Chapter Three Political Culture and Political Socialization Comparative Politics Today, 9/e Almond, Powell, Dalton & Strøm Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Longman © 2008 Political Culture and Political Socialization § Each nation has its own political norms that influence how people think and act about politics. § The way political institutions function at least partially reflects the public’s attitudes, norms, and expectations. § Political culture: public attitudes toward politics and their role within the political system § Political socialization: how individuals form their political attitudes and thus, collectively, how citizens form their political culture; we conclude by describing the major trends in political culture in the world politics todayy Mapping the Three Levels of Political Culture § A nation’s political culture includes its citizens’ orientations at three levels: § The political system § The political and policymaking process § Policy outputs and outcomess Mapping the Three Levels of Political Culture § The system level involves how people view the values and organizations that comprise the political system. § The process level includes expectations of how politics should function and individuals’ relationship to the political process. § The policy level deals with the public’s policy expectations for the government. The System Level § It is difficult for any political system to endure if it lacks the support of its citizens. § Feelings of national pride are considered an affective, emotional tie to a political system. The System Level § Feelings of popular legitimacy are another foundation for a successful political system. § Citizens may grant legitimacy to a government for different reasons. § § Tradition, ideology, elections, or religion § In systems with low legitimacy, people often resort to violence or extra­governmental actions to solve political disagreements.nts. The Process Level § The second level of the political culture involves what the public expects of the political process. § Broadly speaking, three different patterns describe the citizens’ role in the political process. § § Participants are involved as actual or potential participants in the political process. § § Subjects passively obey government officials and the law, but they do not vote or actively involve themselves in politics. § § Parochials are hardly aware of government and politics.. The Process Level § Hypothetical examples: How are citizen types distributed within these examples? § § Modern industrial democracy § § Industrialized authoritarian society § § Authoritarian society that is party traditional and partly modern § § Democratic pre­industrial system § How does social and economic modernization affect the distribution of citizen types and the political norms of a system? § What has been the nature of modernization across the world? The Policy Level § What is the appropriate role of government? § § Policy expectations vary across the globe. § § Some policy goals such as economic well­being are valued by nearly everyone. § § Variation in terms of what is expected relates to a nation’s circumstances and cultural traditions. § One of the basic measures of government performance is its ability to meet the policy expectations of its citizens. § Expectations regarding the functioning of government: outputs (providing welfare and security) or process features (rule of law and procedural justice)) Consensual or Conflictual Political Cultures § When a country is deeply divided in its political values and these differences persist over time, distinctive political subcultures may develop. § They have sharply different points of view on some critical political matters, such as the boundaries of the nation, the nature of the regime, or the correct ideology. § Sometimes historical or social factors will generate different cultural trajectories. § § Ethnic, religious, or linguistic identities § § Migrationtion Why Culture Matters § Cultural norms typically change slowly and reflect stable values. § § It encapsulates the history, traditions, and values of a society. § § Congruence theory § § The distribution of cultural patterns is typically related to the type of political process that citizens expect and support. § § Do democracies create a participatory democratic public, or does a political culture lead to a democratic political system? § § It works both ways. § § Political culture can build common political community, but it can also have the power to divide. divide. Political Socialization § Political cultures are sustained or changed as people acquire their attitudes and values. § Political socialization refers to the way in which political values are formed and political culture is transmitted from one generation to the next. § Most children acquire their basic political values and behavior patters at a relatively early age. § Some attitudes will evolve and change throughout life. Political Socialization § Three general points about socialization: § Socialization can occur in different ways. § Direct socialization § Socialization is a lifelong process. § Patterns of socialization can be either unifying or divisive. Agents of Political Socialization § Individuals, organizations, and institutions that influence political attitudes. § § Family § § Schools § § Religious institutions § § Fundamentalism § § Peer groups § § Social class § § Interest groups § § Political parties § § Mass media § § Global influence; most people in the world watch television to learn about the world Direct Contact with the Government § In modern societies, the wide scope of governmental activities bring citizens into frequent contact with bureaucratic agencies. § Personal experiences are powerful agents of socialization.. Trends Shaping Contemporary Political Cultures § Democratization § Marketization § Greater public acceptance of free markets and private profit incentives, rather than a government­managed economy § Globalizationn Trends Shaping Contemporary Political Cultures § Political culture is not a static phenomenon. § Encompasses how the agents of political socialization communicate and interpret historic events and traditional values § Important to understand § § Influences how citizens act, how the political process functions, and what policy goals the government pursuess .