U4: American Political Ideologies and Beliefs

Unit 4: American Political Ideologies and Beliefs (10-15% Exam Weight)

4.1 American Attitudes About Government and Politics

Main Topics

● Ideology

○ Beliefs and ideas that shape political opinion and policy

● American Political Culture

4.2 Political Socialization

Main Topics

● Political Socialization

○ A continuous process in which a person develops their ideology through different factors and experiences

● Demographic Characteristics

● Globalization

○ Growth of cultural and economic relationships between nations

○ Grows due to rise in technology

4.3 Changes in Ideology

Main Topics

● Generational Effects

○ Experiences shared by people of the same age (generation) that shape their ideologies and political attitude

● Lifecycle Effects

○ Individual experiences and factors that shape an individual’s ideologies and political attitude

○ Occurs over a lifetime

4.4 Influence of Political Events on Ideology

Main Topics

● Period Effects

○ Major events and social trends that shape the political attitude of the entire population 

● Formative Age

○ 18-24

○ The years in which an individual develops lasting political attitudes

● Party Realignment

○ A political party undergoes a major change in their political agenda

○ Accommodates to issues or voting blocs

4.5 Measuring Public Opinion

Main Topics

● Public Opinion

○ The people’s preferences and opinions towards certain issues or political figures

○ Measured through polls and surveys

● Measuring Terminology

○ Population = entire group of people that want to study

○ Sample = group of people from the population that researchers study to gauge the population’s opinion

○ Random Sample = randomized process of selecting a sample, ensures everyone in the population has an equal chance of being selected

○ Margin of Error = range in which data and results are considered accurate

● Types of Polls

4.6 Evaluating Public Opinion Data

Main Topics

● Factors Evaluated

○ Intensity = how strong people hold an opinion

○ Manifest Opinion = opinions held by a widespread amount of people

○ Salience = individual measure of how an issue affects that individual

● Errors in Polling

○ Leads to misleading, inaccurate, imprecise information

○ Biased Questions = questions worded in a specific way that influences the response

○ Small Sample Size = small samples have large margins or error, thus less precise and accurate

○ Lack of Disclosure = polls or surveys in which the researcher does not disclose the methods in which they performed their research

■ Makes data unreliable

■ Researchers should follow proper scientific methods

4.7 Ideologies of Political Parties

Main Topics

● Types of Ideologies

Ideology and Associated Party Description of Beliefs

4.8 Ideology and Policy Making

Main Topics

● Policy Mood

○ Measure of the public’s attitude and preferences towards policies

● Position Issue

○ Issue that divides voters

● Valence Issue

○ Issue that voters should agree on

● Methods of Participating in Policy Making

○ Join interest groups

○ Communication with politicians and policy-makers

○ Run for office

4.9 Ideology and Economic Policy

Main Topics

● Fiscal Policy

○ Decisions on how the government manages the economy through taxing and spending

● Monetary Policy

○ Decisions on how the government manages the economy through control of the money supply and interest rates

● Keynesian Economics

○ Philosophy that encourages government spending to promote economic growth stability

● Supply-Side Economics

○ Philosophy that encourages tax cuts and deregulation to promote economic growth and stability

● Laissez-Faire

○ “Hands-Off” Government

■ Government should have little interference

4.10 Ideology and Social Policy

Main Topics

● Government Intervention

○ How much the government acts in regards to one’s life

● Individual Liberties

○ Individual rights of the people guaranteed by the Constitution (& Bill of Rights)

○ Should not be violated

● Social Policy