American Political Culture

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Chapter Four

• American Political Culture

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Culture

• Politically, there are three main differences
  among countries constitutional, demographic, and
  cultural.
• Culture is very important when it comes to
  politics and govt. However, it is the most
  difficult to analyze.

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What is Culture?

• According to Websters culture may have the
  following meanings
• the act of developing the intellectual and moral
  faculties especially by education
• enlightenment and excellence of taste acquired by
  intellectual and aesthetic training
• acquaintance with and taste in fine arts,
  humanities, and broad aspects of science as
  distinguished from vocational and technical
  skills
• the integrated pattern of human knowledge,
  belief, and behavior that depends upon the
  capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge
  to succeeding generations
• the customary beliefs, social forms, and material
  traits of a racial, religious, or social group
  also the characteristic features of everyday
  existence (as diversions or a way of life) shared
  by people in a place or time

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Political Culture

• Political Culture A distinctive and patterned
  way of thinking about how political and economic
  life ought to be carried out

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Modern Democracies with Different Political
Cultures

• Most modern democracies have vastly different
  political cultures--why?
• Demographic differences (religion, ethnicity,
  population, etc.)
• Historical development of individual countries
  plays a large role in the development of class
  consciousness
• Differing ideas of the proper role of government

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American Political Values

• When it comes to the American view of politics
  there are at least five important elements
• Liberty rights
• Equality equal vote equal chance to
  participate and succeed
• Democracy government is accountable to the
  people
• Civic duty take community affairs seriously and
  become involved when possible
• Individual responsibility individuals
  responsible for their own actions and well-being

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Questions About Political Culture

• How do we know people share these beliefs?
• There is no exact way to prove that all Americans
  hold the above characteristics in the same
  regard.
• However, studies and polls infer that these
  values are held by many Americans.
• How do we explain behavior inconsistent with
  these beliefs?
• It is a fact that people act contrary to their
  professed beliefs.
• Besides values, self-interest and social
  circumstances also shape behavior.
• Why is there so much political conflict in U.S.
  history?
• Political values may be irrelevant to specific
  controversies.
• Not every persons perception of the values mean
  the same thing.

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Beliefs About Economics

• Americans support free enterprise, but support
  some limits on marketplace freedom
• Americans believe in equality of opportunity
  but not equality of result
• Americans have a widely shared commitment to
  economic individualism
• What are the roles of welfare and civil rights in
  this situation? (See p.80)

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The Civic Role of Religion

• Americans are more religious than most citizens
  in European democracies
• Religious views greatly affect politics
• 1730-1740s, the First Great Awakening eventually
  led to the colonists break with English rule
• Both liberals and conservatives have used the
  pulpit to promote political change
• 1950s-1960s, Civil rights movement was led by
  black religious leaders
• In the 1980s and 1990s, conservative Christian
  groups (Moral Majority and Christian Coalition)
  became a strong political force in all levels of
  politics
• See pgs.82-83

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American Political Culture

• Americans tend to assert their rights
• Emphasize liberty, individualism, competition,
  equality, following rules, treating others fairly
  but impersonally
• Some other countries put more emphasis on harmony
  and equality

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Civic Duty and Competence

• Civic duty a belief that one has an obligation
  to participate in civic and political affairs
• Civic competence a belief that one can affect
  government policies

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Sources of Political Culture

• American Revolution was essentially over
  libertyasserting rights
• Widespread (not universal) participation
  permitted by Constitution
• Absence of an established national religion made
  religious diversity inevitable
• Family instills how we think about world and
  politics
• Not a high degree of class consciousness

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The Culture War

• The cultural clash in America is a battle over
  values
• The culture war differs from political disputes
• The culture conflict is animated by deep
  differences in peoples beliefs about morality

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Two Cultural Camps

• The idea that there are two broadly defined
  social classes in the U.S. was first developed by
  James Davison Hunter.
• Orthodox morality is as, or more, important than
  self-expression morality derives from fixed
  rules from God
• Progressive personal freedom is as, or more,
  important than tradition rules change based on
  circumstances of modern life and individual
  preferences
• See pgs.85-86

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Mistrust of Government

• There is evidence that mistrust of govt
  officials has increased since the late 1950s
• Causes
• Watergate scandal, the Vietnam War, the Clinton
  impeachment, and the Iraqi War
• Public confidence is likely to ebb and flow with
  circumstances

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Figure 4.2 External Political Efficacy Index,
1952-2004
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Political Efficacy

• Political efficacy citizens capacity to
  understand and influence political events
• Internal efficacy confidence in ones ability to
  understand and influence events
• No major changes since the 1950s-1960s
• External efficacy belief that system will
  respond to citizens
• Drastically declined since the 1960s

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Political Tolerance

• A minimal level of tolerance is crucial to
  democratic politics
• What is tolerance? According to Websters
• sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices
  differing from or conflicting with one's own
• the act of allowing something
• the allowable deviation from a standard
• Most Americans support tolerance in the abstract
  however, most Americans would also deny these
  rights in specific cases
• See p.89

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How Very Unpopular Groups Survive

• Most people do not act on their beliefs
• Officeholders and activists are more tolerant
  than the general public
• Usually there is no consensus on whom to
  persecute
• Courts are sufficiently insulated from public
  opinion to enforce constitutional protections