MIDTERM Flashcards
(127 cards)
1
Q
What is political efficacy
A
the belief that one can influence government and politics
2
Q
What is political knowledge?
A
information about the formal institutions of government, political actors, and political issues
3
Q
What is political trust?
A
citizen’s confidence in political institutions as important indicator of political legitimacy
4
Q
Why are political trust, political efficacy, and political knowledge important for a functioning democracy?
A
evidence suggests that political knowledge contributes to:
- more stable and consistent political attitudes
- helps citizens achieve their own interests and make decisions that conform with their attitudes and preferences
- promotes support for democratic values
- facilitates trust in the political system
- motivates political participation
5
Q
Articles of confederation
A
America’s first written constitution; served as the basis for America’s national government until 1789
6
Q
the power of the federal government began to expand after 1933 in response to __
A
the stock market crash of 1929, the great depression, and the run on banks of 1933
7
Q
Which of the following statements concerning political values in the united states is most accurate?
A
american values often conflict with each other in practice
8
Q
the boston tea party was largely a response to the __
A
british government’s decision to grant the east india company a monopoly on the export of tea from britain
9
Q
how was political power in the continental congress divided under the articles of confederation?
A
each state had an equal vote
10
Q
which clause in the US Constitution affirms that national laws and treaties are the supreme law of the land?
A
the supremacy clause
11
Q
Which clause is the source of implied powers under the US Constitution?
A
necessary and proper
12
Q
Which of the following best summarizes the Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown v Board of Education (1954)
A
racially segregated schools can never be equal
13
Q
The ____ clause of the First Amendment protects an individual’s right to believe and practice whatever religion he or she chooses
A
free exercise
14
Q
Conservatives are more likely than liberals to support ___
A
school prayer
15
Q
Liberalism and conservatism are examples of ___
A
political ideologies
16
Q
One problem with online news is that when negative stories go viral and spread quickly without fact-checking or respect for the privacy of public figures, it is possible people are reading ___
A
fake news
17
Q
Which of the following statements best characterizes the difference between agenda setting and framing?
A
framing is more about how events are interpreted; agenda setting is more about which events are covered by the media
18
Q
What kind of trend is seen in government trust over the years?
A
downnward
19
Q
What are the roles of a citizen?
A
informed, active, hold officials accountable
20
Q
What gives both illegal and legal immigrants the same rights as US citizens
A
Due process (4th amendment)
21
Q
2 forms of democratic government
A
representative and direct
22
Q
How did they try to reach the goal of limiting government power?
A
separation of powers, federalism, divided constituencies, and Bill of Rights
23
Q
What is required to amend the Constitution?
A
2/3 vote in Congress
24
Q
Constitution is conservative because it ___ the revolution; it is liberal because it ___ the revolution
A
preserve; introduced
25
Why is federalism better for diverse countries?
it allows them to self govern (autonomy)
26
2 types of powers granted to congress
expressed and implied
27
Obergefell v Hodges
ruled all 50 states had to issue and recognize all marriages. Protected under 14th amendment
28
Dred Scott v Sanford
not protected under constitution, end was foreseeable (art 1 sect 8 commerce clause)
29
Mccoulloch v Maryland
this case gave federal government more control; started appointing implied powers
30
Gibbons v Ogden
this case gave congress power over interstate commerce but never defined it
31
Why are civil liberties so important to a democracy?
protect minorities, provide basic foundation for democracy, protects the marketplace of ideas
32
was the constitutional convention concluded with a Bill of Rights?
no
32
Which amendment applies Bill of Rights to the states?
14th amendment
32
What are three forms of media?
print, broadcast, digital
32
what are the 3 agents of socialization?
parents, education, media
32
what are the cons of broadcast media?
