Almond and Verba’s argument is based on a distinction between

three pure types of political culture: parochial, subject, and

participant. In a parochial political culture, citizens are only
indistinctly aware of the existence of central government. In
a subject political culture, citizens see themselves not as participants
in the political process but as subjects of the government. In
a participant political culture, citizens believe both that they can
contribute to the system and that they are affected by it.

Almond and Verba’s core idea was that democracy will prove most

stable in societies where subject and parochial attitudes
provide ballast to an essentially participant culture. This mix is
known as civic culture. In this ideal combination, the citizens are
sufficiently active in politics to express their preferences to rulers
but not so involved as to refuse to accept decisions with which they
disagree. Thus, the civic culture resolves the tension within
democracy between popular control and effective governance. 

 Following the pioneering footsteps of The Civic Culture, American

political scientist Robert Putnam argued that civic community,
based on high levels of political interest, social equality,
interpersonal trust, and voluntary association, leads to higher
probabilities of effective governance and democracy.

Different political scientists have defined many types and categories of political culture. But it is
the types given by Almond and Verba which is mostly accepted.

Scientists Gabriel Almond and Sidney Verba categorized political culture based on one's level of
political participation. Almond and Verba stated that there are three types of political culture:
  Parochial Political Culture: This type of political culture is one in which the citizens of the
country have very little awareness of the central government, and they do not play an active
role in government affairs. Parochial political cultures are commonly found in
underdeveloped countries. This could be due to the citizens being uninformed, or
disinterested, in politics. Because of their lack of involvement, the government officials tend
to have disregard for the citizens there, and thus a parochial political culture is established.
Some examples of parochial political cultures can be seen in various regions in Asia and
Africa.
 Subject Political Culture: In this type of political culture, people play a more important role.
The people know and understand the political system and how it impacts their lives. They
sometimes participate in political decisions. An example of a subject political culture is
Germany.
 Participant Political Culture: All citizens have the opportunity to participate in politics in a
participant political system. Citizens are aware of their rights and ability to influence political
workings, and many feel that it is their duty to participate. An example of a participant
political culture is the United States of America.

Daniel Elezar published his theory on political culture in 1966 in the book American
Federalism: A View from the States. He believed that the United States' political culture
could be divided into three categories. Elezar believed that these three belief systems
spread throughout the country as people immigrated and traveled. The three political
culture categories that Elezar described are:

 Individualistic Political Culture: In an individualistic political culture, people have

expectations that the government will provide them with certain things, focusing
on their individual needs rather than the needs of everyone. An example of a
state with an individualistic political culture is New York.
 Moralistic Political Culture: In a moralistic political culture, people tend to believe
that the government has the people's best interests in mind. They think that
government officials are generally honest and moral in their decisions. They tend
to support programs that help marginalized communities. An example of a state
that has a moralistic political culture is California.
 Traditionalistic Political Culture: In a traditionalistic political culture, the political
decisions are made to keep the elite at the top. New political ideas and policies
are not embraced if they do not somehow benefit those in power. There is less
civic participation because those in power do things to hinder many people from
participating, like requiring voters to show an ID to vote. An example of a state
with a traditionalistic political culture is Alabama.

Elite political culture and Ethnic political culture

Samuel P. Huntington classified political cultures according to civilizations on the basis

of geography and history:[3]
 Western civilization
 Japanese civilization
 Islamic civilization
 Hindu civilization
 Slavic-Orthodox civilization
 Latin American civilization
 Chinese civilization
 African civilization

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Almond and Verba identify three political structures: participant, subject, and parochial.
[5] (From Wikipedia)-

 Parochial cultures exemplified by tribal societies have little or no specialized

political roles and low expectations for political change. Members conceive of their
political role in familistic terms, thinking of their family's advantage as the main goal
to pursue. Members have low affective and evaluative orientation within the political
system.
 Subject cultures have citizens with high cognitive, affective and evaluative
orientation towards the political system and policy outputs, but have a relatively
detached passive relationship towards them, with minimal to no relationship to
political groups or being an active participant. Subject cultures are most compatible
with authoritarian political structures.
 Participant cultures have citizens who regard law not as simply something to
passively obey, but something they help shape. Members have high cognitive,
affective and evaluative orientation to all four types of objects within the political
system.
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Political cultures differ according to the degree of participation in the political process by the citizens of
the political system. In some systems, individuals take a more active role in the political process, possess
a great deal of political information, and expect to influence decisions made by governments.

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1. Parochial Political Culture

Generally, in the underdeveloped countries and in the traditional
social system, there is a lack of consciousness and interest or
widespread indifference among individuals regarding political issues.
In the context of the political way of life and the national political
system, there is a strong disregard for the countrymen which leads to
the formation of a parochial political culture.

To end such a culture, the need for a wide spreading of education and
the spread of political communication is necessary. There are still
many regions in Asia and Africa where parochial political culture can
be seen.

2. Participatory Political culture

In a participatory political culture, every citizen actively takes an active
role in political affairs. Individuals consider themselves an active
member of the country’s existing political system.

The participation and evaluation of the individual in the traditional

political system is very deep and important in such political culture.
Here the individual is always aware of his rights and duties. Great
Britain and USA are great example of participatory political culture.

3. Subject Political Culture

In this kind of political culture, the role of the people in political affairs
is significant. The public is fully aware of the political system prevailing
here and the effect of state action on their way of life.

Despite the existence of enthusiasm for political life, the people here
make no attempt to influence the decision-making process. Rather,
most of the government’s decisions are accepted without authority.
This tendency in public affairs for public interest is attributed to this
kind of inactive political culture.