Sociology Now, Census Update

484 CHAPTER 14POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Legal-rational authority (p. 458)
Monarchy (p. 460)
Oligarchy (p. 460)
Participatory democracy (p. 462)
Political action committee (PAC)
(p. 473)
Political revolution (p. 476)

Politics (p. 456)

Power (p. 456)

Proportional representation (p. 467)

Relative deprivation (p. 476)

Representative democracy (p. 462)

Revolution (p. 475)

Social movements (p. 474)

Social revolution (p. 476)

Suffrage (p. 467)

Terrorism (p. 477)

Totalitarianism (p. 461)

Traditional authority (p. 457)

Two-party system (p. 468)

Universal suffrage (p. 462)

14.1 International Organizations and American Governmental Power

These are actual survey data from the General Social Survey, 2004.

International organizations are taking away too much power from the Ameri-

can government.Only 9 percent of respondents in the 2004 General Social Survey

strongly agreed with this statement. Another 26 percent agreed. Those from the

lower class were most likely to agree (39.1 percent). Thirty percent of respondents

disagreed, and only 3 percent strongly disagreed. Those in the upper class were

most likely to disagree (53 percent).

CRITICAL THINKING|DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What role, if any, do you think international organizations should play in decisions made
   by the U.S. government? How would you explain a social class difference in response to
   this question?


2. Why do you think political party affiliation often correlates with social class? What party-
   associated values or beliefs might contribute to one’s view on the power of international
   organizations?

14.2 Government and Standard of Living

These are actual survey data from the General Social Survey, 2004.

Some people think that the government in Washington should do everything

possible to improve the standard of living of all poor Americans; they are at

Point 1 on this card. Other people think it is not the government’s responsi-

bility and that each person should take care of him- or herself; they are at

Point 5. Where would you place yourself on this scale, or haven’t you made up

your mind on this?Only 17 percent of respondents picked the first choice,

government action. There was a huge disparity between those in the lower and

upper classes, though. Most respondents agreed that both the government and the

individual were responsible for improving the standard of living.

What

does

America

think

?