Deck 6: Political Culture

Question 1

For centuries Spain was split by __________,creating "Two Spains."

A)agrarian and industrial culture
B)southern and northern coasts
C)small-town and big-city
D)region and religiosity

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Surveys indicate that faith in democracy is __________ in the United States than in other modern democracies,such as France and Germany.

A)more ridiculed
B)more erratic
C)weaker
D)stronger

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Political culture changes __________.

A)more than was once assumed
B)less than was once assumed
C)automatically with new elections
D)only through deliberate effort by politicians

Answer 3

A

Question 4

What is one reason that distrusting the government can be a good thing?

A)Skeptical citizens are more likely than trusting citizens to run prosperous businesses.
B)Skeptical citizens are more likely than trusting citizens to vote in midterm elections.
C)Skeptical citizens are more likely than trusting citizens to notice and oppose government corruption.
D)Skeptical citizens are more likely than trusting citizens to hold moderate political views.

Question 5

What is one direct consequence of people demanding their "rights" in the absence of a corresponding sense of responsibility?

A)Demands placed on government become impossible to meet.
B)Disgruntled voters start dangerous,extremist political movements.
C)Voters stop attending church regularly.
D)Membership in the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts increases dramatically.

Question 6

How does political competence compare with political efficacy?

A)Political competence is concerned with knowing how to have a political impact,whereas political efficacy is concerned with feeling one has at least some power to have such a political impact.
B)Political competence is concerned with knowing why political events occur,whereas political efficacy is concerned with feeling one has at least some power to have a political impact.
C)Political competence is concerned with being able to pass a citizenship test about national history,whereas political efficacy is concerned with making sure no one in society feels powerless.
D)Political competence is concerned with knowing those who have a political impact,whereas political efficacy is concerned with feeling one has at least some power to have a political impact.

Question 7

Which of the following individuals would most likely be a member of Nixon's "silent majority" in the late 1960s?

A)a Republican attending church in Oklahoma
B)a student protesting the Vietnam War in D.C.
C)a hippie buying LSD in San Francisco
D)a musician performing political songs in New York City

Question 8

A country's political culture tends to be __________.

A)homogenous
B)multifaceted
C)permanent
D)easily quantifiable

Question 9

Why is declining membership in traditional organizations such as the Boy Scouts insufficient evidence that Americans are becoming less interested in organizing?

A)People who would have once joined the Boy Scouts have joined the Tea Party instead.
B)Rates of volunteerism and membership in other organizations are still high.
C)Many people now prefer to make charitable donations online rather than in person.
D)Many of the skills the Boy Scouts learned are now being taught in outdoor education programs in the public schools.

Question 10

The years of Watergate,the Vietnam War,and inflation correlated with a __________ in citizens' trust in the U.S.government.

A)sharp rise
B)barely noticeable rise
C)sharp decline
D)barely noticeable decline

Question 11

Studies of __________ look for basic,general values regarding politics and government.

A)political theory
B)political culture
C)public opinion
D)political radicalization

Question 12

Some political thinkers are concerned about U.S.stability if __________ continues to grow.

A)suffrage
B)the civil society
C)polarization
D)American exceptionalism

Question 13

Churches,clubs,businesses,and soccer leagues are all elements of __________.

A)political culture
B)political trust
C)civil society
D)civic duty

Question 14

Because they can be voted out of office if the people are galvanized,politicians usually work to keep the public __________.

A)passionately interested
B)passive and quiet
C)voting and well-informed
D)weak but well-educated

Question 15

What do studies on political culture and public opinion have in common?

A)They are always snapshots in time,and therefore have no long-term relevance.
B)They deal exclusively with qualitative data.
C)They are notoriously inaccurate and flawed.
D)Responses are often tracked over time to find patterns.

Question 16

Public opinion studies rarely go beyond __________.

A)concerns of daily life,such as the price of milk
B)qualitative data,such as historical experience
C)a particular regional focus
D)quantified data,such as poll results

Question 17

Political culture is a combination of deeply held values and __________.

