Ch.1 Patterson Political Thinking & Citizenship Exam Prep

We The People, 13e (Patterson)

Chapter 1 Political Thinking and Political Culture: Becoming a Responsible Citizen

1) Which of the following best characterizes Americans' knowledge of public affairs today?

A) Millennials are better informed than older generations by a wide margin.

B) Americans are consistently shown to be among the most well-informed citizens when compared to other democracies. 

C) Most Americans today are far better informed than previous generations, though knowledge levels are still rather low. 

D) Most Americans are woefully uninformed, a situation similar to that found by early opinion polls. 

E) Baby boomers have been shown to be the most well-informed generation, but younger generations know little about public affairs.

2) Critical thinking involves

A) determining what can be reasonably believed and using that information to reach a thoughtful conclusion.

B) establishing your stance on an issue and then gathering information to support that stance.

C) logically attacking positions with which you disagree by using all the tools at your disposal.

D) finding the "middle of the road," even on issues about which you have strong beliefs. 

E) focusing on defending your position rather than refuting others' positions.

3) Individuals tend to interpret information in ways that reinforce what they already believe. Which term refers to this tendency?

A) confirmation bias

B) critical thinking

C) straw man fallacy

D) intuition

E) discrimination

4) What type of government suppresses individuality, forcing people to think and act in prescribed ways or risk punishment?

A) communist

B) socialist

C) authoritarian

D) egalitarian

E) republican

5) In a democratic society, who or what is responsible for personal development?

A) the education system

B) political parties

C) the progressive being

D) the individual

E) parents, ministers, and political leaders

6) Which of the following is a major barrier to critical thinking?

A) citizens' unwillingness to make the effort

B) lack of access to governmental institutions

C) elite control of political power resources

D) failure of politicians and government institutions to communicate policy details to the public

E) lack of access to news media sources outside of sensationalist television or Internet content

7) Which of the following best describes deception in American politics?

A) It has always been a part of American politics. 

B) It has greatly increased in the last two decades. 

C) It first became notable during the Nixon administration.

D) The Civil War era saw a marked increase in deceptive politics.

E) The U.S. has remained remarkably free of deception in politics, as compared to other democracies.

8) What is the likely result of spending hours listening to partisan talk shows?

A) misinformation

B) liberalism

C) pragmatism

D) well-rounded political views

E) a distaste for politics

9) In politics, what is an echo chamber?

A) an environment in which people only hear what they want to hear

B) a space for open debate

C) a "safe" zone, usually online

D) a willful removal of oneself from political discussions or information

E) a rabidly partisan news outlet

10) Who among the following was the chief architect of the U.S. Constitution and also one of America's top political scientists?

A) James Madison

B) Andrew Jackson

C) Woodrow Wilson

D) Benjamin Franklin

E) John Adams

11) Which important aspect of European thought had a big impact on the formation of the political culture of America?

A) Romanticism

B) Reformation

C) Renaissance

D) Rationalism

E) Enlightenment

12) Which of the following is NOT one of the core values of American political culture?

A) individualism

B) equality

C) cooperation

D) liberty

E) self-government

13) Which of the following statements about cultural or political beliefs in America is FALSE?

A) America's origins as a wilderness society led to the belief that government is responsible for providing material assistance to its citizens.

B) Americans place a greater emphasis than Europeans on personal advancement through education.

C) Americans have traditionally favored a free-market economy.

D) America has a strong individualistic culture.

E) America's individualistic culture has not proven to be an absolute barrier to government assistance programs.

14) Which of the following best describes Americans' "unalienable rights," as described in the Declaration of Independence?

A) freedoms belonging to every citizen that cannot be legally taken away by the government

B) "god-given" rights that all people possess from birth

C) freedom from government interference in any aspect of life

D) freedom from religious persecution

E) the freedoms necessary to become "a perfect nation"

15) Individualism is the idea that

A) individuals should be free to act and think as they choose.

B) all individuals are equal in their moral worth.

C) people are the ultimate source of governing authority.

D) people should take initiative and be self-sufficient.

E) there should be formal limits on citizens' power.

16) To what aspect of America were William Watts and Lloyd Free referring when they labeled it "the country of individualism par excellence"?

A) the majoritarian nature of the voting and election system

B) the ability of any individual to aspire to high political office

C) the judicial nature of American politics, in which any individual can challenge powerful interests

D) the engrained nature of individualism, from freedom of expression to fair-trial protections

E) the ability of the individual to join in labor unions and interest groups to pursue his or her political and financial self-interests

17) Europeans have a greater acceptance than Americans of

A) welfare policies that could relieve people of the responsibility to care for themselves.

