Question 1

The citizens of which of the following countries pay the lowest tax rates relative to the country's gross domestic product (GDP)?

Accepted Answer

A) Germany 
B) Canada 
C) France 
D) the United States 
E) Great Britain

Question 2

Pluralism contends that,on most issues,

Accepted Answer

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 preference of the special interest that largely determines 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.

Question 3

Which one of the following is NOT true of cultural or political beliefs in America?

Accepted Answer

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) Never has an American majority expressed a willingness to entrust health insurance fully to the government. 
D) America has a strong individualistic culture. 
E) America's individualistic culture has not proven to be an absolute barrier to government assistance programs.

Question 4

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

Accepted Answer

A) the education system 
B) political parties 
C) the progressive being 
D) the individual 
E) parents,ministers,and political leaders

Question 5

According to political scientist Louis Hartz,the United States

Accepted Answer

A) constitutes a "corporate dictatorship". 
B) was "born free". 
C) formed a perfect union. 
D) is basically a monarchical state. 
E) "perfected" socialist democracy.

Question 6

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

Accepted Answer

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 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

Question 7

The Greek words demos and kratis together mean

Accepted Answer

A) majority rule is sacred. 
B) the people rule. 
C) government is good. 
D) politics is immoral. 
E) the king is good.

Question 8

What are some of the barriers to political thinking in the United States?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are some of the barriers to...

Question 9

Research suggests which of the following is primarily to blame for the increase in faulty perceptions of news items among the public?

Accepted Answer

A) changes in the forms of communication 
B) a failure of government officials to communicate truthfully 
C) a growing disinterest in seeking out news items 
D) the growing public gap in access to more advanced forms of media transmission,such as the Internet 
E) the increasing political polarization of elected politicians

Question 10

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

Accepted Answer

A) Apathy 
B) Politics 
C) Power 
D) Liberty 
E) Political culture

Question 11

Define politics,power,and authority.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Define politics,power,and authority....

Question 12

In a survey of college students,the Intercollegiate Studies Association found that the best predictor of a student's later participation in the nation's civic and political life is

Accepted Answer

A) a college degree. 
B) a solid understanding of public affairs. 
C) participation in student government. 
D) participation in Greek life. 
E) attending a school with a residential campus versus a "commuter" campus.

Question 13

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

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 14

A totalitarian government

Accepted Answer

A) admits to no limits on its power. 
B) may control the media and direct the economy,but maintains public support by allowing such social rights as freedom of religion. 
C) controls through one-party rule,though it may allow some semblance of party opposition. 
D) controls through multi-party rule,in which it controls the electoral process to ensure its own party always achieves a majority. 
E) is often overthrown by opposition political parties or popular movements because it lacks legitimacy.

Question 15

Which of the following characterizes journalist Walter Lippmann's views on democracy?

Accepted Answer

A) He felt that well-funded private interest groups and lobbyists had taken the true majoritarian power of democracy away from the voting public. 
B) He felt that modern democratic government had become an unhealthy,pluralistic enterprise. 
C) He believed that among forms of government,only democracy could provide a citizen with the ability to be a "progressive being". 
D) He worried that most citizens are too uninformed to play the role democracy assigns them. 
E) None of these answers is correct.

Question 16

In a constitutional system,

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 17

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

Accepted Answer

A) autocracy. 
B) democracy. 
C) constitutionalism. 
D) free markets. 
E) None of these answers is correct.

Question 18

A government's authority

Accepted Answer

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.

Question 19

Which of the following has democracy come to mean in practice?

Accepted Answer

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

Question 20

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

Accepted Answer

The answer of How could one argue that America is...

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

The citizens of which of the following countries pay the lowest tax rates relative to the country's gross domestic product (GDP) ?