Unit 3: Introducing Government in America

Question 1

What factors contribute to youth apathy regarding politics?

Answer 1

• Thinking politicians don’t listen to them
• Thinking the political system is corrupt
• Just don’t care
• Low political efficacy
• Easy to avoid political networks on TV and the Internet (Selective Exposure)
• Low political knowledge
• Most government policies don’t provide for young people (Medicare and Social Security)

Question 2

What is a government?

Answer 2

A government consists of institutions that make public policies for a society. Four institutions make up the U.S. Government:
- Congress (legislative)
- The President (executive)
- The Court (judicial)
- The Bureaucracy

Question 3

What are collective goods?

Answer 3

Collective goods are goods and services, like clean air and water, that cannot be denied to anyone.

Question 4

What is politics?

Answer 4

Politics is the process of determining the leaders we select and the policies they pursue, producing authoritative decisions about policy issues.

Question 5

What is political participation?

Answer 5

Political participation consists of all the activities citizens attempt to influence the selection of political leaders and the policies they pursue. Voting is the most common participation, but other means include contacting public officials, protesting, and engaging in civil disobedience.

Question 6

What are single-issue groups?

Answer 6

Single-issue groups have a narrow interest in which their members tend to take an uncompromising stance.

Question 7

What is the policymaking system?

Answer 7

The policymaking system is the process by which policy comes into being and evolves. People’s interests, problems, and concerns create political issues for government policymakers. These issues shape policy, which impacts people, generating more interest, problems, and concerns.

Question 8

What are linkage institutions?

Answer 8

Linkage institutions are the political channels through which people’s concerns become political issues on the policy agenda. In the U.S., linkage institutions include elections, political parties, interest groups, and the media.

Question 9

What is a policy agenda?

Answer 9

A policy agenda contains issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people involved in politics at a point in time.

Question 10

What is a political issue?

Answer 10

A political issue is an issue that arises when people disagree about a problem and how to fix it.

Question 11

What are policymaking institutions?

Answer 11

Policymaking institutions are branches of the government charged with taking action on political issues. The U.S. Constitution established three policymaking institutions: Congress, the presidency, and the courts. However, the power of bureaucracy today is so great that many political scientists consider it a fourth policymaking institution.

Question 12

What is public policy?

Answer 12

Public policy is a choice that the government makes in response to a political issue. A policy is a course of action taken concerning some problem.

Question 13

What are policy impacts?

Answer 13

Policy impacts are the effects a policy has on people and problems. Impacts are analyzed to see how well a policy has met its goal and at what cost.

Question 14

What is a democracy?

Answer 14

Democracy is a system of selecting policymakers and organizing the government so that policy represents and responds to the public’s preferences.

Question 15

What are the traditional values of democratic theory?

Answer 15

• Equality in voting
• Effective participation
• Enlightened understanding
• Citizen control of the agenda
• Inclusion

Question 16

What is the majority rule?

Answer 16

The majority rule is a fundamental principle of traditional democratic theory. In a democracy, choosing among alternatives requires respecting the majority’s desire.

Question 17

What are minority rights?

Answer 17

Minority rights are a principle of traditional democratic theory that guarantees rights to those who do not belong to majorities.

Question 18

What is representation?

Answer 18

Representation is a basic principle of traditional democratic theory that describes the relationship between the few leaders and the many followers.

Question 19

What is pluralism?

Answer 19

Pluralism is a theory of American democracy that emphasizes that the policymaking process is open to the participation of all groups with shared interests, with no single group usually dominating. Pluralists tend to believe that as a result, public interest generally prevails.

Question 20

What is elitism?

Answer 20

Elitism is a theory of American democracy contending that an upper-class elite holds the power and makes policy, regardless of the formal governmental organization.

Question 21

What is hyperpluralism?

Answer 21

Hyperpluralism is a theory of American democracy that interest groups are so strong that the government, which gives in to the many different groups, is weakened.

Question 22

What are the challenges facing democracy?

Answer 22

• Weakening of Democratic Norms
• Increased Complexity of Issues
• Limited Participation in Government
• Escalating Campaign Costs
• Diverse Political Interests

Question 23

What is a policy gridlock?

Answer 23

Policy gridlock is a condition that occurs when interests conflict and no coalition is strong enough to form a majority and establish policy, so nothing gets done.

Question 24

What is political culture?

Answer 24

Political culture is an overall set of values widely shared within a society.

Question 25

What is the gross domestic product (GDP)?

Answer 25

Gross domestic product (GDP) is the total sum of the value of all the goods and services produced in a year in a nation.