MIDTERM Flashcards
What is political efficacy
the belief that one can influence government and politics
What is political knowledge?
information about the formal institutions of government, political actors, and political issues
What is political trust?
citizen’s confidence in political institutions as important indicator of political legitimacy
Why are political trust, political efficacy, and political knowledge important for a functioning democracy?
evidence suggests that political knowledge contributes to:
- more stable and consistent political attitudes
- helps citizens achieve their own interests and make decisions that conform with their attitudes and preferences
- promotes support for democratic values
- facilitates trust in the political system
- motivates political participation
Articles of confederation
America’s first written constitution; served as the basis for America’s national government until 1789
the power of the federal government began to expand after 1933 in response to __
the stock market crash of 1929, the great depression, and the run on banks of 1933
Which of the following statements concerning political values in the united states is most accurate?
american values often conflict with each other in practice
the boston tea party was largely a response to the __
british government’s decision to grant the east india company a monopoly on the export of tea from britain
how was political power in the continental congress divided under the articles of confederation?
each state had an equal vote
which clause in the US Constitution affirms that national laws and treaties are the supreme law of the land?
the supremacy clause
Which clause is the source of implied powers under the US Constitution?
necessary and proper
Which of the following best summarizes the Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown v Board of Education (1954)
racially segregated schools can never be equal
The ____ clause of the First Amendment protects an individual’s right to believe and practice whatever religion he or she chooses
free exercise
Conservatives are more likely than liberals to support ___
school prayer
Liberalism and conservatism are examples of ___
political ideologies
One problem with online news is that when negative stories go viral and spread quickly without fact-checking or respect for the privacy of public figures, it is possible people are reading ___
fake news
Which of the following statements best characterizes the difference between agenda setting and framing?
framing is more about how events are interpreted; agenda setting is more about which events are covered by the media
What kind of trend is seen in government trust over the years?
downnward
What are the roles of a citizen?
informed, active, hold officials accountable
What gives both illegal and legal immigrants the same rights as US citizens
Due process (4th amendment)
2 forms of democratic government
representative and direct
How did they try to reach the goal of limiting government power?
separation of powers, federalism, divided constituencies, and Bill of Rights
What is required to amend the Constitution?
2/3 vote in Congress
Constitution is conservative because it ___ the revolution; it is liberal because it ___ the revolution
preserve; introduced
Why is federalism better for diverse countries?
it allows them to self govern (autonomy)
2 types of powers granted to congress
expressed and implied
Obergefell v Hodges
ruled all 50 states had to issue and recognize all marriages. Protected under 14th amendment
Dred Scott v Sanford
not protected under constitution, end was foreseeable (art 1 sect 8 commerce clause)
Mccoulloch v Maryland
this case gave federal government more control; started appointing implied powers
Gibbons v Ogden
this case gave congress power over interstate commerce but never defined it
Why are civil liberties so important to a democracy?
protect minorities, provide basic foundation for democracy, protects the marketplace of ideas
was the constitutional convention concluded with a Bill of Rights?
no
Which amendment applies Bill of Rights to the states?
14th amendment
What are three forms of media?
print, broadcast, digital
what are the 3 agents of socialization?
parents, education, media
what are the cons of broadcast media?
