❗ IPOL 21 & 22 --- Social movements, political participation and protest//political culture and support

Van Praag chapters 6 and 9
Hague & Harrop chapters 12, 13 and 18
Koopmans

⭐ the concept of political culture is attractive, but can be misused; cultures do not always coincide with states, and we should avoid the pitfalls of stereotypes about 'national cultures'
⭐ the classic concern of research in political culture has been to identify the political attitudes most supportive of stable liberal democracy. Ideas such as civic culture, political trust, social capital, and post-materialism have all been used, and in some cases developed, with this goal in mind
⭐ while most studies concentrate on mass culture, elite values possess direct political significance. Elites can exploit culture to further their political goals
⭐ although political culture is sometimes criticised for its static quality, the drift to post-materialism - values that emphasise self-expression and the quality of life over materialist values such as economic growth and physical security - is an interesting attempt to understand how political culture changes
⭐ the idea of conflict between transnational civilisations is a controversial attempt to apply cultural analysis to a post-ideological world. Within this strand, one interesting focus is provided by studies investigating the alleged contrasts between Western and Islamic cultures
⭐ Much of the evidence suggests that, in authoritarian regimes, there is more support for strong leaders than for freedom and self-expression

political culture - the sum of individual values and norms regarding politics and the political system, or the culture of a group which gives shared meaning to political action
e.g. things we care about freedom, equality, rule of law, tolerance


our political culture is socialised by family, social group etc and takes a large external event to change your values
this is political socialisation


e.g. you cannot colonise and expect political culture to change with the institutions being why we still have communism in eastern europe



civic culture - a moderate political culture in which most people accept the obligation to participate in politics while still acknowledging the authority of the state and its right to take decision

political trust- the belief that rulers are generally well intentioned and effective in serving the interests of the governed

social capital - the collective value of social networks derived from communication, help and support among the members of these networks

elite political culture - the values and the norms regarding politics and the political system held by those closest to the centres of political power, including elected officials,bureaucrats and business leaders

post-materialism - a set of values emphasising self-expression and the quality of life over materialist values such as economic growth and physical security. They include a commitment to self-expression, human diversity, individual liberty, and autonomy

political generation - an age cohort sharing distinctive experiences and values which shape its perspective through its life course. Generational turnover can gradually transform a political culture without individuals changing their views

hh chapter 12 -- political culture

⭐ participation might seem to be wholly beneficial for democracy, but heavy participation can indicate strain on a political system
⭐ approaches to participation vary, ranging from civic duty school of thought to the idea that people are not naturally political animals
⭐ studies of participation in liberal democracies focus on who takes part, to what extent and through what channels. The resulting bias is towards privileged social groups, reflecting inequalities in of resources and interests
⭐ participation is intimately tied to levels of public knowledge about government and politics, with one driving the other. Some authors suggest that public opinion has become the central mechanism of representation in liberal democracy
⭐ while female participation has increased substantially, especially in democracies, gender inequalities in participation continue to pose troubling questions
⭐ it is often argued that political participation in authoritarian regimes is an empty concept, and yet mobilised participation and clientelism are important phenomena, social movements have occasionally been a significant feature, and gauging public opinion is more important that it first might seem

hh chapter 13 -- political participation

Maslow's hierarchy of needs

political participation - activity by individuals formally intended to influence who governs or the decisions taken by those who do.


conventional participation - takes place within formal politics and the law


unconventional participation - takes place outside formal politics or even the law

4 types of participation: - Verba et al

  1. voters - who participate in local as well as national elections
  2. campaigners, those who engage in canvassing
  3. communal activists, such as those who participate in organisations concerned with a particular issue
  4. contactors, or those who communicate with officials about an individual problem

political exclusion - the phenomenon by which some are discouraged from taking part in collective decision-making because of their marginal position in society. Examples of excluded groups include the poor and the unemployed

consumer politics - buying or boycotting goods or services for political or ethical reasons

conventional - voting, donating or joining parties/interest groups, contacting representatives, volunteering in elections, organising campaigns and attending political rallies
unconventional - peaceful protest, social media, signing petitions, consumer boycotts, writing letters
illegal - civil disobedience, occupation, sabotage, crime, violence (terrorism and assassination)

public opinion - the range of views held on an issue of public concern by the members of an affected community

opinion poll - a series of questions asked in a standard way of a systematic sample of the population in order to gauge public opinion
sample survey - similar to an opinion poll but involving a more detailed questionnaire. Such surveys are often commissioned by governments or academic researchers
focus group - a moderated discussion among a small group of respondents on a particular topic, used to explore the thinking and emotions behind people's attitudes
deliberative opinion poll or citizen's jury - an arrangement by which people are briefed by, and can question, experts and politicians on a given topic before their own opinions are measured

women and political participation ---

gendered institution - a body that operates to favour men (usually unintentionally)

How to increase women in legislatures:

  1. reserved seats - oldest and rarest method, the more seats a party wins the more reserved seats it is allocated, other women can be elected directly e.g. Pakistan, Rwanda,
  2. party quotas - party adopts a quota e.g. 25/30% for candidates to be women, high on the party list or in winnable districts
  3. legislative quotas - e.g. latin america, mandated by law and applicable to all parties

mobilised participation - elite-controlled involvement in politics designed to express popular support for the regime

clientelism - politics substantially based on patron-client relationships. A powerful figure (the patron) provides protection to a number of lower-status clients who, in exchange, offer their unqualified allegiance and support