incomplete coverage, opinionated, time-constrained
32
how did Articles of confederation set up the relationship between the states and the federal government
The Articles created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, leaving most of the power with the state governments
33
Separation of powers
the division of the governmental power among several institutions that must cooperate in decision-making
34
Checks and balances
mechanisms through which each branch of government is able to participate in and influence the activities of the other branches;
35
Federalism
a system of government in which power is divided, by a constitution, between a central government and regional governments
36
Unitary systems
centralized government systems in which lower levels of government have little power independent of the national government
37
Constitutional powers of the national government
- supremacy clause
- necessary and proper clause
38
supremacy clause
Article VI of the constitution, which states that laws passed by the national government and all treaties are the supreme law of the land and superior to all laws adopted by any state or any subdivision
39
necessary and proper clause
Article 1, Section 8, of the Constitution, which provides Congress with the authority to make all laws “necessary and proper” to carry out its expressed powers
40
expressed powers
Specific powers granted by the constitution to congress (Article 1, Section 8) and to the president (Article 2)
41
implied powers
powers derived from the necessary and proper clause of Article 1, Section 8, of the Constitution: such powers are not specifically expressed but are implied through the expansive interpretation of delegated powers
42
10th amendment
43
Police powers
44
reserved powers
45
Powers that are shared by both the national and state governments
collect taxes, provide for the health and welfare of people, build roads, borrow money
46
Concurrent powers
authority possessed by both state and national governments, such as the power to levy taxes
47
Full faith and credit clause
provision from Article IV, Section 1, of the Constitution requiring that the states normally honor the public acts and judicial decisions that take place in another state
48
Home rule
Power delegated by the state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs
49
Bill of rights
the first 10 amendments to the US constitution, ratified in 1791: they ensure certain rights and liberties to the people
50
Civil rights
guarantees of equal opportunity and protection through obligations imposed on government to protect individuals
51
Civil liberties
areas of personal freedom constitutionally protected from government interference
52
Establishment clause
The First Amendment clause that says “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion”; this constitutional provision means that a “wall of separation” exists between church and state
53
Free exercise clause
the First Amendment clause that protects a citizen’s right to believe and practice whatever religion they choose
54
plessy v ferguson
advanced the controversial “separate but equal” doctrine for assessing the constitutionality of racial segregation laws.
55
separate but equal
refers to the infamously racist decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) that allowed the use of segregation laws by states and local governments
56
brown v board of education
In this milestone decision, the Supreme Court ruled that separating children in public schools on the basis of race was unconstitutional.
57
1965 voting rights act
outlawed the discriminatory voting practices adopted in many southern states after the Civil War, including literacy tests as a prerequisite to voting
58
redlining
illegal discriminatory practice in which a mortgage lender denies loans or an insurance provider restricts services to certain areas of a community, often because of the racial characteristics of the applicant's neighbourhood
59
values (beliefs)
basic principles that shape a person’s opinions about political issues and events
60
attitudes (opinions)
Specific preferences on particular issues
61
political ideologies
a cohesive set of beliefs that forms a general philosophy about the role of government
62
types of political ideology
-liberalism
-conservatism
-moderates
63
partisanship
Identification with or support of a particular party or cause
64
features of a good public opinion poll
- sample size
-random sample
-margin of error
65
social desirability bias
the effect that results when respondents in a survey answer questions in a way that will be viewed favorably by others; can lead to overreporting good behavior or socially acceptable answers, or underreporting socially undesirable behavior
66
push poll
pressuring someone to answer the way you want them to
67
bandwagon effect
shifts in electoral support to the candidate whom public-opinion polls report as the front runner
68
selection bias
polling error that arises when the sample is not representative of the population being studied, which creates errors in overrepresenting or underrepresenting some opinions
69
media
print and digital forms of communication, including television, newspapers, radio, the internet, and social media sites– that convey information to large audiences
70
broadcast media
communication methods such as television and radio; they tend to take the form of one publisher to many viewers
71
print media
72
digital media
73
media monopolies
giant, often global, corporations that control a wide array of media, including television networks, movie studios, record companies, cable channels, book and newspaper publishers, and digital media outlets
74
profit motive of the media
- need advertisement money so appeal to viewers to get more views and more money
75
agenda setting
the media’s designation of some issues, events or people as important and others not
76
framing
the process of presenting information from a certain perspective in order to shape the audience’s understanding of that information
77
priming
the process of calling attention to some issues, and not others, when reporting on political events and officials
78
it is important for americans to have political knowledge so that they will
be better able to assess their own interests when making political choices
79
in order to increase political efficacy, it is necessary to
increase political knowledge
80
which of the following is an accurate statement about the consequences of declining trust in government?
distrust makes it difficult for government to attract talented and effective workers to public service
81
the digital divide refers to the fact that
some groups are excluded from online participation in society
82
why are knowledge citizens more engaged in politics?
they often better understand how politics affect their lives
83
Of the powers contained within the U.S. Constitution, which are more clearly articulated?
