Political Culture in the US 4219-AW023
The course discusses the problem of political culture in the United States. It explains the relationship be¬tween political process and values, beliefs and attitudes of American society. We are going to find out how Americans perceive politics, government and their role as citizens. We are going to study when, why, and how Americans participate in politics. We are also going to examine their attitudes to political institutions and the way they see themselves in the system. We are going to look at the way public opinion is formed and how it impacts the dynamics of American politics. Finally, we will study different (sub)political and regional cultures existing in the USA.
Other problems that will be discussed during the course:
• socialization and acquisition of political beliefs;
• norms and values in electoral politics;
• patterns of political participation in America;
• social capital;
• values manifested in American politics
• variations of political culture in the US and federalism (political institutions – both on federal and state level – vis-à-vis political culture)
• political culture and interest groups (pluralist model of society)
Type of course
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the course, the student:
KNOWLEDGE:
Understands:
• the concept of political culture
• forms of political participation
• the role of values in politics and how they manifest in politics
• regional variations of political culture in the United States and their sources
• the significance of citizenship and agency in a democratic society
• theories of political behavior
• the relationships between domestic and foreign policy in the USA
SKILLS:
Can:
• utilize the concept of political culture to describe and analyze American society and politics
SOCIAL COMPETENCIES:
Is prepared:
• to formulate judgments about current political phenomena in the United States
Assessment criteria
Course requirements and grading:
The course is a lecture which does not leave much space for extended extended in-class discussions or group work. Nevertheless, students will be frequently asked short questions and will be rewarded with additional points for the active participation in the classes.
The course ends with the written exam (test).
Grading:
1. Final test – up to 42 pts
2. Active participation in class discussions / addressing lecturers’ questions, etc. – up to 10 pts
Grading:
0-26 pts = 2 (fail)
27-31 pts = 3
32-36 pts = 3+
37-41 pts = 4
42-46 pts = 4+
47-51 pts = 5
52 pts = 5!
Bibliography
Almond Gabriel, Verba Sidney, Civic Culture. Political Attitudes in Five Nations, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1963
American Social Character. Modern Interpretations, ed. Rupert Wilkinson, 1992
Ayers Edward et al., All Over the Map. Rethinking American Regions, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press 1996
Brint Michael, A Genealogy of Political Culture, Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1991
Bridges Thomas, The Culture of Citizenship. Inventing Postmodern Civic Culture, Washington, D.C.: Council for Research in Values and Philosophy, 1997
Carpini Michael, Keeter Scott, What Americans Know About Politics and Why It Matters, New Haven : Yale University Press, 1996
Chinni Dante, James Gimpel. Our Patchwork Nation: The Surprising Truth about the “Real” America, New York: Gotham Books, 2010
Devine Donald, The Political Culture of the United States, Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1972
Elazar Daniel, American Federalism: A View from the South, New York: Crowell, 1966
Elazar Daniel J. The American Mosaic: The Impact of Space, Time, and Culture on American Politics, Boulder: Westview, 1994
Elazar Daniel, Zikmund Joseph (ed.), The Ecology of American Political Culture. A Reader, New York: Thomas Crowell Company, 1975
Ellis Richard J., American Political Cultures, New York: Oxford University Press, 1993
Fuchs Lawrence H., The American Kaleidoscope: Race, Ethnicity, and the Civic Culture, London: University Press of New England, 1995
Garreau Joel. The Nine Nations of North America, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1981
Gelman Andrew, Park David, Shor Boris, Cortina Jeronimo, Red State, Blue State, Rich State, Poor State: Why Americans Vote the Way They Do, Princeton: Princeton University Press 2010
Greenstone Davis, Political Culture and American Political Development, “Studies in American Political Development”, vol. 1 (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1987), pp 1-49.
Lipset Martin Seymour, The First New Nation. The United States in historical and comparative perspective, London: Heinemann, 1964
Miller Kenneth P., Texas vs. California. A History of Their Struggle for the Future of America, New York: Oxford University Press 2020
Street John, Politics and Popular Culture, Cambridge : Polity Press, 1997
Verba Sidney, Pye Lucian W. (ed.), Political Cuture and Political Development, Princeton University Press, 1965
Woodard Colin, American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America. New York: Viking, 2011
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: