What are political and social cleavages?

Political and social cleavages are the internal divisions in a society based on class, ethnicity, religion, or territory. When these divisions become politically relevant, they shape voting behavior, party systems, and stability, and governments respond in very different ways, from repression to autonomy and representation. For AP Comparative Government, you need to describe these cleavages in the six course countries and explain how they affect citizen relationships and political stability.

more resources to help you study

practice multiple choice FRQ practice & scoring cheatsheets score calculator key terms

Reinforcing and Cross-Cutting Cleavages

In AP Comparative Government, a reinforcing cleavage happens when the same groups are divided from each other across several issues at once. For example, if ethnicity, religion, region, and party support all separate the same two groups, the cleavage is reinforcing because every division deepens the same conflict.

A cross-cutting cleavage happens when social divisions overlap in different ways. People who are divided by religion might share a class interest, region, or party preference. Cross-cutting cleavages usually make political conflict less intense because people are not always lined up against the same opponents.

Why This Matters for the AP Comparative Government Exam

Cleavages connect to one of the biggest questions in the course: what keeps a regime stable or pushes it toward conflict. You will see this idea show up when you analyze why certain groups vote together, why separatist or autonomy movements form, and why a government chooses repression over power-sharing.

On the exam, you can use cleavages to:

Compare how China, Iran, Mexico, Nigeria, Russia, and the United Kingdom each handle internal divisions.
Explain causation, such as how a colonial history or regional development gap leads to political tension.
Read data on ethnicity, religion, or regional voting and connect it back to stability or legitimacy.
Build evidence-based arguments using specific country examples instead of vague generalizations.

The strongest responses move past describing a cleavage and explain what it means for a country's politics. Connect the division to behavior, party systems, or government response.

Key Takeaways

A cleavage is an internal division based on class, ethnicity, religion, or territory; it becomes a political cleavage when it gets politicized.
Cleavages affect voting behavior, party systems, and informal political networks, and they differ across the six course countries.
Government responses range from brute repression to recognizing minorities and creating autonomous regions or guaranteed representation.
Some groups push for full independence (separatists), while others want more self-government without leaving (autonomy-seeking).
Cleavages can be used to strengthen a regime's legitimacy, but they can also fuel conflict and weaken it.
Ethnicity has played a larger role in Nigeria than in Mexico because of different colonial histories and more diverse, politicized ethnic and religious identities in Nigeria.

What Cleavages Are

A cleavage is a division that structures a society. The four main bases you should know are class, ethnicity, religion, and territory.

It helps to separate two layers:

A social cleavage is the division itself, such as a difference in ethnicity or religion.
A political cleavage happens when that social division becomes politicized. Once politicized, it shapes political culture, behavior, and values, and it can create tension and conflict in politics.

Two terms are useful for thinking about how dangerous a cleavage is. These are common political science concepts, not country-specific required facts:

Coinciding (reinforcing) cleavages: when the same groups line up against each other on issue after issue. These tend to be more explosive because there is no overlap to cool things down.
Cross-cutting cleavages: when divisions split people into different groups depending on the issue, so people who disagree on one thing may agree on another. These tend to keep conflict more moderate.

Types of Group Demands

Cleavages do not all want the same thing. A useful way to sort them:

Separatist movements: a group that wants to break away and form its own state, often because it feels its identity, culture, or interests are not protected.
Autonomy-seeking groups: a group that wants more self-government and recognition but does not want full independence.

This distinction matters for the course countries. Separatist movements have emerged in China, Iran, Nigeria, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Groups demanding autonomy but not independence have emerged in Mexico and the United Kingdom.

Cleavages and Government Responses Across the Course Countries

The first column describes the cleavage you are expected to know. The other columns show how the country has responded and what kind of impact the cleavage has had. The country cleavages are required content; specific government responses listed are examples and applications of how each state has reacted.

Country	Social Cleavage	Government Response (examples)	Impact on the Country
UK 🇬🇧	Ethnic and regional differences among the Scottish, English, Welsh, and Irish; religious differences between Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland; and racial tensions between whites and non-European minorities tied to the UK's colonial history.	Devolution of power to Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland to address regional and ethnic differences.	Both separatist movements and groups demanding autonomy without independence have emerged.
Mexico 🇲🇽	Ethnic divisions between the Amerindian (indigenous) population and whites and mestizos, and regional divisions between the north and the south.	The Zapatista (EZLN) uprising in Chiapas (1994) pushed the government toward recognizing indigenous rights; Mexico has also used poverty reduction policies aimed at the poorer south.	Groups demanding autonomy, but not independence, have emerged.
Nigeria 🇳🇬	Ethnic divisions among more than 250 ethnic groups (including Hausa-Fulani, Yoruba, and Igbo), and religious and regional cleavages between the predominantly Muslim north and the south, where Christians and animists are concentrated.	The 1999 Constitution set up federalism with a strong central government and allowed Sharia law in the north; the state has also used the military against groups like Boko Haram.	Separatist movements have emerged. Ethnicity has played a more significant role here than in Mexico because of different colonial histories and more diverse, politicized identities.
Russia 🇷🇺	Cleavages between ethnic Russians (more than 80 percent of the population, often Russian Orthodox) and minority, non-Russian populations, including the predominantly Muslim Chechens in the Caucasus region.	Fought wars in Chechnya in the 1990s to stop separatists; later relied on repression to suppress separatist activity.	Separatist movements have emerged.
China 🇨🇳	Ethnic and regional divisions between the majority Han group and at least 55 recognized ethnic minorities, such as the Uighurs in the northwest and the Tibetans in the southwest, plus gaps between regions that developed at different rates.	Used re-education camps in Xinjiang aimed at political socialization, detention, and pressure to conform in language and law to limit separatism.	Separatist movements have emerged.
Iran 🇮🇷	Religious divisions between the Shi'a Muslim majority and minority religions such as Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism; the Shi'a-Sunni divide within Islam; and ethnic cleavages between the majority Persians and minorities including Azerbaijanis and Kurds.	Officially recognizes some minority religions, but groups such as the Baha'i have faced severe persecution; Sunni rights are unclear, and there have been ongoing clashes with Kurdish groups.	Separatist movements have emerged.

