Post on 05-Jan-2016
Wilson Chapter 4Political Culture
Objective
• Students will take notes and engage in a small group discussion in order to describe American Political Culture
Your First Political Memories
• What are your first political memories?• Describe what you remember:• How old were you?• Who was responsible for influencing you
politically?• Was the memory positive?• What political party do you identify with?
What influenced that identification?• What role does school/family have in your
political socialization?
What is “Political Culture?”
• A patterned set of ways of thinking about how politics and government ought to be carried out
• It includes our fundamental assumptions about how the political process should operate
What’s the difference between Political Culture and Ideology?
• Political ideology refers to a more or less consistent set of views on the policies government ought to pursue
• While culture is a much broader concept
What fundamental elements make up American Political Culture?
• Liberty- Highly important. Let people do as they please as long as they don’t hurt others
• Equality- to vote and chance to participate
• Democracy- government is accountable to the people
• Civic duty- Ought to take community affairs seriously
• Individual Responsibility-
How do we know these are our values?
• They are inferred from looking at the books we read, films we watch, speeches and political choices we make
• Foreign observers (Like de Tocqueville)• Opinion polls
If these values are important, how do we explain behavior inconsistent with them?
• Humans often behave in an inconsistent fashion with beliefs
• But belief acts as an agent of change, slowly forcing adherence to the value as people become aware of the inconsistency
• The “American dilemma”
Why is there so much conflict if we share a common culture?
• Values can be irrelevant to specific controversies
• Values can be inconsistent with one another – Equality of opportunity may mean curtailing personal liberty
• Americanisms
How does Political Culture affect our ideas about economics?
• We adopt the same five standards as with political systems.
• BUT: We are willing to tolerate more economic inequality
• WHY? Because we emphasize “Personal responsibility” and “Economic Individualism” we opt for “Equality of Opportunity” rather than “Equality of Results”
Who differs in this opinion?
• Civil Rights leaders and Women’s rights leaders often stress “Results” more than “Opportunity”
• WHY?
What role does Religion play in shaping Political Culture?
• Americans are more religious than other western democracies
• At least for non elites, Americans have become more religious over the last two decades
• Religion is attractive to Americans as much for civic significance as spiritual significance
Table 4.7: Religion in Industrialized Nations, 1990-1993
Table 4.8: American Beliefs about Faith-Based Programs
Where do we get our Political Culture?
• History:• American Revolution as a fight over liberty • Declaration of Independence enshrines
certain values• Thus Americans have a preoccupation with
the assertion and maintenance of rights• Americans also get from our history a
suspicion and mistrust of government
Figure 4.1: Trust in the Federal Government, 1958-2001
• Source: University of Michigan, The National Election Studies, (September 1999), table 5A.1, updated by Los Angeles Times, poll taken November 10-13, 2001.
Where do we get our Political Culture? cont’d
• The Constitution• The federal system with divided political
authority provided opportunity for widespread participation in politics
Origins of Political Culture, cont’d
• Religious Diversity with a dominant Protestant tradition• Led to and was a product of the
Constitutional prohibition of a state sanctioned church
• Protestant churches provided members with organizational experience as they are often organized and controlled by the members
• “Protestant ethic” motivates civic engagement
How is Political Culture Transmitted?
• The process of transmitting political culture is called Political Socialization
• Primarily by the family• Direct dissemination of values• Structure of the family
• Equality among family members• Greater freedom of children
Other means of Political Socialization
• Religious Institutions- Structure and transmission of values
• School- Through history and government classes and political perspectives of teachers and peers
• Media- TV, radio, newspapers and magazines
• Real Life Experiences- the primary influence on adults