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Poli 100 Midterm 1
Government in America
111
Political Studies
Undergraduate 1
02/26/2012

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Term
Micropolitics
Definition
Study of ordinary citizens and voters (individuals). What motivates their vote, etc.
Term
Macropolitics
Definition
Study of broad electoral trends and institutions (congress, interest groups, political parties).
Term
How do we measure what goes through the ordinary voter's mind when they make a decision?
Definition
Area probability cluster sampling
Term
Area Probability Cluster Sampling
Definition
Dividing areas being polled into geographic units, randomly selecting people to poll based on population size and who they are within a household (wife/mother)
Term
Secondary-group Influences
Definition
What demographic you are born into (independent of how you are raised). This says little about your decision making.
Term
What do we find from cluster sampling?
Definition
People know very little about politics.
Term
Funnel of Causality
Definition
Social background at birth is connected to party identification formed early in life, leading to partisan attitudes which process information on the bases of these previous criteria.
Term
What two factors influence partisan attitudes?
Definition
Cognition and Affect
Term
Cognition
Definition
Reason
Term
Affect
Definition
Emotion
Term
Opinion Leaders
Definition
People who pay attention to politics
Term
Do opinion leaders sway elections with their strong views?
Definition
No.
Term
Priming
Definition
Media/personal influence of the importance of certain issues/topics on a voters mind, fill out details of candidates, and raise visibility of candidates.
Term
What does multiple regression analysis tell us? (3 things)
Definition
Attitudes towards candidates are important, foreign policy is slightly Republican/domestic issues are slightly Democratic, and groups are typically pro-Democratic.
Term
Party Identification
Definition
A sense of belonging to a party and identifying with it.
Term
Is party identification stable?
Definition
Yes, party identification rarely changes after it is formed in early life.
Term
Realignment Elections
Definition
Perceived major shifts in the electorate form Republican to Democratic based on any given election.
Term
Do realignment elections actually happen?
Definition
No, party ID is stable, though our political attitudes may temporarily shift from a one candidate to another.
Term
Which comes first: cognition or affect?
Definition
Affect (We know what we are long before we understand what we "are" means).
Term
If one does change political alignment, are they likely to be young or old?
Definition
Young
Term
A Caveat
Definition
The idea that party ID is fixed but partisan attitudes (including attitudes towards our identities) can be altered. (Ex: many self-IDed Republican's looking for "change" voted for Obama in 2008).
Term
Why do people vote?
Definition
Sense of civic duty.
Term
Does it make rational sense for individuals to vote?
Definition
No. The costs of voting outweigh its benefits. (The chance of one person influencing any election is closer to zero).
Term
Efficacy
Definition
Idea that your vote matters and you can make change.
Term
Ideology
Definition
Decision short-cuts, or a consistent set of beliefs (Democrat, Republican, left/right winged).
Term
Does consistent ideology exist?
Definition
There is little correlation between ideologies.
Term
Phillip Converse
Definition
Idea of Belief Systems
Term
Belief Systems
Definition
Interlocking configurations of attitudes held together by constraints or interdependence.
Term
3 properties of Belief Systems:
Definition
Constraint, centrality, and range.
Term
Constraint
Definition
How connected political ideas are to each other
Term
Centrality
Definition
Whether we think of ideas abstractly or specifically (American foreign policy vs. intervention to stop genocide in Darfur)
Term
Range
Definition
The number of issues, great or small, that we attach significance to as individuals
Term
What are Belief Systems driven by?
Definition
Psychology (general feelings of tolerance), logic (principles such as taxing/spending), and social background (where and with whom we grew up).
Term
According to Converse, what do constraints mean?
Definition
A highly-structured, consistent belief system is rare.
Term
Zone of Acquiescence
Definition
Policies that don't excite the attention of the public and have no consequence for public opinion
Term
Hot-button Issues
Definition
Issues that influence public opinion (abortion, social security).