incomplete coverage, opinionated, time-constrained
how did Articles of confederation set up the relationship between the states and the federal government
The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments
Separation of powers
the division of the governmental power among several institutions that must cooperate in decision-making
Checks and balances
mechanisms through which each branch of government is able to participate in and influence the activities of the other branches;
Federalism
a system of government in which power is divided, by a constitution, between a central government and regional governments
Unitary systems
centralized government systems in which lower levels of government have little power independent of the national government
Constitutional powers of the national government
- supremacy clause
- necessary and proper clause
supremacy clause
Article VI of the constitution, which states that laws passed by the national government and all treaties are the supreme law of the land and superior to all laws adopted by any state or any subdivision
necessary and proper clause
Article 1, Section 8, of the Constitution, which provides Congress with the authority to make all laws “necessary and proper” to carry out its expressed powers
expressed powers
Specific powers granted by the constitution to congress (Article 1, Section 8) and to the president (Article 2)
implied powers
powers derived from the necessary and proper clause of Article 1, Section 8, of the Constitution: such powers are not specifically expressed but are implied through the expansive interpretation of delegated powers
10th amendment
Police powers
reserved powers
Powers that are shared by both the national and state governments
collect taxes, provide for the health and welfare of people, build roads, borrow money
Concurrent powers
authority possessed by both state and national governments, such as the power to levy taxes
Full faith and credit clause
provision from Article IV, Section 1, of the Constitution requiring that the states normally honor the public acts and judicial decisions that take place in another state
Home rule
Power delegated by the state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs
Bill of rights
the first 10 amendments to the US constitution, ratified in 1791: they ensure certain rights and liberties to the people
Civil rights
guarantees of equal opportunity and protection through obligations imposed on government to protect individuals
Civil liberties
areas of personal freedom constitutionally protected from government interference
Establishment clause
The First Amendment clause that says “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion”; this constitutional provision means that a “wall of separation” exists between church and state
Free exercise clause
the First Amendment clause that protects a citizen’s right to believe and practice whatever religion they choose
plessy v ferguson
advanced the controversial “separate but equal” doctrine for assessing the constitutionality of racial segregation laws.
separate but equal
refers to the infamously racist decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) that allowed the use of segregation laws by states and local governments
brown v board of education
In this milestone decision, the Supreme Court ruled that separating children in public schools on the basis of race was unconstitutional.
1965 voting rights act
outlawed the discriminatory voting practices adopted in many southern states after the Civil War, including literacy tests as a prerequisite to voting
redlining
illegal discriminatory practice in which a mortgage lender denies loans or an insurance provider restricts services to certain areas of a community, often because of the racial characteristics of the applicant’s neighbourhood
values (beliefs)
basic principles that shape a person’s opinions about political issues and events
attitudes (opinions)
Specific preferences on particular issues
political ideologies
a cohesive set of beliefs that forms a general philosophy about the role of government
types of political ideology
-liberalism
-conservatism
-moderates
partisanship
Identification with or support of a particular party or cause
features of a good public opinion poll
- sample size
-random sample
-margin of error
social desirability bias
the effect that results when respondents in a survey answer questions in a way that will be viewed favorably by others; can lead to overreporting good behavior or socially acceptable answers, or underreporting socially undesirable behavior
push poll
pressuring someone to answer the way you want them to
bandwagon effect
shifts in electoral support to the candidate whom public-opinion polls report as the front runner
selection bias
polling error that arises when the sample is not representative of the population being studied, which creates errors in overrepresenting or underrepresenting some opinions
media
print and digital forms of communication, including television, newspapers, radio, the internet, and social media sites– that convey information to large audiences
broadcast media
communication methods such as television and radio; they tend to take the form of one publisher to many viewers
print media
digital media
media monopolies
giant, often global, corporations that control a wide array of media, including television networks, movie studios, record companies, cable channels, book and newspaper publishers, and digital media outlets
profit motive of the media
- need advertisement money so appeal to viewers to get more views and more money
agenda setting
the media’s designation of some issues, events or people as important and others not
framing
the process of presenting information from a certain perspective in order to shape the audience’s understanding of that information
priming
the process of calling attention to some issues, and not others, when reporting on political events and officials
it is important for americans to have political knowledge so that they will
be better able to assess their own interests when making political choices
in order to increase political efficacy, it is necessary to
increase political knowledge
which of the following is an accurate statement about the consequences of declining trust in government?
distrust makes it difficult for government to attract talented and effective workers to public service
the digital divide refers to the fact that
some groups are excluded from online participation in society
why are knowledge citizens more engaged in politics?
they often better understand how politics affect their lives
Of the powers contained within the U.S. Constitution, which are more clearly articulated?
