Political Culture and Participation

Civil society is the web of voluntary groups outside government, such as religious groups, the news media, unions, business associations and NGOs. A strong civil society can watch over and lobby the government and can help democratization, while authoritarian regimes often limit groups through registration rules and monitoring.

Political culture is a country's shared attitudes about government and how to balance order and liberty, shaped by history, religion and geography. You pick it up through political socialization from family, school, friends, religion and the media. Authoritarian regimes push harder to shape what citizens believe.

An ideology is a set of beliefs about what government should do. The course asks you to know six: individualism, neoliberalism, communism, socialism, fascism and populism. For each, learn its main idea about the state, the economy and individual rights.

Values shape policy choices. Under the rule of law, rulers follow the same laws as everyone else; under rule by law, the state uses law as a tool to keep control. Societies also differ on how much the state should do to provide equality and welfare, and post-materialism means caring about self-expression and quality of life, like the environment, once basic needs are met.

People take part in politics by voting, joining groups and protesting, and sometimes through violence when other options seem closed. Participation can be voluntary or coerced. Democracies use elections to let citizens steer policy, while authoritarian regimes may use them to show support. Referendums let voters decide a single question, like the UK's 2016 vote to leave the EU.

Democracies and authoritarian regimes both hold elections and set rules for protests, but they differ in how much citizens can really change policy. Authoritarian regimes often keep opposition candidates off the ballot, steer results and have little tolerance for protests or criticism online.

Civil rights protect equal treatment, and civil liberties protect freedoms like speech, religion and the press. Democracies generally allow a free press, while stronger authoritarian regimes restrict it: China's Great Firewall limits online criticism, Iran's courts can revoke media licenses, and Russia's government controls most national TV. Russia is often called a competitive authoritarian regime: it holds contested elections but limits real competition, civil liberties and openness.

Cleavages are deep divisions in a society based on class, ethnicity, religion or region. Examples include Nigeria's mainly Muslim north and mainly Christian south, China's Han majority and minorities such as Uyghurs and Tibetans, Iran's Shi'a majority and its religious and ethnic minorities, Mexico's indigenous and mestizo populations, and the UK's four nations.

Cleavages can lead to separatist movements, protests, terrorism or civil war, and governments respond in different ways, from repression to autonomy or guaranteed seats for minorities. Examples include Boko Haram in northern Nigeria, Chechen separatism in Russia, the campaign for Scottish independence and Zapatista demands for indigenous autonomy in Mexico.