Unit 4: Linkage Institutions Flashcards
(105 cards)
1
Q
political ideology
A
a set of beliefs about the desired goals and outcomes of a process of governance
2
Q
political culture
A
dominant set of beliefs, customs, traditions, and values that define the relationship between citizens and government
3
Q
individualism
A
belief that individuals should be responsible for themselves and their decisions
4
Q
laisse-faire/free enterprise
A
economic system in which gov intrudes as little as possible in the economic transactions among citizens and businesses
5
Q
rule of law
A
principle that one one is above the law
6
Q
political socialization
A
experiences and factors that shape an individual’s political values, attitudes, and behaviors
7
Q
generational effect
A
impact of historical events experienced by a generation upon their political views
8
Q
life-cycle effect
A
impact of one’s age and stage in life on their political views
9
Q
globalization
A
increasing interconnectedness of people, businesses, and countries throughout the world
10
Q
outsourcing
A
when a company moves its business to a place where labor costs are cheaper or production is more efficient because workers have longer hours
11
Q
focus group
A
small group of individuals assembled for a conversation about specific issues
12
Q
scientific poll
A
representative poll of randomly selected respondents with a significant sample size, using neutral language
13
Q
sample
A
group of individuals from a larger population used to measure public opinion
14
Q
random selection
A
method of choosing all poll respondents in a way that doesn’t over or underrepresent any group of the population
15
Q
representative sample
A
sample that reflects the demographics of the population
16
Q
weighing
A
procedure in which the survey is adjusted according to the demographic of the larger population
17
Q
sampling error
A
margin of error in a poll, which is usually calculated to plus or minus three percentage points
18
Q
mass survey
A
survey designed to measure the opinions of the population, usually consisting of 1,500 people
19
Q
entrance survey
A
poll conducted of people coming to an event
20
Q
exit poll
A
survey conducted outside a polling place in which people are asked who they voted for and why
21
Q
benchmark poll
A
survey taken at the beginning of a political campaign in order to gauge support for a candidate and determine which issues are important to voters
22
Q
random digit dialing
A
use of randomly generated telephone numbers to select potential survey respondants
23
Q
question order
A
sequencing of questions in public opinion polls
24
Q
question wording
A
phrasing of a question in a public opinion poll
25
political participation
different ways in which individuals take action to shape laws/policies of government
| (voting, etc)
26
political action comittee
organization that raises money to elect and defeat candidates; may donate money direction to a candidate's campaign, subject to limits
27
linkage institution
channels that connect individuals with government (e.g. elections, political parties, interest groups, the media)
28
social movement
joining of individuals seeking social/political change; goal of placing issues on the policy agenda
29
franchise (sufferage)
the right to vote
30
26th amendment
lowered the voting age to 18
31
24th amendment
prohibits states from imposing a poll tax in federal elections
32
poll tax
payment required by a state before a citizen is allowed to vote
33
voter turnout
number of eligible voters who participate in an election as a percentage of the total number of eligible voters
34
demographic characteristics
measurable characteristics of a population (e.g. economic status, education, age, race/ethnicity, gender)
35
socioeconomic status (SES)
measure of an individual's wealth, income, occupation, and educational attainment
36
political efficacy
person's belief that they can make effective political change
37
political mobilization
efforts by political parties to encourage their members to vote
38
registration requirements
set of rules that govern who can vote, when, how, and where
39
absentee ballot
voting completed and submitted by a voter before the day of an election w/o going to the polls
40
rational choice voting
voting based on what a citizen believes is their best interest
41
incumbant
political figure who currently holds office
42
retrospect voting
voting based on an assessment of an incumbent's past performance
43
prospective voting
casting a ballot for a candidate who promises to enact policies favored by the voter in the future
44
party-line voting
voting for candidates who belong only to one political party for all offices on the ballot
45
Electoral College
constitutionally required process for selecting the president through the slates of electors chosen in each state, who are pledged to vote for a nominee in the presidential election
46
winner-take-all system
system of elections in which the candidate who wins the plurality of votes within a state receives all of that state's votes in the Electoral College
47
battleground state
state where the polls show a close contest between the Republican and Democratic candidate in a presidential election
48
swing state
state where levels of support for the parties are similar and elections swing back and forth between D and R
49
Get Out The Vote (GOTV)
efforts to mobilize supporters
50
super PAC
organization that may spend an unlimited amount of money on a political campaign, as long as the spending is not coordinated with a campaign
51
political party
organized group of party leaders, officeholders, and voters who work together to elect candidates to political office
52
party identification
degree to which a voter is connected to and influenced by a particular political party
53
straight-ticket voting
voting for all of the candidates on the ballot from one political party
54
split-ticket voting
voting for candidates from different parties in the same election
55
party platform
set of positions and policy objectives that members of a political party agree to
56
party coalition
