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A comprehensive overview of key concepts in political science, including public opinion, political ideology, and voting behavior. It covers topics such as the formation of public opinion, the role of media and government in shaping public attitudes, different political ideologies, and the factors that influence voter decisions. The document also explores the dynamics of political campaigns, including campaign finance, voter turnout, and the electoral college. It is a valuable resource for students studying political science, particularly those preparing for an exam on these topics.
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bandwagon effect ✔✔a shift in electoral support to the candidate whom public opinion polls report as the front-runner
Forces that shape public opinion ✔✔| Government |
| Media |
| Private Groups |
Liberty ✔✔Freedom from government control and economic freedom
Equality ✔✔the right for all people to participate in politics equally, based on the principle of "one person, one vote"
Democracy ✔✔a political system that permits citizens to play a significant part in the governmental process
Measurement Error ✔✔the difference between a measured quantity and its true value
Political Ideology ✔✔a certain set of ethical ideals, principles, doctrines, myths or symbols of a social movement, institution, class or large group that explains how society should work and offers some political and cultural blueprint for a certain social order.
Political Socialization ✔✔the process through which underlying political beliefs and values are formed
Agents of Socialization ✔✔these include families and social groups, as well as education and race
Selection Bias ✔✔arises when a sample is not representative of the population being studied
Social Desirability Effect ✔✔arise when respondents in a survey report what they expect the interview wishes to here rather than what they believe
Political ideology ✔✔a cohesive set of beliefs that forms a general philosophy about the role of government
Liberal ✔✔today this term refers to those who generally support social and political reform, governmental intervention in the economy, more economic equality, the expansion of federal social services, and greater concern for consumers and the environment
conservative ✔✔today this term refers to those who generally support the social and economic status quo and are suspicious of efforts to introduce new political formulae and economic arrangements; conservatives believe that a large and powerful government poses a threat to citizens' freedom
Agenda Setting ✔✔the "ability to influence the importance placed on the topics of the public agenda". Agenda-setting is the creation of public awareness and concern of salient issues by the news media.
Priming ✔✔process of preparing the public to take a particular view of an event or political actor (shapes how the audience evaluates leaders, events, or issues)
Framing ✔✔the power of the media to influence how events and issues are interpreted
Citizen Journalism ✔✔a key feature of digital media. News is printed and distributed by ordinary citizens
Digital Divide ✔✔the gap between those able to benefit from the internet and those who are not
Equal Time Rule ✔✔broadcast stations must provide an equivalent opportunity to any opposing political candidates who request it
Fake News ✔✔false or misleading information presented as news. It often has the aim of damaging the reputation of a person or entity, or making money through advertising revenue
News Aggregators ✔✔client software or a web application that aggregates syndicated web content such as online newspapers, blogs, podcasts, and video blogs (vlogs) in one location for easy viewing.
Right of Rebuttal ✔✔requires broadcasters to provide an opportunity for candidates to respond to criticisms made against them
Ballot Initiative ✔✔an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a government to choose to either enact a law or hold a public vote
Referendum ✔✔a general vote by the electorate on a single political question which has been referred to them for a direct decision.
Recall ✔✔the right or procedure by which an official may be removed by vote of the people a recall petition.
Electoral Realignment ✔✔a sharp, lasting shift that occurs in the popular coalition supporting one or both parties.
Electoral College ✔✔a body of people representing the states of the US, who formally cast votes for the election of the president and vice president.
External mobilization ✔✔a group of politicians outside government organize popular support to win governmental power
Internal Mobilization ✔✔when political conflicts break out and government officials and competing factions seek to mobilize popular support
How voters decide ✔✔partisan loyalty, issues, candidate characteristics
Partisan Loyalty ✔✔Most likely to assert itself in less visible races
Issues and preferences ✔✔Some voters cast their ballot for candidates whose positions on issues of importance they believe to be closest to their own
Candidate characteristics ✔✔The candidate's race, ethnicity, religion, gender, geographic background, and social background may be factors.
Retrospective voting ✔✔focus on the hypothesis that voters form their choices by looking to past performance on the economy
Sources of campaign funding ✔✔Individual donors, political action committees (PACS - established by corporations, labor unions, interest groups, or other advocacy groups), 527s (engages in issue advocacy) and 501c(4)s (may not spend more than half their revenue for political purposes), and public funding (e.g. government).
Voting (who votes, what factors determine if an individual will vote, etc...) ✔✔Individual voters (citizens), and the electoral-college are involved in voting. Factors that determine whether an individual will vote or not are: socioeconomic status, political involvement, state electoral laws, demographics (younger minorities less likely to vote), education levels, VOTER TURNOUT, political environment. Voters decide depending on partisan loyalty, issues and policy preferences, and candidate characteristics. (check pptx for deets)
Collective Good ✔✔refers to either what is shared and beneficial for all or most members of a given community, or alternatively, what is achieved by citizenship, collective action, and active participation in the realm of politics and public service.
Free Rider ✔✔those who benefit from resources, public goods, or services of a communal nature do not pay for them or under-pay.
Lobbying ✔✔is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies.
Organizational components of interest groups ✔✔The key organizational components of an interest group include leadership, money, an agency or office, and members.
Pluralism ✔✔a condition or system in which two or more states, groups, principles, sources of authority, etc., coexist.
Selective Benefits(material, purposive, solidary, informational) ✔✔Goods (such as information publications, travel discounts, and group insurance rates) that a group can restrict to those who pay their annual dues.
Staff Organization ✔✔They consist of advisory (legal), service (human resources), or control (accounting) groups.