continuing to become more democratic)
Higher Education (whites): more republican
-the more education, the more liberal
Demographic Groups Ideologies/ Party Affiliation:
4) Socioeconomic status (SES)
as income rises, so does the likeness they are republican
Demographic Groups Ideologies/ Party Affiliation:
5) Gender
women: more democratic
men: more republican
Demographic Groups Ideologies/ Party Affiliation:
6) Age
younger: liberal
older: conservative
-but the older you are the more likely you are to participate in politics (old peoples votes matter a lot)
liberals
-democrats
-more gov impact in economy (more social programs/ benefits)
-less gov impact in individual rights/ social regulations
conservatives
-republicans
-more gov impact in individual rights/ social regulations to establish their “perfect society” based on their morals
-less gov impact in economy
libertarian
less government in both economic and social issues
pure liberal
-more gov in economic issues
-less gov in social issues
populist
more gov in both economic and social issues
pure conservative
-more gov in social issues
-less gov in economic issues
CHAPTER 7: PUBLIC POLICY, IDEOLOGY, PARTICIPATION & VOTING - cards (28-67)
political socialization
the process by which people develop political attitudes, values and beliefs
political attitude
-forms early in your life, mainly through the influence of family, school, the media, social groups, etc.
(but the main one is family)
selective perception
choosing how you want to interpret something
selective attention/ exposure
only looking at what you want to see
attentive public
people who follow politics very closely
citizens can effect public policy by..
(6)
-voting
-joining interest groups/ political parties
-working on campaigns
-writing letters
-protest
-lobbying
-etc.
deliberation
the idea of people coming together, listening to each other, exchanging ideas, learning to appreciate each others differences and defending their own opinions
social capital
the value of social contracts, associations, and networks individuals form which can foster trust, coordination and cooperation (?)
public opinion
the opinion of the public
random sample
a type of sample in which every individual had a random chance of being selected
-is necessary for a good/ trustworthy poll
margin of error
a range in which the poll/ sample is accurately representing the population
universe(or population)
the group of people whose preferences we try to measure by taking a sample
intensity
a measure of how strongly an indevedual holds a particular opinion
latency
the political opinions that are held but not yet expressed
manifest opinion
a widely shared and consciously held view
salience
an individual belief that an issue is important/ relavent to them
Characteristics of a good poll (6)
- does have a margin of error
- lists sample size (n)
-is a random sample
-confidence interval is >90%
-date
-not complicated wording
political ideology
a set of ideas or beliefs about political values and the role of government, including how it should work and how it actually works
Most important ideologies in American politics
-liberalism
-conservatism
social conservatives
focus less on economics and more on morality and lifestyle
Critics of liberals
-favors gov solutions to problems
-limit the capacity of the market to function well
-creates large and unmanageable bureaucracies
Critics of conservatives
-some problems require gov to become a part of the solution
-too much faith in the marker to solve problems isn’t right
socialism
political philosophy and movement encompassing a wide range of economic and social systems, which are characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership.
communism
-the state owns property in common for all people
- a single political party that represents the working class and controls the gov
Why people are more likley to vote.. (3)
-perceive a significant ideological difference in the candidates
-have a sense of political efficacy
- want to participate in democracy
political efficacy
when you believe that your vote will make a difference/ your vote counts
Why people are less likely to vote.. (4)
-MAIN ONE: they are busy/ schedule conflicts
-they belive there vote does not make a difference (no political efficacy)
-registration is difficult (even though it was made easier by the Motor Voter Act)
-little ideological difference between the two candidates
voter registration
system designed to reduce voter fraud by only limiting voting to those that have established eligibility to vote by submitting proper documental proof of residency
Types of Elections:
primaries
voters determine the party nominees
Types of Elections:
general
voters elect office holders
-and elections on specific policy issues which take place at the local level through a referendum and initiative petition (unit 1)
Types of Elections:
presidential elections
every 4 years, elects the president
Types of Elections:
midterms
elections between presidential elections
-elects people for congress
Who is most likely to vote? (5)
-people with a higher education
- older people
-women
-people who are married
-union members
party identification
an informal and subjective affiliation with a political party
-most important factor in guessing how people will vote
candidate appeal
how voters feel about a candidate’s background, personality, leadership ability, etc.
