terms

Question 1

public opinion

Answer 1

citizens’ attitudes about political issues, personalities, institutions and events.

Question 2

individual public opinion

Answer 2

what one person thinks about issues, personalities, institutions and events.

Question 3

aggregate public opinion

Answer 3

the accumulation of individual beliefs as expressed in polls, votes, town meetings, and protests.

Question 4

socialization

Answer 4

a process where individuals take on their communities’ perspectives and preferences through social interaction.

Question 5

ideology

Answer 5

a comprehensive way of understanding political or cultural situations.

Question 6

political identities

Answer 6

distinctive characteristics or group associations that individuals carry, reflecting their social connections or common values and interests with others in that group.

Question 7

agenda-setting effect

Answer 7

the power of the media to focus attention on issues

Question 8

priming

Answer 8

the use of media coverage to make the public take a particular view of an event or a public figure.

Question 9

framing

Answer 9

the influence of the media over how events and issues are interpreted.

Question 10

adverse selection

Answer 10

the problem of incomplete information, of choosing alternatives without fully knowing the details of available options

Question 11

moral hazard

Answer 11

problem of not knowing all aspects of the actions taken by an agent

Question 12

turnout rate

Answer 12

number of people who vote in a given election divided by the number of people who are allowed to vote.

Question 13

Australian ballot

Answer 13

an electoral format that presents the names of all the candidates for any given office on the same ballot

Question 14

single-member district

Answer 14

the electorate is allowed to elect only one representative from each district

Question 15

plurality rule

Answer 15

an electoral system where victory goes to the individual who gets the most votes, but not necessarily a majority of the votes cast.

Question 16

majority rule

Answer 16

to win office, a candidate must receive a majority of all votes cast.

Question 17

Duvergers law

Answer 17

plurality rule electoral systems will tend to have two political parties.

Question 18

referendum

Answer 18

when the electorate votes directly on a proposed law that has been passed by the legislature or on a specific governmental action

Question 19

initiative

Answer 19

a process by which citizens may petition to place a policy proposal on the ballot for a public vote.

Question 20

recall

Answer 20

the removal of a public official by popular vote.

Question 21

issue voting

Answer 21

basing decision on extent to which they agree with the candidate or party on specific issues.

Question 22

spatial issues

Answer 22

which a range of options or policies can be ordered

Question 23

valence issues

Answer 23

those for which all voters prefer a higher value

Question 24

political parties

Answer 24

organized group that attempt to control the government by electing their members to office.

Question 25

nomination

Answer 25

process by which political parties select their candidates for election to public office

Question 26

closed primary

Answer 26

only those voters who have registered their affiliation with the party by a specified time can participate

Question 27

open primary

Answer 27

voters can choose on the day of the primary which partys primary to vote in.

Question 28

majority party

Answer 28

hold the majority of seats in a legislative chamber and elect leaders.

Question 29

party identification

Answer 29

attachment voters form to one party based on upbringing, ideology on policy, past experiences.

Question 30

party activist

Answer 30

one who contributes time and energy beyond voting to support a party and its candidates.

Question 31

caucuses

Answer 31

meetings of a political or legislative group to select candidates, plan strategy, or make decisions about legislative matters.

Question 32

winner takes all

Answer 32

form of voting in which the candidate with the largest percentage of votes, regardless of it is a majority, wins the race.

Question 33

proportional representation

Answer 33

a multimember district system that awards seats to political parties in proportion to the percentage of the vote each party won.

Question 34

interest group

Answer 34

an organized group of people that attempt to influence government policies.

Question 35

pluralism

Answer 35

the theory that all interest are and should be free to compete for influence in the government

Question 36

selective benefits

Answer 36

are benefits that do not of to everyone but are distributed selectively, to only those who contribute to the group

Question 37

lobbying

Answer 37

refers to the efforts by individuals or groups to influence the actions of government officials.

Question 38

grassroots lobbying

Answer 38

mobilizing interest group membership to contact government officials in support of the groups position

Question 39

news deserts

Answer 39

areas of the country in which no general news publications exist.

Question 40

equal time rule

Answer 40

broadcasters must provide candidates for the same official an equal opportunity to communicate their messages to the public.

Question 41

right of rebuttal

Answer 41

broadcasters must give individuals the opportunity to respond to their airing of personal attacks against them