A)reactions to current events
B)political cynicism
C)the size of the civil society
D)the prosperousness of a nation's elite

Question 18

How is the United States able to loudly proclaim its democratic values in the face of its history of low voter turnout?

A)Voter turnout is the most crucial aspect of democratic culture,but surveys measuring American voter turnouts have historically been inaccurate.
B)Voter turnout is not an inherently crucial aspect of democratic culture.
C)American citizens generally see democracy more as a virtue to be exported abroad rather than practiced at home.
D)A majority of American voters believe it is more patriotic to stay home rather than vote due to their belief in smaller government.

Question 19

__________ has grown in the political cultures of most advanced democracies.

A)Cynicism
B)Optimism
C)Ideological rigidity
D)Religious evangelism

Question 20

Convention delegates tend to be more __________ than average voters.

A)apathetic
B)educated
C)religious
D)mainstream

Question 21

Which of the following is a minority subculture?

A)Hindus in India
B)Caucasians in America
C)The Han in China
D)Quebecois in Canada

Question 22

Why is it significant that California made English its official language in 1986,and in 1998 eliminated bilingual education?

A)The U.S.Supreme Court found California's policies unconstitutional.
B)California is by far the most liberal state in the country.
C)California is often an indicator of nationwide trends.
D)The U.S.Supreme Court upheld these policies,which encouraged other states to pass similar laws.

Question 23

Which of the following viewpoints is most consistent with elite political culture?

A)Running for office is viable and realistic.
B)Voting is a waste of time.
C)The political bureaucracy is impossible to navigate.
D)Politicians are all lawyers who will say whatever they think you want to hear.

Question 24

In any country in the world,which of the following people would you expect to participate the most in politics?

A)a professional poker player
B)a pastor at a small-town church
C)a wealthy business leader
D)a college student taking courses in the social sciences

Question 25

What source of socialization works through the use of parades with flags and soldiers,proclamations of top leaders,and prestigious sporting events such as the Olympics?

A)government
B)civil society
C)education
D)powerful subculture

Question 26

The 1954 Brown v.Board of Education decision by the Supreme Court led to __________.

A)a ban on bilingual education
B)gender equality in school athletics
C)the end of racial segregation in schools
D)the establishment of English as the national language

Question 27

Elites are wealthier,better educated,and more influential than the average citizen.Politically,elites are more likely to __________ than the rest of the population.

A)reject ideology
B)be members of the Tea Party
C)run for office
D)be Democrats

Question 28

Despite their lack of natural resources,Singapore,Taiwan,and Hong Kong have experienced high economic growth thanks to their __________.

A)cultural focus on rugged individualism
B)work ethic and willingness to trust one another
C)universal higher education programs
D)religious convictions

Question 29

One plausible explanation for Quebec's desire for separation from Canada is that __________.

A)bilingualism and multiculturalism can lead to national fragmentation
B)mainstream culture is inherently shallow and inferior
C)nations need one national language for true patriotism to take hold
D)the Quebecois became far too liberal to fit in with the rest of Canada

Question 30

During the Kennedy and Johnson administrations,__________ was portrayed as vital to national security.

A)separate but equal schools
B)integration
C)racial homogeneity
D)multiculturalism

Question 31

Even if they were real,the Norwegian Americans of the fictional Lake Wobegon,Minnesota,would not constitute a political subculture because __________.

A)they are white
B)they are mainstream
C)they have never sought independence
D)they do not teach their children the Norwegian language

Question 32

A subculture can be expected to have __________ than the mainstream culture around it.

A)different voting habits
B)more liberal political views
C)less education
D)stronger religious views

Question 33

In order to create a mainstream culture in which most Americans feel at home,the United States has relied largely on __________ and its education system.

A)racial segregation
B)religious integration
C)overt political socialization
D)voluntary integration

Question 34

The annual income of the average convention delegate is __________ the annual income of the average voter.

A)much higher than
B)slightly higher than
C)about the same as
D)slightly lower than

Question 35

Governments often engage in overt socialization through __________.

