Hilary's deck Flashcards
What is a Political Cognitive Map?
Our apparatus for receiving, ordering, and interpreting political information, signals, stimuli from the outside world.
What are the 3 parts of a Political Cognitive Map?
- Facts (Cognitive Orientations): What we know about the political world. Ie. who the president of the US is. Remember facts don’t have to be true to be in our political cognitive map. 2.Feeling we have about aspects of the political world (Affective Orientations). Comes from our experiencesPolitical parties try to change how we feel not think3. Judgements (Evaluate Orientations)When we synthesize facts with our feelings we make a political judgement.
what is our political cognitive map used for?
we filter our political knowledge through our political cognitive map. What we notice or think is important about politics has to do with how dense our filter is. Our PCM can also be distorted based on influences of people or experiences that may not actually represent the truth. If it is distorted your understanding of the political world will be too.
Alienation is connected to PCM how?
Alienation can occur when something is unmappable or if the map you posses is distorted or missing pieces. This can cause people to feel separated and confused about the political world it can become a big scary place. Cam used a reference to the direct relation of alienation and city-scapes that are mentally unmappable. Makes people feel unwelcome, unsafe and confused in their city. Same thing with PCM
How do we get PCM into our heads?
A lot of what we learn early on about politics has to do with the cultural values that surround us. Different cultural values can mean different political values.
There are 2 arguments about how we get PCM what are they?
Nature Vs Nurture
How do you improve your PCM mappability ?
The best way to improve your mappability is to simplify it, build small from the inside out. don’t over whelm yourself. BUT remember not to mistake you simplified map for the real thing.
What is the Nature argument?
We are born with innate knowledge, attitudes and opinions about politics and about everything.
What is the Nurture argument?
All that we know, feel and think about politics or any other subject has to be learned either through observing or being taught. Those involved with the nurture argument believe we have to be socialized by people, places, events or ideas.
What is political socialization?
The process by which the central values of the political culture are transmitted from one generation to the next.
What is the definition of agents of socialization?
The people and institutions by which we learn political (Cultural) Socialization
What are some agents of political socialization?
Family: The views of your parents or grandparents may greatly affect how you grow up, what you believe is right and wrong and even how you vote. Republicans have the highest rate of insuring that their kids vote like them. Education: Depending on what type of school you go to it could greatly affect what you know about politics. If you’ve gone to a private catholic school that may sway your ideas on abortion or if you go to inner city public school you may know very little about politics at all etc…Religion: Your religion can put an emphasis on what is right and wrong. It can mould your thoughts and ideas on controversial political topics. Peers: The type of friends you have can influence how important you ma.y think politics is. If t’s seemingly unimportant to your friends it may become unimportant to you. Media: Different media conglomerates can have biases that come through their stories and ideas out on their shows. Also many people like to emulate what they see on Tv which makes it a very powerful learning tool. Both old and new media
What are some effects that can change a persons socialization over time?
Life cycle EffectPeriod EffectCohort EffectChanging of Sociodemographic influencesPolitical events
What is the Life cycle effect
The changing of someones political over and under 30 years old. you go through major periods of change throughout this time period and it can effect you political views
What is the period effect
an example that best explains this is- growing up in the great depression or growing up during the 40s-50s (communism really effected political views of this era)
