Date of Award

12-16-1980

Date Published

Winter 1-23-2025

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Social Science

Advisor(s)

Richard G. Braungart

Second Advisor

Neil H. Katz

Third Advisor

Louis Kriesberg

Keywords

protesting, campaigning, voting, alienation, nonviolence, race, Legacy ETD

Subject Categories

Political Science

Abstract

Political behavior during the 1950s and early 1960s was seen as tied to enduring social roots and long-lasting partisan pre-dispositions. Political consciousness factors such as ideology, issues, and political alienation exerted only minimal influence. Since the late 1960s and early 1970s, however, new political and social conditions have brought about a substantial reformulation to these earlier assessments concerning the relationships among social position, political consciousness, and political behavior. The analysis in this dissertation underscores the multi-faceted nature of political behavior in the United States. Although, in terms of numbers of participants, voting remains the core act in American politics, this study suggests that other activities, such as campaigning and political protest, may hold more potential for widening the scope of interchange between society and politics. In one form or another, divergent social and political groups have increasingly become active in political affairs. The decade of the 1970s witnessed a quieting down compared to the decade of the 1960s. To the extent that the trends and patterns uncovered in this study continue, however, American politics and political behavior will become increasingly turbulent in the decade to come.

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Open Access

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