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Tocqueville, A. (2002). Democracy in America (H. Mansfeld, & D. Winthrop, Trans.). University of Chicago Press. (Original Work Published in 1835)

has been cited by the following article:

• TITLE: Understanding American Political Culture: Three Different Approaches

  AUTHORS: Xiaolin Mao

  KEYWORDS: American Political Culture, Federalism, Disharmony, Liberalism, Elazar, Huntington, Hartz

  JOURNAL NAME: Open Journal of Political Science, Vol.16 No.4, September 28, 2026

  ABSTRACT: Political culture, on a large scale, determines how politics play out in real life. It influences not only what citizens think are legitimate actions, but also how they perceive political events. Meanwhile, political culture is indispensable to understanding the dynamics of American government and its foreign policies. This article is an effort to demonstrate how three notable but distinct approaches interpret American political culture: Elazar’s subcultural account, Huntington’s ideals-institutions tension, and Hartz’s liberal-consensus thesis. Combined, these three theoretical strands help broaden and deepen our understanding of American political culture.