POLITICAL CULTURE

In recent years, political culture has become a vogue term in political science. There is even some thing called, rather grandly, a cultural approach to politics.

The systematic use of culture and political culture as a social science concept dates only from the 1950s. G. Almond (1980) has suggested that the concept emerged from the confluence of three separate intellectual influences, as follows:

Social psychology and psycho-anthropology: Social psychologists wanted to study the factors, which shaped the attitudes and behavior of individuals.

European sociology: Represented in the works of Weber, Parato, and Durkheim. Weber had challenged Karl Marx on cultural grounds, by claiming that religion and values are important in affecting economic activities and political structures.

Survey research: Enabled students to collect data about a group’s or a nation’s psycho-cultural orientations to politics.

Well, the term political culture was popularized by Almond. Political culture is about attitudes, believes, and values of the people towards politics. Almond says more theoretically that political culture is that set of attitudes within which a political system works. In fact, every country has its own way of looking at politics.

One should also note that political culture couldn’t be created overnight. Followings are the major factors that would shape political culture in a country:  geographical location, history, economy, society, culture, religion, and politics. Race, tribe, caste, and ethnicity e.g. in India caste is very important and in Africa race is important.

Almond suggests a scheme to operationalize political culture. He tries to find out certain views and orientations. Three different types of orientations are:

Cognitive --- refers to knowledge and information about politics.

Affective --- hold some feelings and emotions about politics, whether positive or negative.

Evaluation --- a careful study of positive and negative features. 

 Almond gives following four components that constitute politics. Inputs: inputs towards political system. In inputs we have demands and support. Outputs: information about outputs --- parliament, judiciary, etc. Political system. And, Role of self: does some one know his/her role.

For all that cited above, one can ask whether individual has information, whether she/he has emotion, and can they evaluate? So, on the basis of this, Almond suggested three different types of political culture.

1)- Parochial:  where there are no orientations towards all components of politics --- input, output, political system, and self-role. This exists in a traditional society. Parochial approach is a limited approach. In parochial approach there is limited frame of reference. People are unaware of politics, they do not have a secular understanding of the world, and there are no well differentiated political structures.

2)- Subject: where there are some orientations towards output and political system. People know about decision-making mechanism. There is a political awareness but no confidence to air political views, thus there is an absence of participatory norms. The first priority is obedience --- one must obey the law and submit oneself to the authority of law. Here, certain differentiate political structures emerge. This type exists in totalitarian states of communist. Almond and Verba (1963) suggest that a ‘subject or ‘passive’ culture fits an authoritarian regime.

3)- Participate: where there are orientations towards all four components of politics --- input, output, political system, and self-role. Here, emphasis is on the role of the self. This encourages more and more participation, but no guarantee of stability. Participation is the highest value. There is an ability to criticize the authority and hold positive orientation towards action. Almond and Verba (1963) suggest that a participatory political culture fits a liberal democratic regime.

Actually, during 1950 to 1962 (cold war) two blocks i.e. USA and USSR stood in opposition, however there was also a third part i.e. the third world. Therefore, we had democracy, communism, and dictatorship. Based on this, they drew parochial, subject, and participate political cultures.

This typology was propounded by Almond around 1960s. Behind this typology a particular political culture is hidden --- two hidden implications are: first, how does one say that politics is culture specific. Second, what makes democracies stable?

Almond then talks about civic culture.  Civic culture is that political culture that people criticize the authority but also obey it. People participate in politics yet do not participate too much. People hold positive attitudes towards participation but in practice they do not get involved too much.

Citizens must have faith in the system but also hold critical view about the system. Citizens must keep pressure on government but not interfere in the functioning of the government.

In the book ‘Civic Culture’ authors conclude that every citizen should have following three orientations: parochial, subject, and participate i.e. limited frame of reference, law abiding nature, and participatory attitudes. Almond notes that a combination of these three results into a routine, stable, and democratic system.

A stable democracy is only possible when there is a civic culture. Civic culture modeled after England and USA ‘s political culture.