Expressed powers
84
Why did the delegates at the Philadelphia convention initially turn down the idea of including a list of citizens’ rights in the constitution?
They believed that since the federal government was already limited to its expressed powers, further protection of citizens was not needed.
85
The existence of slavery in the United States is a good example of how
American values are not always reflected in practice
86
Daniel Shays was
A former army captain that led a mob of farmers in a rebellion against the Massachusetts government
87
A push poll is more likely to include which of the following questions?
Do you think it was appropriate for President Obama to lie about how Benghazi happened?
88
The power delegated by a state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs is known as
Home rule
89
_____ powers exist when both the state and national governments share authority in certain domains
Concurrent
90
Why was the Declaration of Independence a remarkable political statement for its time?
It helped unify colonial groups that were divided along economic, regional, and philosophical lines by identifying shared problems, grievances, and principles
91
Under the Articles of Confederation, the relationship between the states and the federal government can best be compared to
The United Nations’ relationship with member states
92
Why did states like Delaware, Connecticut, and New York oppose the Virginia Plan?
They feared that large states would dominate the new government if representation were to be determined by population as stipulated by the Virginia Plan.
93
How many respondents to a poll are needed, at a minimum, for its results to be accepted as adequately representative of a much larger population?
1000
94
What is an unfunded mandate?
A federal law that requires the states to do certain things but does not provide state governments with the funding to implement these policies
95
The Antifederalists argued that the powers of the national government should be limited by
Adding a bill of rights to the Constitution
95
Compared with the Articles of Confederation, federalism under the Constitution has led to
Greater centralization of power
96
The “separate but equal” doctrine
Permitted a system of segregated social facilities
97
Federalism is best defined as a system of government
In which power is divided between a national government and lower level governments
98
What is a political value?
Basic principles that shape a person’s opinions about political issues and events
99
When using a simple random sample
Every individual in a population has an equal probability of being selected as a respondent
100
A state government’s authority to regulate the safety, health, and morals of its citizens is called ______ power.
Reserved
101
Which of the following statements best describes the history of American federalism?
Since the Founding, there has been considerable debate about the allocation of responsibilities between the states and the federal government
101
Nations that adopt a federal arrangement are most likely to have
Diverse ethnic or language groups
102
What is the purpose of the Tenth Amendment?
To limit the powers of the federal government by reserving certain powers to the states and to the people
103
Civil rights laws have prohibited redlining, which is the practice of
Blocking mortgage loans for houses located in certain neighborhoods
104
One problem with online news is that when negative stories go viral and spread quickly without fact-checking or respect for the privacy of public figures, it is possible people are reading
Fake news
105
Which of the following statements about mass media numbers and ownership is accurate?
The number of news sources (those doing the actual news gathering) is actually quite small
106
The so-called wall of separation between church and state is best found in which clause of the Constitution?
The establishment clause
107
The unalienable rights of “life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness” are found in which document?
The declaration of independence
108
What is the name of the clause that is understood to give congress the power to pass any law that is crucial to carry out its expressed powers?
Necessary and proper clause
109
If a person supports a candidate because he or she is the front-runner in a poll, it is an example of the
Bandwagon effect
110
______ are areas of personal freedom with which governments are constrained from interfering
Civil liberties
111
What is agenda setting?
The power of the media to bring public attention to particular issues and problems
112
The ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
Established the “separate but equal” rule
113
The power of the media to decide how the American people interpret political events and results is called
Framing
114
A political ideology is best defined as
A cohesive set of beliefs that form a general philosophy about the government
115
Which of the following best summarizes the Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown v. Board of Education (1954)?
Racially segregated schools can never be equal
116
In understanding public opinion, what is an attitude?
A specific preference on a particular issue
117
One of the persistent consequences of redlining is
A racial wealth gap
118
_____ generally support reproductive rights and oppose state involvement with religious institutions
Liberals
119
The fact that survey respondents over-report voting in elections and the frequency of their church attendance is an example of the
Social desirability bias
120
Suppose a public opinion poll has a margin of error of +/- 3 points. The Republican candidate has the support of 52% of respondents, and the Democratic candidate has the support of 48%. Which of the following statements would be supported with the poll?
It could go either way