Expressed powers
Why did the delegates at the Philadelphia convention initially turn down the idea of including a list of citizens’ rights in the constitution?
They believed that since the federal government was already limited to its expressed powers, further protection of citizens was not needed.
The existence of slavery in the United States is a good example of how
American values are not always reflected in practice
Daniel Shays was
A former army captain that led a mob of farmers in a rebellion against the Massachusetts government
A push poll is more likely to include which of the following questions?
Do you think it was appropriate for President Obama to lie about how Benghazi happened?
The power delegated by a state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs is known as
Home rule
_____ powers exist when both the state and national governments share authority in certain domains
Concurrent
Why was the Declaration of Independence a remarkable political statement for its time?
It helped unify colonial groups that were divided along economic, regional, and philosophical lines by identifying shared problems, grievances, and principles
Under the Articles of Confederation, the relationship between the states and the federal government can best be compared to
The United Nations’ relationship with member states
Why did states like Delaware, Connecticut, and New York oppose the Virginia Plan?
They feared that large states would dominate the new government if representation were to be determined by population as stipulated by the Virginia Plan.
How many respondents to a poll are needed, at a minimum, for its results to be accepted as adequately representative of a much larger population?
1000
What is an unfunded mandate?
A federal law that requires the states to do certain things but does not provide state governments with the funding to implement these policies
The Antifederalists argued that the powers of the national government should be limited by
Adding a bill of rights to the Constitution
Compared with the Articles of Confederation, federalism under the Constitution has led to
Greater centralization of power
The “separate but equal” doctrine
Permitted a system of segregated social facilities
Federalism is best defined as a system of government
In which power is divided between a national government and lower level governments
What is a political value?
Basic principles that shape a person’s opinions about political issues and events
When using a simple random sample
Every individual in a population has an equal probability of being selected as a respondent
A state government’s authority to regulate the safety, health, and morals of its citizens is called ______ power.
Reserved
Which of the following statements best describes the history of American federalism?
Since the Founding, there has been considerable debate about the allocation of responsibilities between the states and the federal government
Nations that adopt a federal arrangement are most likely to have
Diverse ethnic or language groups
What is the purpose of the Tenth Amendment?
To limit the powers of the federal government by reserving certain powers to the states and to the people
Civil rights laws have prohibited redlining, which is the practice of
Blocking mortgage loans for houses located in certain neighborhoods
One problem with online news is that when negative stories go viral and spread quickly without fact-checking or respect for the privacy of public figures, it is possible people are reading
Fake news
Which of the following statements about mass media numbers and ownership is accurate?
The number of news sources (those doing the actual news gathering) is actually quite small
The so-called wall of separation between church and state is best found in which clause of the Constitution?
The establishment clause
The unalienable rights of “life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness” are found in which document?
The declaration of independence
What is the name of the clause that is understood to give congress the power to pass any law that is crucial to carry out its expressed powers?
Necessary and proper clause
If a person supports a candidate because he or she is the front-runner in a poll, it is an example of the
Bandwagon effect
______ are areas of personal freedom with which governments are constrained from interfering
Civil liberties
What is agenda setting?
The power of the media to bring public attention to particular issues and problems
The ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
Established the “separate but equal” rule
The power of the media to decide how the American people interpret political events and results is called
Framing
A political ideology is best defined as
A cohesive set of beliefs that form a general philosophy about the government
Which of the following best summarizes the Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown v. Board of Education (1954)?
Racially segregated schools can never be equal
In understanding public opinion, what is an attitude?
A specific preference on a particular issue
One of the persistent consequences of redlining is
A racial wealth gap
_____ generally support reproductive rights and oppose state involvement with religious institutions
Liberals
The fact that survey respondents over-report voting in elections and the frequency of their church attendance is an example of the
Social desirability bias
Suppose a public opinion poll has a margin of error of +/- 3 points. The Republican candidate has the support of 52% of respondents, and the Democratic candidate has the support of 48%. Which of the following statements would be supported with the poll?
It could go either way
