Political Culture (Sem 2)

 

Political culture is the set of shared attitudes, beliefs, and sentiments that give order and meaning to a political process.¹ Think of it as the "personality" of a country's politics—it dictates how people view their government, what they expect from it, and how they interact with it.²

While a "political system" refers to the actual structures (like parliaments or courts), "political culture" refers to the psychological orientations people have toward those structures.³

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1. The Classic Classification (Almond & Verba)⁴

In their seminal 1963 work, The Civic Culture, Gabriel Almond and Sidney Verba identified three "pure" types of political culture based on how much citizens know about and participate in their government.⁵

Type	Description	Citizen Role
Parochial	Citizens have low awareness of the central government. They identify more with local tribes or villages than the nation.	Unaware/Indifferent
Subject	Citizens are aware of the government and its laws but see themselves as passive subjects. They obey but don't participate.	Passive Obedience
Participant	Citizens are highly aware and believe they can influence the system through voting, protesting, or joining parties.	Active Engagement

Note: Almond and Verba argued that a healthy democracy requires a "Civic Culture"—a mix of all three where people are active enough to be heard but passive enough to allow the government to actually govern.

In their 1963 landmark study, The Civic Culture, Gabriel Almond and Sidney Verba sought to understand why democracy flourished in some countries (like the UK and US) but struggled or failed in others (like Germany, Italy, and Mexico).¹

They proposed that a political system’s stability depends on how well its political structures (institutions) align with its political culture (the people's psychology).

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1. The Three Psychological Orientations

Before defining the "kinds" of culture, Almond and Verba identified three ways citizens relate to political objects:

• Cognitive Orientation: What do people know? (Knowledge of the constitution, the roles of officials, and how the system works).

• Affective Orientation: How do people feel? (Emotions like pride in their nation, or perhaps anger or distrust toward the government).²

• Evaluative Orientation: How do people judge?³ (Moral judgments or opinions on whether the government is performing its job fairly and effectively).⁴

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2. The Three "Pure" Types of Political Culture

They categorized societies based on how citizens relate to four "objects": the system as a whole, the inputs (how we influence the state), the outputs (laws and policies), and the self as a political actor.

A. Parochial Political Culture

In this culture, there is no specialized political role.⁵ People are generally unaware of the central government’s existence or its impact on their lives.⁶

• The Vibe: "The government is a distant thing that doesn't affect my village; my loyalty is to my family or tribe."⁸

B. Subject Political Culture

Here, citizens are highly aware of the central government and the laws it produces (the outputs). However, they do not see themselves as having any power to change those laws (the inputs).

• Where it's found: Centralized authoritarian regimes or colonial administrations.

• The Vibe: "I know who the leader is and I obey the laws to avoid trouble, but I have no say in how those laws are made."

C. Participant Political Culture

Citizens are aware of both the inputs and the outputs. They believe they have the right and the responsibility to participate in the political process.

• Where it's found: Modern liberal democracies.

• The Vibe: "I pay taxes and follow laws, but I also vote, protest, and demand that the government listens to me."

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3. The "Civic Culture" (The Ideal Mix)

The most famous takeaway from their study is that a pure "Participant" culture is not actually the most stable. If every single citizen was constantly active, demanding, and protesting, the government would be overwhelmed and unable to make decisions (a "gridlock"). Instead, they argued that the most stable democracies have a Civic Culture, which is a "mixed" culture:⁹

• It contains enough Participants to keep the government accountable.

• It contains enough Subjects and Parochials to provide "ballast" (stability), allowing the government the "quiet" it needs to actually implement policy.¹⁰

• It balances the tension between government power and citizen control.¹¹

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4. Key Criticisms

While revolutionary, the theory has faced pushback over the years:

• Anglo-American Bias: Critics argue Almond and Verba treated the UK and US as "ideal" models, implying other cultures were "underdeveloped" if they didn't look like them.

• Static View: The theory was criticized for not explaining how a culture changes over time (e.g., how a Subject culture becomes a Participant one).

• Neglect of Subcultures: It often ignored the fact that within one country, different classes or ethnic groups might have wildly different political cultures.

Core Definitions

• Political Culture: The set of attitudes, beliefs, and sentiments that provide the underlying assumptions and rules that govern behavior in a political system.

