Highlights
A practical approach emphasizes the everyday relevance of politics and government
The Sixth Edition continues to emphasize the connections between government and students’ everyday life, with new and expanded features appear throughout.
- NEW Politics and Popular Culture boxes challenge students to critically examine how politics intersects with television, film, music, cartoons, and the Internet. For example, chapter 1 explores the effect on political culture of TV programs such as The Daily Show and The West Wing.
- “What Government Does and Why It Matters” sections, at the beginning of each chapter, explain how government actions affect the lives of individuals. Among other topics, these sections discuss the response to Hurricane Katrina and the consequences for average Americans of recent tax cuts by the Bush Administration.
- “Policy Debate” boxes in every chapter explore both sides of controversial issues such as government eavesdropping, gay marriage, the renewal of the Patriot Act, and energy policy/global warming.
- “Get Involved: What You Can Do” sections, appearing at the end of every chapter, use topics from the chapter to show students why political participation matters and how they can get involved themselves.
Consistent theme and in-text tools develop critical and analytical thinking skills
Throughout the text, the authors challenge students to examine core issues with a critical eye and provide useful tools to help them analyze politics and government effectively.
- NEW Enhanced data figures encourage students to engage with up-to-date numerical data—including election results, spending figures, public opinion polls, and more—by asking critical-thinking questions and guiding them to important points.
- “America in the World” interludes in each chapter encourage students to think critically about how American government is connected to the rest of the world, exploring such topics as “Can America Export Democracy?,” “Participation and Democracy in Iraq,” and “What Is Congress’s Role in Foreign Policy?” Two “For Critical Analysis” questions in each box test students’ understanding of the issue covered.
- The theme of liberty, equality, and democracy—introduced in Chapter 1, previewed at the beginning of every chapter, and explicitly applied within each chapter—asks students to think critically about how our political system measures up to these principles.
- Six to eight “For Critical Analysis” questions appear in the margins throughout every chapter to prompt students’ critical thinking.
A built-in study guide ensures that students retain essential principles
The Sixth Edition applies consistent study and review methods in each chapter, providing a built-in study guide to help students succeed. Study Outlines precede each chapter, highlighting the important points students will encounter as they read, and a Self Quiz at the end of each chapter reinforces these points. Key Terms are defined marginally and listed at the end of each chapter along with Interactive Politics sections that are linked to the StudySpace website (see Student Resources). For Further Reading sections provide suggestions to assist students in research projects.
An exceptional value for students
We the People remains the most affordable full-color text available for introductory courses, offering a robust package of textual and multimedia learning tools at an exceptional price.
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