prospective issue voting
voting based on what a candidate pledges to do i the future about an issue if elected
retrospective issue voting
voting based on what a candidate has already done in the past about an issue
-mainly for incumbents
social cleavage
a concept in political science diving groups of voters into blocks
-political groups and factions
Coinciding (or Reinforcing) Cleavages
when divisions are aligned in a way where groups go against each other
-reduced the chances of compromise
-similar groups/ people
Cross-cutting Cleavages
when the divisions in society are divided into many different blocks
-conflicts on some issues, cooperate on others
-promotes pluralism
-different groups/ people
CHAPTER 16: ECONOMIC POLICY - cards (69-139)
How to check/ measure economic health
rates of inflation (CPI), unemployment, and gross domestic product (GDP)
Consumer Price Income (CPI)
how to measure inflation
Explain the relationship between inflation and unemployment rates
they move together in opposite directions
- as inflation rises, unemployment drops
-as unemployment rises, inflation falls
inflation
a rise in general price level (decrease in the value of the dollar)
unemployment
number of Americans who are not working but looking for a job
-generally doesn’t included those who aren’t looking for a job
stagflation
a combination of stagnation: economic slowdown and inflation: rise in prices
Gross domestic product (GDP)
the value of all goods and services produced by an economy during a specific period of time
-measures “stuff”
GDP goes up— good (growing economy)
GDP goes down — bad (recession)
debt
how much you owe (total)
deficit
spend more than you had in (in one year?)
surplus
have money left over
budget deficit
when the government raises less revenue then it spends
Fiscal Policy
governments use of expenditures and budget to control the economy
-taxes and spending
Who makes it (fiscal policy)
congress and the president
when is the fiscal policy used?
to grow or slow down the economy
How is the fiscal policy used?
by increasing or decreasing taxes
Tools to help the economy grow (during a recession): Fiscal policy
- increase government spending
-decrease taxes
want to give people more money to spend during a recession
Tools to help slow the economy ( during inflation): Fiscal Policy
- decrease government spending
-increase taxes
want to five people less money to spend during inflation
excise tax
a consumer tax on a specific item
tariff
tax on imported goods
national debt
the total amount of money the government has borrowed (the total debt)
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
the presidential staff agency that serves as a clearing house for budgetary requests and management improvements doe gov agencies
Congressional Budget Office (OBO)
an agency of congress that analyzes presidential budget recommendations and estimates the costs
tax expenditure
a loss of revenue due to federal law from tax exclusions, exemptions, deductions, credits, deferrals, and preferential tax rates…
that provides benifits to individuals or businesses
sales tax
a general tax on sales transactions
value-added tax (VAT)
a tax on the increased value of the product at each stage of production and distribution, rather than just at the point of sale
what happens when interest rates go up?
people stop buying
- ex. houses cars, anything you would take a loan on
revenue
moeny coming in
expenditure
money going out
flat tax
everyone pays the same percent of their income
-this would cause the rich to have to pay more
progressive tax
as you make more money, you pay a higher price
-rich still pay more
regressive tax
when everyone pays the same amount of tax (not a percent, so different than flat tax)
-ex, 5 cents bag tax
- this would cause the rich to pay more because spending 5 cents causes a bigger impact on poorer people than on richer
entitlements
legal benefit you have the right to if you meet the legal requirement(s)
-ex. social security
mandatory spending
any spending the gov must do by law
-ex. entitlements, interest, debts
desgresionary spending
spending gov can change year to year
Monetary Policy
How the FED controls the money supply to promote growth or slow the economy down
-interest rates
Who makes it? (monetary policy)
The FED (Federal Reserve System)
The Federal Reserve System (FED)
a group trying to control money n the economy
-the central bank of the US
-created in 1913 to establish banking, regulate currency in circulation and regulate the amount of credit available
-consists of 12 regional banks
Reasons the FED controls the back and not congress.. (3)
-they make decisions faster
-Congress does not get the blame for bad economy/ doesn’t effect their chances of reelection
-can make decisions that are for the best, not based on getting re-elects (non-partisan)
How is the monetary policy used?
by controlling interest rates
what is the goal of the monetary policy?
let the economy grow but keep it stable, less inflation
Tools to help the economy grow (during a recession): Monetary policy
interests rates go down
Tools to help slow the economy (during inflation): Monetary policy
interests rates go up
federal funds rates
the amount of interest banks charge for loans to each other
Economic theories:
Laissez- faire economics
opposed gov interfering in economics affairs beyond whats necessary
Economic theories:
keynesian economics
increase gov spending during economic slumps
decrease gov spending during economic highs
The business cycle (keynesian theory):
Expansion
economic growth is steady, measured by GDP.
