Overview
Take the Political Typology Quiz located in the Topic Resources before you answer the prompts:
- How does the result of the quiz compare to your answer in the first question?
- What might account for the differences, if any?
This discussion question is aligned to the following Social Work Competency: 5: Engage in Policy Practice
These are my results from the quiz
Stressed Sideliners hold a mix of conservative and liberal views and are the least politically engaged typology group. Generally disconnected from politics and the two major parties, they vote at lower rates than most other typology groups. About four-in-ten live in lower-income households, and they are the group most likely to describe their personal financial situation as only fair or poor. Stressed Sideliners are split evenly between the Republican Party and Democratic Party, while one-in-ten don’t lean toward either party. They lean liberal on economic issues and tilt conservative on some social issues.
This is the response in the beginning
Policies related to social welfare have an aim to improve the citizens’ well-being through the creation of different initiatives. They mostly revolve around the less privileged, elderly and sometimes those who are disabled. It is important to study social welfare policy because it helps give insight into problems that are faced in the community hence one is able to come up with solutions to the said problems. This understanding will help improve the policy themselves as from their study, you get to know whether they have an impact or not (Blau et.al, 2010). The political landscape highly affects social policy decisions as the people involved in decision making are the same leaders. Party affiliations and ideologies will shape how the policies are executed and what takes priority. The political landscape really matters in social policy decisions as the leading party will influence the decisions based on the promises they made during their campaigns that brought them to power (Gamson et.al, 1981).