Mistrust, Efficacy, and Tolerance
Political Beliefs and Behaviors #2
(Shortened due to Time Constraints)
Trust in Government
• The question usually asked in polls is the
following...
“Do you trust that the government in
Washington will do what is right for the
citizens of the United States?”
How do you think this has changed over time?
Trust in Government
Trust in Government
Explaining the Trend Line Explaining the Trend Line
The Rise in the 90s Drop in 1960s and 1970s
goes along with due to experiences with
economic boom. Vietnam and Watergate.
The high peak is in the
few years after 9/11.
The drop is as the
wars in Afghanistan
and Iraq drag on
Trust In Government
• Context
• Mistrust is tied to specific leaders and policy
and not in the system
• Mistrust of government has trended along
with mistrust of other institutions (big
business)
• Role of Media?
Political Efficacy
A citizen’s ability to
understand and influence
political events.
Types of Efficacy
Internal Efficacy
External Efficacy
• One’s own confidence in
their ability to understand
and influence events in the
political realm.
• Remains about the same as
it was in the 1950s.
• One’s belief that the
government will respond to
its citizens.
• Declined since 1970s.
• Wilson speculates this is a
reflection of the growth in
the size of government.
Consequences?
Consequences?
Political Tolerance
• It’s existence is crucial to democratic
government
– Allows for free exchange of ideas
– Allows to select leaders without oppression
• In abstract we are very tolerant
• But in concrete situations we often would
deny rights
Political Tolerance
• How do unpopular groups survive?
– Most people do not act on their beliefs
– Officeholders tend to be more tolerant than
others
– No consensus on whose rights to deny
– Courts are insulated from public opinion.
Chapter Quiz
1) All of the following are basic elements of the
U.S. political culture EXCEPT
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
Liberty
Democracy
Individual Responsibility
Civic Duty
Equality of Results
Chapter Quiz
2) Political conflict can occur over specific policies
even among those who share common beliefs.
One reason for this is
A) While beliefs may commonly be held, interpretations
of those beliefs may differ
B) Political culture typically takes precedence over
political ideology in U.S. society
C) A unitarian political system allows little room for
compromise
D) Political values are closely tied to specific
controversies
E) Ideology is rarely a feature of political conflict
Chapter Quiz
3) One strong source of the sense of civic duty
that grew up in the United States was its
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
Commitment to social equality
Sense of national independence
Pride in political parties
Unitary system
Protestant (work) ethic
Chapter Quiz
4) Americans have a comparatively low degree
of
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
Material acquisitiveness
Social conformity
Class consciousness
Geographic mobility
Capitalist instinct
Chapter Quiz
5) Which of the following groups of issues are
areas of conflict in the “culture war”?
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
Abortion, school prayer, foreign policy
Gay rights, taxes, business regulation
School prayer, foreign policy, pornography
Drug use, school prayer, abortion
Business regulation, foreign policy, space policy
Chapter Quiz
6) Which of the following MOST ACCURATELY describes
the progressive view in the culture war?
A) Morality is more important than self-expression and is
based on unchanging rules from God.
B) Personal freedom is more important than tradition, and
the rules for morality vary with circumstances
C) Morality is more important than self-expression, and the
rules vary with circumstances
D) Personal freedom is more important than tradition, and
morality is based on unchanging rules from God.
E) Morality is irrelevant to personal freedom, even when
there are objective standards by which to judge
Chapter Quiz
7) Which of the following statements about the level of
confidence that Americans had in their social
institutions throughout the late 1960s and 1970s is
correct?
A) Confidence in government declined, as did confidence in
other social institutions
B) Confidence in government declined, while confidence in
other social institutions remained steady
C) Confidence in government grew, as did confidence in
other social institutions
D) Confidence in government grew, which confidence in
other social institutions declined
E) None of the above.
Chapter Quiz
8) One’s own confidence in one’s ability to
understand and take part in politics is referred
to as
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
External efficacy
Internal efficacy
Political ideology
Political culture
Political reciprocity
Chapter Quiz
9) In the past generation, Americans’ sense of
political efficacy has
A) Remained unchanged overall
B) Declined for external efficacy, remained
unchanged for internal efficacy
C) Declined for internal efficacy, remained
unchanged for external efficacy
D) Increased substantially overall
E) None of the above
Chapter Quiz
10) All of the following are reasons certain
groups survive in the face of political
intolerance EXCEPT
A) Most of us do not act on our beliefs
B) People usually cannot agree on which group to
suppress
C) Americans have become more tolerant
D) Such groups receive protection from the courts
E) Such groups are able to go underground