Steady long-term increase in GDP,
falling unemployment rates, business prosperity
(page 83 for chart)
The business cycle (keynesian theory):
Peak
GDP stops rising
economy reaches its peak
height of economic expansion
The business cycle (keynesian theory?):
Contraction (recession)
economy declines
GDP falling
unemployment rising
The business cycle (keynesian theory?):
Trough
economy “bottoms out” and has reached its lowest point
GDP stops falling
(CYCLE REPEATS, going back to expansion stage, peak, recession, trough, etc.)
What happens when money is added to the economy? (to stop a recession leads to inflation)
-inflation keeps going up
-interest rates go down, borrowing goes up, people spend more, prices up, inflation
Pros (2) and Cons (1) to adding money to the economy
PRO: GDP rises, unemployment goes down
CON: inflation goes up
What happens when there is less money in the economy? (to stop inflation, leads to a recession)
-interest rates go up, borrowing goes down, spending goes down, inflation slows down/ stops
Pros (1) and Cons (2) of having less money in the economy
PRO: inflation goes down
CON: GDP goes down, unemployment goes up
protectionism
a policy of getting rid of trade barriers to protect domestic industry
trade deficit
an imbalance in the international trace in which value of imports exceeds the value of exports
The General Agreement on Tariffs & Trade (GATT)
international trade organization that seeks to encourage free trade by lowering tariffs and other trade restrictions
The World Trade Organization (WTO)
an international organization deprived from the GATT that promotes free trade around the world
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
an agreement signed by the US, Canada and Mexico in 1992 to form the largest free trade zone in the world
Why did the gov think economic regulation was needed? (3)
(to restrain certain abuses and promote competition)
-to prevent monopolies
-to reduce environmental pollution
-to protect workers
Monopoly
the domination of an industry by a single company
-(also a name for a company that dominates an industry)
Anti trust legistlation
federal laws that try to prevent a monopoly from dominating an industry and preventing trade
trust
a monopoly that controls goods and services, often in ways that prevent competition
closed shop
a company with a labor agreement in which union membership IS a condition for employment
union shop
a company where new employes must join a union with in a stated time preiod
labor injunction
a court order forbidding specific indeveduals/ groups from doing certain things that the court considers harmful to the rights or property of an employer or community
collective bargaining
a method where reps or the union and employer determine wages, hours and other employment conditions through negotiation
Environmental Impact Statement
a statement required by federal law from all agencies for any project using federal funds to asses the potential threat it could have on the environment
Corporate social responsibility
efforts by corporations to improve their reputations by paying attention to their contributed to the social good
The Deregulation Movement
(research more) something about deregulation
Deregulation
the removal of regulations or restrictions, especially in a particular industry/ areas of economic activity
CHAPTER 17: SOCIAL POLICY - cards (141-
means-tested entitlements
programs under which applicants meet requirements based on needs
-ex. Medicaid, welfare
The two goals of social policy
1) provide a social safety net for Americans
2) raise the quality of life for all Americans
Two types of social policy:
1) Public assistance
aid to the poor
-usually an entitlement
includes…
-direct payments to the poor, unemployed and disabled
-food stamps
-job training
-free school lunches
-etc.
Two types of social policy:
2) Social insurance
programs where eligibility is based on prior contributions, usually in the form of payroll or taxes
-usually means-tested
ex. social security, retirement age
social safety net
includes many programs that the federal gov provides to protect Americans against economic and social misfortune
How did the New Deal expand social policy?
created social insurance programs like job training for the unemployed, social security, etc.
How did The Great Society expand social policy?
produced help for homeless, more job training and medicare
