Political alienation
Encyclopedia
Political alienation refers to an individual citizen
's relatively enduring sense of estrangement from or rejection of the prevailing political system
.
Political alienation falls into two broad categories: political incapability and political discontentment. In the first instance, alienation
is forced upon the individual by his environment, whereas in the second case it is voluntarily chosen by him.
There are four different ways in which political alienation may be expressed:
Political alienation is adversely related to political efficacy
.
The most common electoral
consequences of political alienation are abstention
and protest voting
.
Citizenship
Citizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...
's relatively enduring sense of estrangement from or rejection of the prevailing political system
Political system
A political system is a system of politics and government. It is usually compared to the legal system, economic system, cultural system, and other social systems...
.
Political alienation falls into two broad categories: political incapability and political discontentment. In the first instance, alienation
Social alienation
The term social alienation has many discipline-specific uses; Roberts notes how even within the social sciences, it “is used to refer both to a personal psychological state and to a type of social relationship”...
is forced upon the individual by his environment, whereas in the second case it is voluntarily chosen by him.
There are four different ways in which political alienation may be expressed:
- Political powerlessness. An individual's feeling that he cannot affect the actions of the government.
- Political meaninglessness. An individual's perception that political decisions are unclear and unpredictable.
- Political normlessness. An individual's perception that norms or rules intended to govern political relations are broken down, and that departures from prescribed behavior are common.
- Political isolation. An individual's rejection of political norms and goals that are widely held and shared by other members of a society.
Political alienation is adversely related to political efficacy
Political efficacy
Political efficacy is a theoretical concept used to explain political behavior in Political Science. It indicates citizens' faith and trust in government and his/her own belief that he/she can understand and influence political affairs. It is commonly measured by surveys and used as an indicator...
.
The most common electoral
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
consequences of political alienation are abstention
Abstention
Abstention is a term in election procedure for when a participant in a vote either does not go to vote or, in parliamentary procedure, is present during the vote, but does not cast a ballot. Abstention must be contrasted with "blank vote", in which a voter casts a ballot willfully made invalid by...
and protest voting
Protest vote
A protest vote is a vote cast in an election to demonstrate the caster's unhappiness with the choice of candidates or refusal of the current political system...
.
See also
- AbstentionAbstentionAbstention is a term in election procedure for when a participant in a vote either does not go to vote or, in parliamentary procedure, is present during the vote, but does not cast a ballot. Abstention must be contrasted with "blank vote", in which a voter casts a ballot willfully made invalid by...
- AnomieAnomieAnomie is a term meaning "without Law" to describe a lack of social norms; "normlessness". It describes the breakdown of social bonds between an individual and their community ties, with fragmentation of social identity and rejection of self-regulatory values. It was popularized by French...
- Democratic deficitDemocratic deficitA democratic deficit is considered to be occurring when ostensibly democratic organizations or institutions are seen to be falling short of fulfilling the principles of the parliamentary democracy in their practices or operation where representative and linked parliamentary integrity becomes...
- DisfranchisementDisfranchisementDisfranchisement is the revocation of the right of suffrage of a person or group of people, or rendering a person's vote less effective, or ineffective...
- Political apathyPolitical apathyPolitical apathy is the indifference on the part of citizen of any country as regards their attitude towards political activities; for example: elections, public opinons, civic responsibilities, etc. A broader way of referring to political apathy in a country is to consider its political culture...
- Political efficacyPolitical efficacyPolitical efficacy is a theoretical concept used to explain political behavior in Political Science. It indicates citizens' faith and trust in government and his/her own belief that he/she can understand and influence political affairs. It is commonly measured by surveys and used as an indicator...
- Protest voteProtest voteA protest vote is a vote cast in an election to demonstrate the caster's unhappiness with the choice of candidates or refusal of the current political system...
- Renunciation of citizenshipRenunciation of citizenshipRenunciation is a voluntary act of relinquishing one's citizenship . It is the opposite of naturalization whereby a person voluntarily acquires a citizenship, and related to denaturalization where the loss of citizenship is not voluntary, but forced by a state.-Historic practices:The old common law...
- Social alienationSocial alienationThe term social alienation has many discipline-specific uses; Roberts notes how even within the social sciences, it “is used to refer both to a personal psychological state and to a type of social relationship”...
- Voter apathyVoter apathyIn politics, voter apathy is a term used to describe a perceived apathy among voters in an election. Voter apathy is often cited as a cause of low turnout among eligible voters....