Politics and Beliefs Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Politics and Beliefs - Term Paper Example This essay discusses that according to Cloninger, for a certain group of people, ideology is important and performs four functions. The first function is it describes the surroundings and answers question why things go as they are. The second of these functions is the evaluation of the surrounding whether good or bad. The third of the functions of ideology is to give the person or group of people a sense of identity. The most important of the functions is the programmatic aspect where ideas are applied into actions. Political ideology is therefore a very important aspect of human nature. A political ideology according to Cloninger is like a revolutionary movement at first that will try to create change according to the goals in life as they wish. Gerring in Chris Livesey’s work entitled Power and Politics defined â€Å"Ideologies† (a set of related beliefs and values) become political ideologies when they â€Å"specify a concrete programme of actions† (such as pa rty manifesto). Mullins described political ideologies as a program of collective action for the maintenance , alteration and transformation of society†. Livesey stated that a conventional way to classify political ideologies is to view them as a continuous line (the continuum) with two ends: â€Å"left wing† parties including Communist and Socialist and â€Å"right wing† parties such Conservative and Fascist. Rummel also identified major political ideologies by illustrating a political triangle. ... They advocate the view that capitalism is a form of exploitation which unfairly concentrates powers and wealth among the few people only. Socialists believe that capitalism creates inequality in a society and does not work in the interest of the majority. According to Rummel (n.d.), libertarianism is the â€Å"political formula for those who opposed to state power.† Thus these are people who wanted to do as things their own way and support basic civil freedoms. Authoritarianism leans more on â€Å"the traditions and customs and central power lies in the hands of a leader who maintains such tradition and policies (Rummel, n.d.). Political Socialization Political socialization is defined as â€Å"the process by which political culture is transmitted in a given society. It occurs at both the individual and community level, and it extends beyond the acquisition of political culture to encompass the learning of more sophisticated political ideas and orientations. Political social ization is a lifelong process and a variety of individuals and institutions contribute to its shaping effect†(http://imej.wfu.edu, Political Socialization). This process of transmission is carried through the agents of socialization which include family, schools, church, friends and media. Family is considered to be the most important agent of socialization. Most likely, children will have the same political affiliation as their parents. Schools on the other hand also have vital effect on students’ political values through peer groups. Religion also affects a person’s values and ideologies through their moral teachings. Friends also influence a person’s value through sharing of thoughts and constant communication. Media