Original scientific paper

Models od Political Man

Kosta Bovan orcid.org/0000-0002-5183-6065 ; Faculty of Political Sciences, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

Abstract

Reflections on political systems are necessarily based on some sort of model of political man – an individual who thinks, decides, discusses, and participates in politics. This paper offers a review of modern conceptions of political man structured in five models. The personality model highlights the importance of childhood experiences for political behavior and belief in adulthood; the sociological model highlights the importance of primary and interest groups; the sociopsychological model highlights the importance of party identification; the rational-economic model highlights the efficiency of thought and selfinterest; while the cognitive model highlights the citizens’ mental capabilities. The main assumptions, methodology, and findings for each model are presented in the paper. Also, implications for democratic processes for each model are explained. The conclusion offers a critical survey of the current state of research on political man, as well as recommendations for further research.

Keywords

Political Man; Political Belief; Political Behavior; Voting Behavior; Elections

Hrčak ID:

154649

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/154649

Publication date:

29.12.2015.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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