Term
What does the study of zone acquiescence show us?
Definition
We can isolate certain issues and evaluate their macrotrends over time (asking whether people want more/less of something).
Term
Public Policy Mood
Definition
Result of zone acquiescence studies over time, form an index which generally tends to favor or oppose all government activity.
Term
What does the public mood index tell us?
Definition
A significant part (22%) of the public is symbolically Republican, but operationally Democratic.
Term
Conflicted Conservatives
Definition
22% of public that is symbolically conservative but operationally liberal.
Term
Asymmetry
Definition
People are conservative in theory, but liberal in practice (or vice-versa).
Term
What is the significance of conflicted conservatives?
Definition
They swing elections. They respond well both to conservative rhetoric and liberal programs.
Term
What affects mood?
Definition
Economic optimism, the incumbent party that is in office, and media commentary.
Term
Economic Optimism
Definition
If the economy is in good shape, there will be more receptivity to liberal social goals and programs.
Term
Incumbent Party in Office
Definition
Electorate moves in the opposite direction of the party in office.
Term
Media Commentary
Definition
The media primes and frames issues never being more supportive than the party in office or more critical than the opposing party.
Term
According to public mood index, do elections matter?
Definition
Yes, economic security produces liberal electoral outcomes, insecurity produces conservatism.
Term
What is the cycle of trends during a presidential term?
Definition
Honeymoon period, decline during term, economic condition, and "Rally Round the Flag".
Term
Honeymoon Period
Definition
Inflated approval rating a President enjoys when first entering office. (Mueller)
Term
Decline in Approval
Definition
"Coalition of Minorities" (President alienates lots of people who are the political losers when his legislation is passed, Downs), Expectations>Disillusionment (public expects more than what actually happens), "Brody press criticism" (Media starts out uncritical of President but becomes more skeptical and negative), "Equilibration" (Fixed high.low approval rating and they spend their time in office fluctuating between two)
Term
Economic Conditions
Definition
Where economy is/where it is headed
Term
"Rally Round the Flag" Effect
Definition
Boost of support during times of international crisis, seen as a statesman instead of politician (patriotism)
Term
Fiscal Policy
Definition
Taxing/Spending
Term
Monetary Policy
Definition
Adjusting Interest Rates
Term
Keynesian (demand-side) Economics
Definition
Economic slumps can be prevented by intervening in the market (spending ensure money is in circulation). Idea of multiplier effects.
Term
Multiplier Effects
Definition
Keynesian concept that when a person spend it goes to the income of someone else who also spends, etc.
Term
Keynesian Result (idea):
Definition
More money being spent increase demand for consumer goods (stimulus).
Term
Supply-side Economics
Definition
Focus on keeping taxes low for wealthier, who are more likely to save or invest their money. Savings lead to growth and productivity, which helps everyone.
Term
Supply-side Result (idea):
Definition
"Trickle-down" effect
Term
Monetarism
Definition
Keynesians and Supply-siders are both wrong; monetary policy is key to economic growth. Too much money (inflation) or too little (deflation) is the problem. Controlling the rate of growth through how much is printed and adjusting the interest rate.
Term
Nordhaus Political Business Cycle
Definition
Idea that democracies never follow optimal economic policy because they try to expand the economy leading up to elections (to win), only to suffer contractions due to inflation in the months after.
Term
Are consumers/investors able to anticipate what may happen to the economy and react accordingly?
Definition
Yes, and they react before the economy actually fluctuates, making it hard for politicians to influence the process.
Term
Spatial Model
Definition
Predicts where one should build a business (right beside/next to competitor).
Term
What is the order of the Funnel of Causality?
Definition
Social background, party ID, partisan attitudes, vote.
Term
Is media more influential at the micro level or the macro level?
Definition
Macro level, media at the micro level has little significance.
Term
Does ideology exist at the micro or macro level?
Definition
Macro level. (Birds-eye view)
Term
What polling method is the least effective?