B) the strength of the executive branch of government.

C) the majoritarian system of government.

D) the influence of corporate special interests in the legislative process.

E) the influence of corporate money in the election process.

18) Which of the following is an example of an authoritarian regime?

A) Great Britain

B) France

C) the United States

D) China

E) Canada

19) According to the Declaration of Independence, governments get their "just powers" from

A) "God Almighty."

B) "the consent of the governed."

C) "the various factions."

D) "the teachings of Jesus Christ."

E) "the benevolence of a just king."

20) West Virginia, the state with the lowest percentage of college graduates in the United States,

A) is indicative of Americans' relative indifference to higher education.

B) is evidence of the general truth that the states with the highest percentage of college graduates are located between the Rockies and the Mississippi River.

C) is one of seven U.S. states with fewer than five institutions of higher learning.

D) demonstrates how closed higher education in the United States is compared to the rest of the world.

E) has a higher proportion of college graduates than most European countries.

21) Which of the following is an accurate description of the prevalence of college education in the United States?

A) Among adults 25 years of age and older, roughly half are college graduates.

B) Among adults 25 years of age and older, nearly one in three is a college graduate.

C) Every U.S. state has at least twenty colleges or universities within its borders.

D) Despite having a much higher rate of colleges and universities per capita than European countries, the U.S. has a lower rate of college graduation per capita.

E) Although the U.S. has a lower number of colleges and universities per capita than Europe, it has a much higher rate of college graduation per capita.

22) The process by which a society settles its conflicts and allocates the resulting benefits and costs is called

A) politics.

B) government.

C) elitism.

D) socialism.

E) communism.

23) ________ is the ability of persons, groups, or institutions to influence political developments.

A) Apathy

B) Politics

C) Power

D) Liberty

E) Political culture

24) French philosopher Michel Foucault referred to politics as "________."

A) like making sausage

B) the burden of citizens

C) a means to an end

D) war by other means

E) a necessary evil

25) The Greek words demos and kratis together mean

A) majority rule is sacred.

B) the people rule.

C) government is good.

D) politics is immoral.

E) the king is good.

26) In an oligarchy,

A) the state is run by corporate interests and companies instead of individuals.

B) control rests with a small group of popularly elected individuals.

C) control rests with a single individual, such as a dictator.

D) control rests with a small group, such as military officers or a few wealthy families.

E) the state controls all aspects of individuals' lives, including family relations and the practice of religion.

27) What has democracy come to mean in practice?

A) pluralistic government through the combination of popularly elected representatives and the influence of interest groups

B) oligarchic government through a legislature chosen through popular election

C) elitist control through interest group politics

D) pluralism through the election of representatives and the influence of corporate interests

E) majority rule through the free and open election of representatives

28) The United States has certain rules in place to keep politics within peaceful bounds. These rules include all of the following EXCEPT

A) autocracy.

B) democracy.

C) constitutionalism.

D) free markets.

E) None of these answers is correct.

29) What is a major limit on majoritarianism, as suggested by the text?

A) The public as a whole takes an interest in only a few of the hundreds of policy decisions that U.S. officials make each year.

B) The public lacks access to the information required to take informed political action on most issues dealt with by the government each year.

C) The actions of special interest groups are ultimately more influential than the voting power of the public.

D) The rapid turnover of government officials and members of the legislature prevents the majority public from making a sustained effort for any single issue.

E) The most power tends to reside with a wealthy minority of the voting public, preventing the majority public from setting the issue agenda.

30) The fact that farmers have more influence over agricultural price-supports than do other groups is an example of

A) majoritarianism.

B) pluralism.

C) elitism.

D) constitutionalism.

E) corporate power.

31) Pluralism contends that, on most issues,

A) corporate elites have more control over economic policy than do "the politicians in the visible government."

B) the will of the majority of the voting public determines government policy.

C) it is the preferences of special interests that largely determine what government does.

D) true authority lies with the elected politicians, and not with the public that put them in office.

E) the diverse nature of the citizenry enhances the democratic process in policymaking.

32) A government's authority

A) is evidenced when government officials use their right to exercise power.

B) is by definition not coercive.

C) does not include the power to arrest and imprison.

D) ensures that lawlessness prevails most of the time.

E) is based on pluralism.

33) What era in American politics is notable for a high level of bipartisanship?

