The belief in citizen participation, along with the values of liberty and equality, have shaped the U.S. character and are reflected in the nation's institutions and behavior. This participation is manifested by electoral participation, citizen action, citizen involvement, obligatory participation, volunteer service, and mutual self-help. To take…

Divided into four major parts, this document explains the significance of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in Japan. Part 1 indicates that the LDP has governed Japan since 1955 and controls 445 seats in the 764 seat parliament. The selection of the prime minister, chosen from within the ruling party, is seen as vital to U.S. interests. For…

This description of a process used in a social studies methods course presents an experiential approach to helping students learn power sharing and decision-making skills. By leaving students alone with instructions to decide cooperatively on desired class changes, type of evaluation, and leadership, students gain experience in negotiation and…

The present study focused on possible linkages between (1) the global characteristics of Kansas with individual characteristics, voting behavior, and attitudes of the Kansas state senators; (2) the personal and attitudinal characteristics of senators with various educational policy outcomes; and (3) the structural features of the senatorial…

The Rice Index is the first measure of voting unity devised. It is noted that this measure was developed on an ad hoc basis for use in rather rough comparisons. This measure is carefully assessed, and is noted to have the virtue of simplicity, useful in certain situations, but associated with certain problems when it is used for a more detailed…

This paper examines several types of school referenda with a view to examining how such referenda have served to limit or reinforce educational resource inequalities. Drawing on the results of previous studies and the author's research on California referenda, the paper seeks to provide answers to four crucial questions. First, to what extent are…

This paper presents the results of an investigation into the issue of statewide tax and expenditure limitations (TELs). Through the use of public opinion surveys and case studies of the campaigns, the author explains the politics of the TEL issue. Chapter 1 uses a multivariate analysis to determine whether or not differences exist in the voting…

This reference work details state by state progress in civil rights since the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. The 51 reports (50 states plus the District of Columbia) reiterate the major problems of the past two decades including education and employment. Other civil rights issues identified by the State advisory committees were:…

The document examines the rights of women in the church and in society, with emphasis on attitudes of the American Catholic Church. Christian educators should acknowledge the issue as a reality in today's world, and examine it with the following question in mind; "What is God's call for women at this moment in the history of the American…

This paper is about myths in general and the "myth" of Democracy in the United States of America in particular. Myths have a number of definitions among which legendary stories containing some elements of fact but wholly untrue can be cited as the basis for the establishment of commonly accepted beliefs. Myths can be functional in the…

This study was initiated to investigate the relationship between voters' socioeconomic and attitudinal characteristics and their behavior in school district financial referenda. Using a survey instrument developed through pilot study application and factor analysis techniques, data were collected from 1,030 registered voters in three Kansas school…

The 1970 United States census counted a female population of 104,299,734. Of all the nations in the world, only three have larger female populations: China, India, and the Soviet Union. Females made up 51.3 percent of the United States population. Over 70 million American women are of voting age--that's nearly seven million more than the number of…

The understanding of the political behavior of school boards can be advanced by conducting factor analysis of the voting records of trustees. While the application of these methods is generally appropriate, differences in subject matter highlight the problem of inferring political theory from numerical data. In this paper, several different…

A study tested the proposition that three factors influencing voter behavior in nonpartisan school budget elections are (1) fiscal decisions made by boards of education, (2) fiscal commitments that are uncontrollable by boards of education, and (3) expenditures made by other governmental units. The study concluded that (1) about one-half of the…

The programmed course outline for an American government course is designed to help students understand the electoral college. The outline contains questions and answers for the students taking the programmed course. Students are directed to reply to each of the 37 questions before looking at the answer printed immediately below the question. If…