groups of voters who support a political party over time
57
realignment
when the groups of people who support a political party shift their allegiance to a different political party
58
critical election
major national election that signals a change in the balance of power between two parties
59
party era
time period when one party wins most national elections
60
era of divided government
trend since 1969, in which one party controls one or both houses of Congress and the president is from the opposing party
61
nomination
formal process through which parties choose their candidates for political office
62
delegate
person who acts as the voters' representative at a convention to select the party's nominee
63
primary election
election in which a state's voters choose delegates who support a presidential candidate for nomination or an election by a plurality vote to select a party's nominee for a seat in Congress
64
open primary
primary election in which all eligible voters may vote, regardless of their party affiliation
65
closed primary
primary election in which only those who have registered as a member of a political party may vote
66
caucus
process through which a only those who have registered as a member of a political party may vote
67
super delegate
usually a party leader or activist who is not pledged to a candidate based on the outcome of the state's primary or caucus
68
front-loading
decision by a state to push its primary or caucus to a date as early in the election season as possible to gain more influence in the presidential nomination process
69
national convention
meeting where delegates officially select their party's nominee for presidency
70
candidate-centered campaign
trend in which candidates develop their own strategies and raise money with less influence from the party elite
71
two-party system
system in which two political parties dominate politics, winning almost all elections
72
proportional representation system
election system for a legislature in which citizens vote for parties, rather than individuals, and parties are represented in the legislature according to the percentage of the vote they may receive
73
single-member plurality system
election system for choosing members of the legislature where the winner is the candidate who receives the most votes, even if the candidate does not receive a majority of the votes
74
interest groups
voluntary associations of people who come together with the goal of getting policies they favor enacted
75
social movements
diffuse groups that educate the public and put pressure on policy makers in an effort to bring about societal change
76
theory of participatory democracy
belief that citizens impact policymaking through their involvement in civil society
77
civil society
groups outside the government that advocate for policy
78
pluralist theory
theory that political power is distributed among many competing groups, which means no single group can be too powerful
79
elitist theory
theory that the wealthy elite class has a disproportionate amount of economic and political power
80
policy agenda
set of issues to which gov officials, voters, and the public are paying attention
81
collective action
political action that occurs when individuals contribute their time, energy, or money to a larger group goal
82
collective good
(public good), a public benefit that individuals can enjoy or profit from even if they do not help achieve it
83
free riders
individuals who enjoy collective goods and benefit from the actions of an interest group without joinging
84
selective benefits
benefits available to only those who join the group
85
economic interest groups
groups advocating on behalf of the financial interests of their members
86
public interest groups
groups that act on behalf of the collective interest of a broad group of individuals
87
single issue groups
associations focusing on one specific area of public policy, often a moral issue on which they are unwilling to compromise
88
government interest groups
organizations acting on behalf of local, state, or foreign gov'ts
89
lobbying
interacting with government officials in order to advance a group's public policy goals
90
revolving door
movement of individuals between positions in government and lobbying positions
91
amicus curae brief
brief filed by someone who is not a party to a case in an attempt to persuade the Courts to agree with the arguments set forth in the brief
92
iron triangle
coordinates and mutually beneficial activities of the bureaucracy, Congress, and interest groups to achieve shared policy goals
93
issue network
webs of influence between interest groups, policymakers, and policy advocates
94
grassroots lobbying
mobilizing interest group members to pressure their representatives by contacting them directly through phone calls, email, and social media
95
protest
public demonstration designed to call attention to the need for a change
96
civil disobedience
intentionally breaking a law to call attention to an injustice
97
news media
includes newspapers, magazines, radio, television, internet sources, blogs, and social media postings that cover important events
98
social media
forms of electronic communication that enable users to create and share content or to participate through social networking
99
agenda setting
media's ability to highlight certain issues and bring them to the attention of the public
100
mass media
sources of info designed to reach a wide audience, including newspapers, radio, television, and internet outlets
101
e service
organization that gathers the news and offers it for sale to other media outlets
102
investigative journalism
approach to newsgathering in which reporters dig into stories, often looking for instances of wrongdoing
103
broadcast media
outlets for news and other content including radio and television that bring stories directly into people's homes
104
media consolidation
concentration of ownership of the media into fewer corporations
105
partisan bias
slanting of political news coverage in support of a particular political party or ideology