A) 1945–1960 (post-WWII)

B) 1865–1877 (Reconstruction)

C) 1992–2000 (Clinton era)

D) 1900–1917 (pre-WWI)

E) 2016–present (Trump era)

34) The Bill of Rights

A) reduced the restrictiveness of constitutionalism.

B) enhanced the powers of the executive.

C) further checked the power of the majority.

D) enhanced the majoritarian nature of government.

E) restricted the power of corporate influence in the government.

35) The Bill of Rights added to the Constitution, among other things,

A) a guarantee of freedom of speech.

B) a division of governmental authority into three branches.

C) checks and balances among the three branches of government.

D) restrictions against the power of corporations to influence the election process.

E) term limits for elected officials to reduce their power.

36) In a constitutional system,

A) there are no restrictions on the lawful uses of power, as long as this power is obtained by majority rule.

B) there are lawful restrictions on a government's power.

C) the economy is based on the free enterprise system.

D) officials govern according to the traditions established by their predecessors.

E) all citizens have absolute free speech rights.

37) What new policy was established by the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Gideon v. Wainwright ruling?

A) the right to trial by jury

B) the need to charge an arrested suspect with a specific crime within 24 hours of arrest

C) the requirement that police read a suspect his or her rights before or during arrest

D) government provision of free legal counsel to the accused if they are too poor to hire a lawyer

E) the practice of allowing a suspect out on bail until the time of the trial

38) Which of the following is a difference between communism and socialism, as described by the text?

A) Under socialism, the government owns some firms, but under communism the government does not own any major assets.

B) Under communism, the government assumes total management of the economy, whereas under socialism, the government does not try to manage the overall economy.

C) Under socialism, the economy operates mainly through private transactions, but under communism, the government owns a number of major industries and tries to provide for people's basic economic needs.

D) Under communism, the government manages the economy completely but does not attempt to provide for people's basic needs; under socialism, the government does not manage the economy completely, but does attempt to provide for people's basic needs.

E) Under socialism, the government owns more industries than a communist government does, but it provides less direct benefit for individuals' welfare.

39) Which of the following describes socialism as practiced today in Sweden?

A) The government does not attempt to manage the overall economy but owns a number of major industries and provides for people's basic economic needs.

B) The government manages the overall economy through ownership of most major industries, and it does not allow private property.

C) The economy operates almost exclusively on private transactions.

D) The government does little to manage the economy and owns no major industries, serving mainly to provide for people's basic economic needs.

E) Firms are largely free to make their own production, distribution, and pricing decisions, and individuals depend largely on themselves for economic security.

40) The United States' economy operates primarily as a

A) free-market system.

B) free-market system with major elements of socialism.

C) socialist system with some free-market elements.

D) socialist system.

E) None of these answers is correct.

41) In which of the following ways is the U.S. free-market system distinct from European economies?

A) its lack of regulatory intervention

B) its lack of intervention through taxation

C) its lack of intervention through spending policies

D) the extent to which private transactions determine the allocation of economic costs and benefits

E) the extent to which it exercises regulatory intervention by altering interest rates

42) Roughly two-thirds of all lobbyists in the nation's capital represent

A) activist organizations.

B) labor unions.

C) business firms.

D) foreign-based political action groups.

E) nonprofit organizations.

43) Enormous concentrations of wealth and power exist in the U.S. private sector, primarily in the hands of

A) the largest labor unions.

B) elite political families such as the Kennedys and the Bushes.

C) middle-class Americans.

D) small businesses.

E) large corporations.

44) The average incomes of minimum-wage workers in the United States and Europe reflect a greater influence of which of the following in the United States, when compared to Europe?

A) majoritarianism

B) elitism

C) corporate power

D) judicial action

E) constitutionalism

45) Sociologist C. Wright Mills was a proponent of the theory of

A) pluralism.

B) elitism.

C) majoritarianism.

D) bureaucratic rule.

E) None of these answers is correct.

46) As described in the text, ________ is a defining characteristic of America politics.

A) the widespread sharing of power

B) the supremacy of the elite

C) a continual striving for equality

D) a resistance to all forms of socialism

E) an unequal distribution of power

47) What are some of the barriers to critical thinking in the United States?

48) Describe the differences between how Americans define themselves and how other, older nations define what it means to be a part of their nations' political identity.

49) Define politics, power, and authority.

50) How could one argue that America is not run by a small power elite?

51) To what degree is American democracy majoritarian, and what are the limits to that majoritarianism?