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American Landscape Outline
Ethnocentrism – belief in the superiority of one’s nation or ethnic group.
Political socialization – the process by which we develop our political attitudes, values, and beliefs.
Demographics – the study of the characteristics of populations.
Political predisposition – a characteristic of individuals that is predictive of political behavior.
Reinforcing cleavages – divisions within society that reinforce one another, making groups more homogenous or similar.
Cross-cutting cleavages – divisions within society that cut across demographic categories to produce groups that are more
heterogeneous or different.
Manifest destiny – a notion held by a nineteenth-century Americans that the United States was destined to rule the
continent, from the Atlantic the Pacific.
Race - a grouping of human beings with distinctive characteristics determined by genetic inheritance.
Ethnicity – a social division based on national origin, religion, language, and often race.
Gender gap – the difference between the political opinions or political behavior of men and of women.
Fundamentalists – conservative Christians who as a group have become more active in politics in the last two decades and
were especially influential in the 2000 presidential election.
Gross domestic product (GDP) – the total at poet of all economic activity in the nation, including goods and services.
Socioeconomic status (SES) – a division of population based on occupation, income, and education.
John Q. Public
Colloquial term for average citizens and what they want or believe.
Middle America
A phrase coined by Joseph Kraft in a 1968 newspaper column to refer to Americans who
have moved out of poverty but are not yet affluent and who cherish traditional middle-class values.
Silent Majority
A phrase used to describe people, whatever their economic status, who uphold traditional
values, especially against the counter culture of the 1960's.
Social Status A measure of one's social standing obtained by combining factors such as education, income,
and occupation.
Religious tradition
Gender gap
Poll
The moral teachings of religious institutions on religious, social, and economic issues.
Differences in the political views and voting behavior of men and women.
A survey of public opinion
Random Sample
A sample selected in such a way that any member of the population being surveyed has
an equal chance of being interviewed.
Liberal
In general, a person who favors a more active federal government for regulating business,
supporting social welfare, and protecting minority rights, but who prefers less regulation of private social
conduct.
Conservative In general, a person who favors more limited and local government, less government regulation
of markets, and more social conformity to traditional norms and values, and tougher policies toward criminals.
Political Ideology
A more or less consistent set of views as to the policies government ought to pursue.
Sampling Error
The difference between the results of two surveys or samples.
Libertarians People who wish to maximize a personal liberty on both economic and social issues. The prefer a
small, weak government, that has little control over either the economy or the personal lives of citizens.
Populists
People who hold liberal views on economic matters and conservative ones on social matters. The
prefer a strong government that will reduce economic inequality, regulate businesses, and impose stricter social
and criminal sanctions
Political elite An identifiable group of persons who poses a disproportional share of some valued resource,
such as money or political power.
Norm A standard of right or proper conduct that helps determine the rage of acceptable social behavior and
policy options.