⭐ interest groups are central to the idea of a healthy civil society. Their ability to organise and lobby government is a hallmark of liberal democracy and a condition of its effective functioning
⭐ interest groups exert a pervasive influence over the details of the public policies that affect them. But groups are far from omnipotent; understanding them also requires an awareness of their limits as political actors
⭐ pluralism, and the debate surrounding it, is a major academic interpretation of the political role of interest groups. But there are reasons to question whether the pluralist ideal is an accurate description of how groups operate in practice
⭐ interest groups use a combination of direct and indirect channels of influence. Where ties with government are particularly strong, the danger arises of the emergence of sub-governments enjoying preferred access
⭐ interest groups are often complemented by wider social movements, whose activities challenge conventional channels of participation
⭐ where the governments of liberal democracies may be too heavily influenced by powerful groups, the problem can be reversed in authoritarian regimes

hh chapter 18 -- interest groups

interest group- a body that works outside government to influence gov policy
protective group - seeks selective benefits for its members and insider status with relevant gov dep
promotional group - promotes wider issues and causes than is the case with protective groups, focused on the tangible interests of their members

civil society - the arena that exists outside the state or the market and within which individuals take collective action on shared interest

types of interest groups
economic - material economic interest e.g. business, producers, industry
public - public concerns e,g. health, human rights, environment
professional - e.g. lawyers, doctors, university professors
single issue - narrow e.g. animal rights, domestic abuse
religious
government - interests of city, regional, local
institutional - e.g. hospitals, universities, armed forces

peak association - an umbrella organisation representing the broad interests of business or labour to government

protective - aim to defend an interest, have closed membership, frequently consulted by the government, members get benefits, and they aim to influence gov based on the interest of their members
promotional - try to promote a cause, open membership, less consulted by gov aimed at social media, benefits go to members and non-members, also seek to influence gov but on broad policy matters

pluralism - a political system in which competing interest groups exert influence over a responsive government
iron triangle - interest groups, the bureaucracy and legislative committees

corporatism - the theory and practice by which peak associations representing capital and labour negotiate with the government to achieve wide-ranging economic and social planning

issue network - a loose and flexible set of interest groups, gov dep, legislative committees and experts

lobbying - efforts made on behalf of individuals, groups or organisations to influence the decision made by elected officials or bureaucrats

density - the proportion of all those eligible to join a group who actually do so. The higher the density, the stronger a group's authority and bargaining position with government

social movements - a movement emerging from society to pursue non-establishment goals through unorthodox means. Its objectives are broad rather than sectional and its style involves a challenge by traditional outsiders to existing elites

examples of social movements
gay rights, chipko movement, anti-apartheid movement, landless workers, fair trade

social movements seek to influence government, don't wanna become government, sometimes they focus on single issues, not usually formally organised, they use unconventional tactics, and operate at all levels

protests -
Marxist scholars (class struggle)Structural conflict of interest between labour and capital
This conflict is inherent to capitalism
As soon as workers become aware of their ‘objective’ class interest, collective action will follow necessarily.
“Revolutions are not made, they come” (Skocpol, 1979)



Durkheim (anomie)
Society is bound together by a set of shared norms, customs and values;
Social changes require adaptation of norms and customs to the new situation.
Rapid social change generates a mismatch between social standards and individual norms, which undermines solidarity.
He called this mismatch ‘anomie’, which would lead to depressions, suicide, alcohol abuse, but also to revolution.



Gurr (relative deprivation)
Gap between
The actual situation (one’s own social position/ income/ etc.)
What one thinks one should have, based on what others have, or what one expects to have/get based on past experience.
So, the perception of deprivation is ‘relative’ to some socially derived standard
❌ frustration and anger can lead to violence


Putnam social capital theory

Tocqueville - impressed with US democracy but didn't understand how it worked. Democracy means equality but if everyone is equal then no one will help or work for anyone else. we need a civic religion because what is to stop the dominant state?

3 ideal types of culture and citizen

  1. Parochial - strong focus on local community, undeveloped awareness of broader political ties, with little political roles
  2. subject culture - individuals are aware of national politics, top down system
  3. participant culture - citizen engagement at all levels (bottom up)

civic culture is a mix of all 3, with focus on ppt culture but cannot be wholly ppt due to no formal or informal ppts

Inglehart - The Silent Revolution
revolts in the 60s by young people based on post-materialism and maslow's hierarchy

do not judge country by their culture

Putnam 1993: Social capital theory
Builds on civic culture approach
Appeals to economists
The degree to which collaborate in associations and informal organizations has a crucial influence on political culture: more trust (horizontal and vertical trust) better government performance
Social capital: combination of network individuals with high levels of social trust
Civil society may offer important input to democratic rule
Italy: civic traditions in the north were high, south lacked this
A lot of citizen involvement and trust within each other

Decline in social Capital?


Decline in social capital due to individualization , television
Supposed consequence: decline in trust, political institutions such as parliament and government, rise of more instrumental attitudes towards community and government
Rather pessimistic view on political culture