• The Civic Culture: The specific "mixed" political culture that Almond and Verba identified as the most stable foundation for a liberal democracy.

• Political Socialization: The process by which these political orientations are transmitted from one generation to the next (e.g., through family, schools, or media).

The Three Orientations (Psychological Pillars)

• Cognitive Orientation: Knowledge of and belief about the political system, its roles, and its incumbents.

• Affective Orientation: Feelings of attachment, involvement, or rejection regarding political objects.

• Evaluative Orientation: The judgments and opinions about political objects that typically involve applying value standards to political information.

The Three Pure Types

• Parochial Culture: A culture where citizens have low expectations of the government and no awareness of their ability to influence it.

• Subject Culture: A culture where citizens are highly aware of the government's outputs (laws/benefits) but remain passive and do not participate in the inputs (voting/activism).

• Participant Culture: A culture where citizens are actively engaged in both the input and output processes and believe they can influence the system.

Systemic Objects

• System as General Object: How the citizen views the nation as a whole (e.g., "I am proud to be [Nationality]").

• Input Objects: The channels through which citizens' demands are communicated to the government (e.g., political parties, interest groups).

• Output Objects: The process by which the government applies rules and policies (e.g., bureaucracy, courts, police).

• Self as Object: How the individual views their own role, competence, and power within the political system.

 

Political System (Sem 2)

 What is a Political System as defined by David Easton?

According to David Easton, a political system is:

“That system of interactions in any society through which binding or authoritative allocations of values are made and implemented.”

Explanation

David Easton views politics not merely as government or state institutions, but as a system of interactions that performs a specific function in society.

Key Elements of Easton’s Political System

1. System of Interactions
   The political system includes all activities and processes—formal and informal—related to making political decisions.

2. Authoritative Allocation of Values

   • Values refer to things people want (e.g., resources, rights, welfare, security).

   • Authoritative means decisions are accepted as binding by society.

3. Input–Output Model

   • Inputs: Demands (public needs, pressures) and supports (obedience, participation).

   • Outputs: Laws, policies, and decisions made by political authorities.

4. Feedback Mechanism
   Outputs affect society and generate new demands and supports, keeping the system dynamic.

5. Environment
   The political system operates within social, economic, cultural, and international environments that influence it.

Significance

Easton’s concept broadened the scope of Political Science by:

• Emphasizing behavior and processes rather than only institutions.

• Helping analyze political stability and change systematically.

👉 In short: For David Easton, a political system is the process by which a society makes and enforces authoritative decisions through a continuous flow of inputs, outputs, and feedback.

What are the key functions of a Political system as defined by Gabriel Almond?

Gabriel Almond explained the functions of a political system by dividing them into Input Functions and Output Functions. According to him, every political system—whether democratic or authoritarian—must perform these functions to survive and remain effective.

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1. Input Functions

These functions relate to how demands and support from society enter the political system.

(a) Political Socialization and Recruitment

• Political socialization refers to the process by which individuals acquire political values, beliefs, and attitudes.

• Political recruitment means selecting and training individuals for political roles and leadership positions.

• Agencies involved include family, schools, media, political parties, and pressure groups.

(b) Interest Articulation

• It is the expression of demands and interests by individuals or groups in society.

• These demands may concern wages, rights, policies, or welfare.

• Interest groups, trade unions, political parties, and movements perform this function.

(c) Interest Aggregation

• It involves combining various articulated interests into coherent policy alternatives.

• Political parties play a major role by formulating programs and policies.

(d) Political Communication

• This refers to the flow of information between the government and the people.

• It includes communication through media, debates, campaigns, and public opinion.

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2. Output Functions

These functions deal with how the political system responds to demands.

(a) Rule-Making

• It involves the formulation of laws and policies.

• Legislatures and executives mainly perform this function.

(b) Rule-Application

• It refers to the implementation and execution of laws and policies.

• This function is carried out by the executive and administrative agencies.

(c) Rule-Adjudication

• It involves interpretation of laws and settlement of disputes.

• Courts and judicial bodies perform this function.

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Conclusion

According to Gabriel Almond, a political system functions effectively only when both input and output functions are properly performed. These functions ensure stability, adaptability, and continuity of the political system.

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Syllabus Sem VI

 Realism