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4. American Political Attitudes and Participation

What Americans believe about their government and why: political culture, the forces that shape opinion, how opinion is measured, and who actually turns out to vote.

4. American Political Attitudes and Participation

The political views of Washington power-couple Mary Matalin and James Carville are on either side of the political spectrum. During the 1992 election, Carville…

4a. American Political Culture

Horatio Alger, Jr.'s novels embodied the American ideal that hard work and determination would eventually be rewarded. The young protagonists of his books "pul…

4b. What Factors Shape Political Attitudes?

The Bush clan shows that politics runs in the family. George Bush Sr. was a Congressman, then the 41st President of the United States, George W. Bush was the G…

4c. Measuring Public Opinion

George Gallup could be considered the "father of American polling." In 1935 he founded the American Institute for Public Opinion. His Gallup Organization conti…

4d. Participating in Government

People may participate in politics in many ways. They can write their Representative or Senator, or work in for a candidate or political party. They can make p…

4e. Voting: A Forgotten Privilege?

> Voting is at the heart of democracy. A vote sends a direct message to the government about how a citizen wants to be governed. And yet, only 48.8 % of eligib…