Exam 10: Political Participation

Some people like to follow politics, but most rely on friends or coworkers or on simple "cues" from news stories or advertisements to get the information they need to make political choices. Many people pay virtually no attention to politics. For these reasons, the level of ________ varies widely within the population.

What does the inequality between the costs of voting and citizens' expected rewards from voting create?

In the late 1960s, college students in California launched a campaign called "Let Us Vote," or "LUV," to lower the minimum legal voting age from 21 to 18. Congress passed a law that mandated voting rights for 18- to 21-year-olds. However, the Supreme Court ruled that states had the right to set their own voting age restrictions. Some states set the voting age at 18, while others left it at 21. As a result, many young people on Election Day had to be given separate ballots because they were only permitted to vote for federal offices. This is an example of a/an ________.

Which of the following is another term for the right to vote?

Which are efforts made by organizations to facilitate or encourage voting?

The Help America Vote Act of 2002 caused states to ________.

Which of the following is NOT an acceptable reason for few people to participate in politics?

What is socioeconomic status (SES)? What are identifiable components of SES? What is the relationship between SES and political participation in the United States? Is the relationship between SES and participation generally different in other democracies?

Which term denotes a person's general understanding of how the political system works and who runs the government?

Sit-ins, strikes, and even violent revolts against an oppressive government, though extreme and unconventional, are nevertheless forms of ________.

The probability of a grave accident while attempting to get to the polls is higher than the probability of swaying a national election with a single vote. This leads scholars to ask, "Why does anyone even bother to vote in mass elections?" This is an example of ________.

How do rates of voting in the United States compare to those in other democratic countries? What about rates of other forms of political participation? What accounts for any differences that may be observed in the rates of various types of political participation in the United States and other democracies?

Mary is concerned about plans to build a waste-to-energy facility in her district. She decides to write a letter to her member of Congress expressing her displeasure with the current proposal. Mary has engaged in a/an ________.

The "paradox of voting" refers to the ________ that emerges in the context of mass electoral participation.

How do interest groups and other organizations work to mobilize voters? How do these mobilization efforts relate to the paradox of voting? In other words, how do these activities help potential voters overcome forces that may prevent them from voting?

Socioeconomic status is a measure of the way that individuals are regarded in society by virtue of their wealth, income, education, and ________.

Shelly wants to vote in the upcoming election. Before she will be eligible to vote, Shelly knows that she must fill out forms and provide personal information to her state government. This process is called ________.

Though many factors affect voter turnout, the key to understanding the differences among the United States and other countries is the _______________.

Charlie, Dylan, and Joe disagree with American foreign policy decisions and do not like the current direction the United States is headed. They decide to take matters into their own hands and start an insurgency. They have engaged in a/an ________.

One compelling explanation for the higher turnout rates among wealthy individuals is that wealthier and more educated people face lower costs when voting and participating in politics. Which of the following provides another explanation for this trend?