Political Participation and Citizenship Chapter 11

Chapter 11: The Ideal Democratic Citizen and Voter Participation

• Ideal citizens are informed about political issues, participate in civic activities, vote, and hold representatives accountable.
• Apolitical citizens prioritize personal interests over public affairs, may vote but aren't engaged in other civic activities, and lack political knowledge.
• Political socialization is the process through which individuals develop political beliefs and values, influenced by family, education, media, and social networks.
• Voter participation in the U.S. is historically lower than in many other democracies.
• Partisan sorting is the tendency for people to align themselves with a political party whose ideology aligns with theirs over time.
• Political generations are cohorts of people who experience significant political events together, which shapes their political attitudes and behaviors.
• Spiral of silence is a theory that suggests individuals are less likely to express unpopular opinions.
• Public opinion polling involves methods for studying public opinion including:
  • Population: The entire group being studied.
  • Sample: A subset of the population.
  • Sample bias: A skewed sample that does not reflect the population.
  • Sampling error: The margin of error in survey results based on the sample.
  • Random samples: All members have an equal chance of being included in the sample.
  • Nonresponse bias: Bias caused by individuals not responding to surveys.
  • Weighting: Adjusting results to make them more representative of the population.
  • Robo-calling: Automated calls for polling or solicitations.

Chapter 12: Ideological Breakdown of Political Parties

• Generally, Democrats lean left, supporting social equality and government intervention, while Republicans lean right, focusing on individual liberties and free markets.
• Party activists are actively involved in promoting a party's candidates and policies.
• A party platform outlines the goals a party supports.
• Negative partisanship involves acting against the opposing party rather than supporting one's own.
• The responsible party model suggests that parties should present clear platforms, hold their officials accountable, and educate voters.
• Party eras are significant periods in U.S. political history dominated by a specific party.
• Critical elections signal major shifts in the political landscape.
• Realignments represent long-lasting shifts in party loyalties and electoral support.
• Dealignment is a trend where voters become less associated with either major political party.

Chapter 13: Selective Incentives and Interest Groups

• Selective incentives encourage membership or participation in interest groups.
• These include material benefits (tangible items), solidary benefits (social connection), and expressive benefits (satisfaction from expressing political beliefs).
• Interest groups aim to influence public policy in their favor.
• Collective action problems make group efforts difficult as individuals may benefit without contributing.
• Collective goods are benefits available to all members, regardless of individual contribution.
• Free riders are individuals who benefit from a collective good without contributing.
• Interest groups can have various roles.

Chapter 14: Functions of Elections and Voting Tendencies

• Elections serve for selecting leaders, representing policy direction, civic engagement, informing public, and resolving conflicts.
• Policy efficacy is the belief that government action can result in effective change.
• The Voting Rights Act of 1965 aimed to eliminate legal barriers to voting.
• Voting tendencies vary based on age, gender, income, education, race and ethnicity, and social connectedness.
• Prospective voting involves considering future policy promises.
• Retrospective voting is based on past performance.

Chapter 15: Mass Media and Political Campaigns

• Mass media encompasses various communication channels that reach large audiences and influence them.
• News organizations report on current events and distribute this information through various media formats.
• News aggregators collect information from various sources.
• Narrowcasting targets specific audiences, unlike broadcasting.
• Media convergence describes the combination of different media formats.
• A permanent campaign describes consistent political efforts.
• News management strategies aim to control news narratives and coverage.
• Spin refers to the biased representation of actions/statements.
• Gatekeepers are powerful figures that determine news coverage.
• Corporate ownership in media can create commercial bias, reducing political coverage, and emphasizing sensationalism.
• Conflicts of interest can influence journalistic integrity.
• Corruption of journalistic standards, a revolving door phenomenon, and pundits affect objectivity.
• Creation of political narratives in terms of persuasion, reduction, and horse-race journalism potentially distorts substantive issues.
• Other methods like sound bites, agenda-setting, and framing are also used to shape public discourse and understanding.