Definition
Straw polls.
Term
What are two problems that afflict commercial surveys?
Definition
The customer has no basis on which to evaluate quality of research. Doing it right is expensive, doing it wrong is profitable.
Term
Normative
Definition
Focusing on what was good or bad about governments.
Term
Empirical
Definition
Study and explanation of what "is," not what should be.
Term
How do you select units to study?
Definition
Variation, randomness, and number of units
Term
How many units do you need for a reliable study?
Definition
Around 1500
Term
Randomness
Definition
Everyone has exactly the same change of being chosen.
Term
Street Corner Bias
Definition
Sampling people from all one area provides atypical results (not random).
Term
Random Digit Dialing
Definition
Provides random samples, but those who chose to participate provides atypical results.
Term
What survey results can you trust?
Definition
Polling firms and academic surveys
Term
Rationality
Definition
Goal-oriented behavior
Term
Shallow Opinion Holding
Definition
Little substance, easily dissuaded
Term
What two factors contribute to why an individual votes the way they do?
Definition
Interpersonal relations, group behaviors (long-term) Campaigns have little to no effect (schemata)
Term
Fundamental Mechanism
Definition
Opinion Followers listen to Opinion leaders
Term
What secondary group shows significant association?
Definition
Level of income
Term
Which political party promotes domestic policies and which party promotes foreign policies?
Definition
Domestic issues slightly Democratic, foreign issues slightly Republican
Term
What are the six attitudes?
Definition
GOP Candidate, Democratic Candidate, Domestic Policy, Foreign Policy, Parties as Group Representatives, Parties as Managers of Government
Term
Candidate Attitudes
Definition
Most important, most variable
Term
Group Attitudes
Definition
Pro-Democratic
Term
Party Performance
Definition
Varies and movies with economy
Term
Five Sources of Error:
Definition
Over-report for winner, differential salience, interpersonal influence, campaign events, and late decisions
Term
What can parents pass on to their children, what can they not?
Definition
Party Identification CAN be passed, partisan attitudes CAN NOT
Term
Is "ticket splitting" increasing or decreasing?
Definition
Increasing
Term
Conclusions and Arguments
Definition
Details of arguments are not stored, but conclusions are
Term
Ceteris Paribus
Definition
Location matters
Term
Anthony Downs
Definition
Parties should aim towards the center of the spectrum to maximize partisans
Term
Voter Utility
Definition
Difference in outcome between a Democratic victory and a Republic victory
Term
Four Components of Involvement
Definition
Interest in campaign, concern over outcome, sense of efficacy, sense of citizen duty
Term
Scalability
Definition
Used to measure ideologues
Term
Ideologue
Definition
One who demonstrates both language and understanding of politics
Term
Near Ideologue
Definition
One who demonstrates political language but lacks clarity or understanding
Term
Group Benefits
Definition
Voters whose highest level of abstraction is commentary on what groups are helped or hurt by parties
Term
Nature of the Times
Definition
Voters who offer an appraisal of how things are going as their evaluation of candidates or parties (ex: Things are good, we should re-elect current president)
Term
No Issue Content
Definition
Know-nothings
Term
Nonattitudes
Definition
Expression of preferences for policy alternatives that are entirely without meaning to the respondent
Term
Aggregation
Definition
Removing nonattitudes, predicting electorate
Term
Condorcet Jury Theorem
Definition
Groups are more effective than individuals
Term
Zaller Reformulation
Definition
Competing Considerations
Term
Public Policy Mood (definition)
Definition
General tendency to favor or oppose all government activity
Term
Symbols
Definition
Conservative
Term
Policies (preferences)
Definition
Liberal
Term
Why are elections meaningful?
Definition
Expression of preference
Term
Phillips Curve
Definition
Characterizes the marginal trade offs between inflation and unemployment
Term
Unemployment and Inflation
Definition
High levels of both at the same time
Term
Myopic
Definition
Uninformed
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