Unit 4: Linkage Institutions Flashcards
political ideology
a set of beliefs about the desired goals and outcomes of a process of governance
political culture
dominant set of beliefs, customs, traditions, and values that define the relationship between citizens and government
individualism
belief that individuals should be responsible for themselves and their decisions
laisse-faire/free enterprise
economic system in which gov intrudes as little as possible in the economic transactions among citizens and businesses
rule of law
principle that one one is above the law
political socialization
experiences and factors that shape an individual’s political values, attitudes, and behaviors
generational effect
impact of historical events experienced by a generation upon their political views
life-cycle effect
impact of one’s age and stage in life on their political views
globalization
increasing interconnectedness of people, businesses, and countries throughout the world
outsourcing
when a company moves its business to a place where labor costs are cheaper or production is more efficient because workers have longer hours
focus group
small group of individuals assembled for a conversation about specific issues
scientific poll
representative poll of randomly selected respondents with a significant sample size, using neutral language
sample
group of individuals from a larger population used to measure public opinion
random selection
method of choosing all poll respondents in a way that doesn’t over or underrepresent any group of the population
representative sample
sample that reflects the demographics of the population
weighing
procedure in which the survey is adjusted according to the demographic of the larger population
sampling error
margin of error in a poll, which is usually calculated to plus or minus three percentage points
mass survey
survey designed to measure the opinions of the population, usually consisting of 1,500 people
entrance survey
poll conducted of people coming to an event
exit poll
survey conducted outside a polling place in which people are asked who they voted for and why
benchmark poll
survey taken at the beginning of a political campaign in order to gauge support for a candidate and determine which issues are important to voters
random digit dialing
use of randomly generated telephone numbers to select potential survey respondants
question order
sequencing of questions in public opinion polls
question wording
phrasing of a question in a public opinion poll
political participation
different ways in which individuals take action to shape laws/policies of government
(voting, etc)
political action comittee
organization that raises money to elect and defeat candidates; may donate money direction to a candidate’s campaign, subject to limits
linkage institution
channels that connect individuals with government (e.g. elections, political parties, interest groups, the media)
social movement
joining of individuals seeking social/political change; goal of placing issues on the policy agenda
franchise (sufferage)
the right to vote
26th amendment
lowered the voting age to 18
24th amendment
prohibits states from imposing a poll tax in federal elections
poll tax
payment required by a state before a citizen is allowed to vote
voter turnout
number of eligible voters who participate in an election as a percentage of the total number of eligible voters
demographic characteristics
measurable characteristics of a population (e.g. economic status, education, age, race/ethnicity, gender)
socioeconomic status (SES)
measure of an individual’s wealth, income, occupation, and educational attainment
political efficacy
person’s belief that they can make effective political change
political mobilization
efforts by political parties to encourage their members to vote
registration requirements
set of rules that govern who can vote, when, how, and where
absentee ballot
voting completed and submitted by a voter before the day of an election w/o going to the polls
rational choice voting
voting based on what a citizen believes is their best interest
incumbant
political figure who currently holds office
retrospect voting
voting based on an assessment of an incumbent’s past performance
prospective voting
casting a ballot for a candidate who promises to enact policies favored by the voter in the future
party-line voting
voting for candidates who belong only to one political party for all offices on the ballot
Electoral College
constitutionally required process for selecting the president through the slates of electors chosen in each state, who are pledged to vote for a nominee in the presidential election
winner-take-all system
system of elections in which the candidate who wins the plurality of votes within a state receives all of that state’s votes in the Electoral College
battleground state
state where the polls show a close contest between the Republican and Democratic candidate in a presidential election
swing state
state where levels of support for the parties are similar and elections swing back and forth between D and R
Get Out The Vote (GOTV)
efforts to mobilize supporters
super PAC
organization that may spend an unlimited amount of money on a political campaign, as long as the spending is not coordinated with a campaign
political party
organized group of party leaders, officeholders, and voters who work together to elect candidates to political office
party identification
degree to which a voter is connected to and influenced by a particular political party
straight-ticket voting
voting for all of the candidates on the ballot from one political party
split-ticket voting
voting for candidates from different parties in the same election
party platform
set of positions and policy objectives that members of a political party agree to
party coalition
groups of voters who support a political party over time
