Political Behavior of the American Electorate

by Flanigan, William H.; Zingale, Nancy H.

• ISBN13: 9781568023328
• ISBN10: 1568023324
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1998-02-01
• Publisher: Cq Pr

Summary

Political Behavior in the American Electorate is the best introduction to the understanding of political attitudes and behavior in our country today. Are Americans committed to upholding basic democratic values? Who votes and why? What impact do economic and social characteristics have on an individual's politics? How much influence do the mass media have on our attitudes and political choices?

Author Biography

William H. Flanigan is professor of political science at the University of Minnesota Nancy H. Zingale is professor of political science at the University of St. Thomas.

Table of Contents

Tables and Figures	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xv
Introduction	p. 1
Political Culture and American Democracy	p. 7
Fair, Free, and Competitive Elections	p. 8
Political Culture	p. 12
Democratic Beliefs and Values	p. 13
System Support	p. 17
Citizen Roles and Political Participation	p. 20
Childhood Socialization	p. 22
Maintaining a Democracy	p. 25
Suffrage and Turnout	p. 31
Extensions of Suffrage	p. 31
Restrictions on Suffrage	p. 34
Turnout in American Elections Historically	p. 36
High- and Low-Stimulus Elections	p. 40
Voters and Nonvoters	p. 42
Registration as a Barrier to Voting	p. 48
Recent Changes in Turnout	p. 50
Partisanship	p. 57
Party Loyalty	p. 57
Party Identification	p. 59
Types of Electoral Change	p. 63
Party Systems and Realignments	p. 65
Has There Been a Realignment?	p. 73
The Future of the Two-Party System	p. 73
Partisans and Partisan Change	p. 77
Voting Behavior	p. 77
Are Independents Apolitical?	p. 83
Partisan Change	p. 88
Social Characteristics of Partisans and Independents	p. 99
The Social Composition of Partisan Groups	p. 102
Social Group Analysis	p. 104
Social Cross-Pressures	p. 112
Public Opinion and Ideology	p. 117
The Measurement of Public Opinion	p. 119
Domestic Economic Issues	p. 120
Racial Issues	p. 124
Social Issues	p. 129
Foreign Affairs	p. 133
Issues and Partisanship	p. 136
Political Ideology	p. 137
Public Opinion and Political Leadership	p. 144
Political Communication and the Mass Media	p. 149
Functions of Opinions for Individuals	p. 150
Opinion Consistency and Dissonance	p. 151
Political Communication and Attitude Change	p. 152
Attention to the Media	p. 155
The Media and Presidential Approval Ratings	p. 159
Campaigns	p. 162
Presidential Primary Campaigns	p. 171
Campaign Strategy	p. 174
Vote Choice and Electoral Decisions	p. 179
Candidate Image	p. 180
Party Image	p. 184
Issue Impact	p. 186
Determinants of Vote Choice	p. 191
The Popular Vote and the Electoral College	p. 195
Vote Choice in Other Types of Elections	p. 198
The Meaning of an Election	p. 200
Survey Research Methods	p. 205
Sampling	p. 206
Questionnaire Constructing	p. 208
Interviewing	p. 209
Coding	p. 210
Validity of Survey Questions	p. 210
Validity versus Continuity	p. 212
Index	p. 215
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