How to Use This on the AP Comparative Government Exam

Multiple Choice

Be ready to identify which course country a described cleavage belongs to. The clues are usually the named groups (Uighurs, Igbo, Chechens, and so on).
Watch for questions that ask about government responses. Match the response (devolution, federalism, repression, recognition) to the right country.
When you get a chart on ethnicity, religion, or regional voting, do not stop at describing it. Pick the answer that connects the data to stability, legitimacy, or party behavior.

Free Response

When asked to describe a cleavage, name the specific groups and the type of division (ethnic, religious, regional, class). Vague phrases like "there is conflict" will not earn the point.
When asked to explain an effect, link the cleavage to something concrete: voting behavior, party systems, a separatist or autonomy movement, or a stability problem.
For comparison prompts, use the Nigeria versus Mexico contrast. Ethnicity has played a larger role in Nigeria because of different colonial histories and more politicized identities.

Common Trap

A lot of answers describe a cleavage perfectly and then forget to explain why it matters politically. The points usually come from the "so what." Always push from the division to its effect on stability, legitimacy, or behavior.

Common Misconceptions

A cleavage is not just any disagreement. It is a structural division based on class, ethnicity, religion, or territory, not a single policy argument.
Separatist and autonomy-seeking are not the same. Separatists want to leave and form a new state; autonomy-seeking groups want more self-government while staying part of the country.
Cleavages are not only destabilizing. Governments can use cleavages to build legitimacy and hold power, not just lose control because of them.
Recognition does not equal protection. Iran officially recognizes some minority religions, but that recognition does not stop persecution of certain groups.
The country examples are required; the specific government actions are illustrations. You are expected to know the cleavages in all six countries, but treat particular policies and events as examples of how states respond, not as a fixed list you must memorize word for word.

zation of ethnic and religious identities.

Which AP Comp Gov countries have separatist movements?

Separatist movements have emerged in China, Iran, Nigeria, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Mexico and the United Kingdom also have groups demanding autonomy without full independence.

Vocabulary

The following words are mentioned explicitly in the College Board Course and Exam Description for this topic.

Term	Definition
autonomous regions	Areas within a country that have self-governing powers and some degree of political independence while remaining part of the larger state.
autonomy	Self-governance or the right of a group or region to make decisions about its own affairs while remaining part of a larger state.
brute repression	The use of force and coercion by the state to suppress dissent and control populations.
class cleavages	Divisions within a society based on socioeconomic status or economic position.
ethnic cleavages	Deep social divisions within a state based on ethnic or cultural differences that can influence the structure of government.
ethnic minorities	Groups of people sharing a common ethnic identity that constitute a smaller portion of a country's population.
ethnicity	A shared cultural, linguistic, or ancestral identity that distinguishes one group of people from another.
informal political networks	Non-institutional relationships and connections through which political influence and power are exercised outside formal governmental structures.
party systems	Structures and arrangements of political parties within a country that organize citizen participation and competition for political power.
political legitimacy	The acceptance and recognition by citizens that a government has the right to exercise authority and make binding decisions.
political stability	The condition of a political system characterized by predictable governance, absence of violent conflict, and continuity of institutions.
radical religious elements	Extremist groups motivated by religious ideology that emerge from long-standing social and political divisions.
regional cleavages	Divisions within a society based on geographic location or territorial differences.
religious cleavages	Divisions within a society based on religious affiliation, belief, or practice.
religious minorities	Groups of people sharing a common religious identity that constitute a smaller portion of a country's population.
separatist movements	Political movements seeking to break away from an existing state and establish an independent nation or sovereign territory.
social cleavages	Deep divisions within society based on factors such as ethnicity, religion, class, or culture that can create distinct groups with competing interests and influence political behavior and stability.
terrorist religious elements	Religious extremist groups that use violence and intimidation to achieve political or ideological goals.
voting behavior	The patterns and choices citizens make when casting votes, influenced by factors such as social cleavages and party affiliation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a reinforcing cleavage in AP Comparative Government?

A reinforcing cleavage happens when the same groups are divided across multiple issues, such as ethnicity, religion, region, and party support. These cleavages tend to intensify conflict.

What is a cross-cutting cleavage?

A cross-cutting cleavage happens when divisions split people differently across issues. People who disagree on one issue may agree on another, which can moderate conflict.

Why are cleavages important in AP Comp Gov?

Cleavages affect voting behavior, party systems, political stability, legitimacy, separatist movements, and government responses across the six course countries.

Why is ethnicity more politically significant in Nigeria than Mexico?

Ethnicity has played a larger role in Nigeria because of different colonial histories and a greater diversity and politicization of ethnic and religious identities.

Which AP Comp Gov countries have separatist movements?

Separatist movements have emerged in China, Iran, Nigeria, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Mexico and the United Kingdom also have groups demanding autonomy without full independence.