A)families
B)education
C)peer groups
D)international organizations

Question 36

The act of __________ is merely the starting point for political participation.
A)

A)voting
B)joining a political party
C)spreading awareness about political issues
D)running for political office

Question 37

Lower levels of education,along with corresponding lower incomes,reduce the likelihood that people will __________.

A)support democracy as a concept
B)hold nationalist views
C)feel powerless
D)participate in politics

Question 38

What is one likely explanation for the fact that the 2001 tax cuts favored the wealthiest Americans?

A)Thanks to their resources,wealthy people know how to identify and bribe corrupt politicians.
B)Thanks to their resources,wealthy people do not need a high level of education or political competence to see their policy agenda fulfilled.
C)Thanks to their education and resources,wealthy people are cynical and parochial.
D)Thanks to their education and resources,wealthy people have both political competence and political efficacy.

Question 39

In terms of their political subculture,African-Americans tend to be __________ and __________ than white Americans.

A)less affluent; more liberal
B)less affluent; more conservative
C)more affluent; more liberal
D)more affluent; more conservative

Question 40

Incomplete or late attempts to integrate subcultures into the mainstream may cause those subcultures to seek __________.

A)assimilation
B)independence
C)amnesty
D)asylum

Question 41

While it is common for governments to socialize through their education system,which of the following countries have engaged in the most overt political socialization in schools?

A)China and Canada
B)England and France
C)United States and England
D)China and France

Question 42

Wealthier,more educated elites are more likely to vote than the poorer,less educated masses.

Question 43

The rule of anticipated reactions theory helps explain why U.S.voter turnout is the lowest of all industrialized democracies.

Question 44

According to Theodor Adorno,a high score on his F-Scale personality test indicates __________.

A)potentially fascist or authoritarian tendencies
B)a fundamentalist approach to religion
C)fantasy-based logic,or a lack of critical thinking skills
D)a need for Freudian psychoanalysis

Question 45

What is one example of a way in which socialization through families and socialization through mass media reinforce each other?

A)A family sits down to dinner most evenings with talk radio in the background.
B)Parents decide to homeschool their children due to objections to the public school curriculum.
C)A mother runs for a local council or school board seat,partly to set an example of political participation for her children.
D)A father objects to a particularly violent video game,but his son plays it anyway at a friend's house.

Question 46

How does a mobile society contribute to political polarization?

A)People intentionally move to swing states to help turn them red or blue.
B)People intentionally move to areas where there are large numbers of people they can convert to their views.
C)People intentionally move to live near others who share their worldview and lifestyle.
D)People intentionally move to find better jobs,and employers generally want their employees to share their political views.

Question 47

Max Weber argued that Catholicism is the cultural basis of capitalism because of an engrained work ethic among Catholics.

Question 48

Most Iranians __________ what they see and read in the Iranian media,which is controlled by __________.

A)implicitly trust; Islamic conservatives
B)doubt; Islamic conservatives
C)implicitly trust; the shah
D)doubt; the shah

Question 49

The caste system is embedded in India's political culture.

Question 50

The parents of peers are a recognized influence in the formation of most people's political values.

Question 51

The ability to function in business and governance using only one language has contributed to China's recent economic growth.

Question 52

Minorities can be integrated into mainstream society voluntarily or through overt measures of political socialization.The U.S.has traditionally pursued the latter.

Question 53

Why did the Communist regime's attempt to socialize schoolchildren fail in Poland?

A)Communist ideas conflicted with the values that Polish families taught.
B)Communist lessons were usually taught in Russian rather than Polish,and the children did not understand them.
C)Communism was most heavily adopted in the Polish countryside,where there were fewer schools.
D)Communism was already failing by the time it reached Poland.

Question 54

Of the many sources of political socialization,the family's influence usually outweighs the others.

Question 55

In general,richer countries have more religious populations.

Question 56

Which of the following is the strongest source of political socialization?

A)school
B)peer groups
C)mass media
D)family

Question 57

Political culture takes many decades to change even slightly.

Question 58

Some scholars,including Robert Putman,argue that watching a lot of television makes people __________ and less interested in civil society.

A)more obese
B)more passive
C)less intelligent
D)less moderate