realignment
when the groups of people who support a political party shift their allegiance to a different political party
critical election
major national election that signals a change in the balance of power between two parties
party era
time period when one party wins most national elections
era of divided government
trend since 1969, in which one party controls one or both houses of Congress and the president is from the opposing party
nomination
formal process through which parties choose their candidates for political office
delegate
person who acts as the voters’ representative at a convention to select the party’s nominee
primary election
election in which a state’s voters choose delegates who support a presidential candidate for nomination or an election by a plurality vote to select a party’s nominee for a seat in Congress
open primary
primary election in which all eligible voters may vote, regardless of their party affiliation
closed primary
primary election in which only those who have registered as a member of a political party may vote
caucus
process through which a only those who have registered as a member of a political party may vote
super delegate
usually a party leader or activist who is not pledged to a candidate based on the outcome of the state’s primary or caucus
front-loading
decision by a state to push its primary or caucus to a date as early in the election season as possible to gain more influence in the presidential nomination process
national convention
meeting where delegates officially select their party’s nominee for presidency
candidate-centered campaign
trend in which candidates develop their own strategies and raise money with less influence from the party elite
two-party system
system in which two political parties dominate politics, winning almost all elections
proportional representation system
election system for a legislature in which citizens vote for parties, rather than individuals, and parties are represented in the legislature according to the percentage of the vote they may receive
single-member plurality system
election system for choosing members of the legislature where the winner is the candidate who receives the most votes, even if the candidate does not receive a majority of the votes
interest groups
voluntary associations of people who come together with the goal of getting policies they favor enacted
social movements
diffuse groups that educate the public and put pressure on policy makers in an effort to bring about societal change
theory of participatory democracy
belief that citizens impact policymaking through their involvement in civil society
civil society
groups outside the government that advocate for policy
pluralist theory
theory that political power is distributed among many competing groups, which means no single group can be too powerful
elitist theory
theory that the wealthy elite class has a disproportionate amount of economic and political power
policy agenda
set of issues to which gov officials, voters, and the public are paying attention
collective action
political action that occurs when individuals contribute their time, energy, or money to a larger group goal
collective good
(public good), a public benefit that individuals can enjoy or profit from even if they do not help achieve it
free riders
individuals who enjoy collective goods and benefit from the actions of an interest group without joinging
selective benefits
benefits available to only those who join the group
economic interest groups
groups advocating on behalf of the financial interests of their members
public interest groups
groups that act on behalf of the collective interest of a broad group of individuals
single issue groups
associations focusing on one specific area of public policy, often a moral issue on which they are unwilling to compromise
government interest groups
organizations acting on behalf of local, state, or foreign gov’ts
lobbying
interacting with government officials in order to advance a group’s public policy goals
revolving door
movement of individuals between positions in government and lobbying positions
amicus curae brief
brief filed by someone who is not a party to a case in an attempt to persuade the Courts to agree with the arguments set forth in the brief
iron triangle
coordinates and mutually beneficial activities of the bureaucracy, Congress, and interest groups to achieve shared policy goals
issue network
webs of influence between interest groups, policymakers, and policy advocates
grassroots lobbying
mobilizing interest group members to pressure their representatives by contacting them directly through phone calls, email, and social media
protest
public demonstration designed to call attention to the need for a change
civil disobedience
intentionally breaking a law to call attention to an injustice
news media
includes newspapers, magazines, radio, television, internet sources, blogs, and social media postings that cover important events
social media
forms of electronic communication that enable users to create and share content or to participate through social networking
agenda setting
media’s ability to highlight certain issues and bring them to the attention of the public
mass media
sources of info designed to reach a wide audience, including newspapers, radio, television, and internet outlets
e service
organization that gathers the news and offers it for sale to other media outlets
investigative journalism
approach to newsgathering in which reporters dig into stories, often looking for instances of wrongdoing
broadcast media
outlets for news and other content including radio and television that bring stories directly into people’s homes
media consolidation
concentration of ownership of the media into fewer corporations
partisan bias
slanting of political news coverage in support of a particular political party or ideology
