<P> There has been considerable analysis of different ideological patterns . This kind of analysis has been described by some as meta - ideology -- the study of the structure , form , and manifestation of ideologies . Recent analysis tends to posit that ideology is a coherent system of ideas , relying upon a few basic assumptions about reality that may or may not have any factual basis . Ideas become ideologies ( that is , become coherent , repeated patterns ) through the subjective ongoing choices that people make , serving as the seed around which further thought grows . According to most recent analysis , ideologies are neither necessarily right nor wrong . Believers in ideology range from passive acceptance through fervent advocacy to true belief . An excessive need for certitude lurks at fundamentalist levels in politics and religions . </P>
what is a coherent set of values and beliefs about public policy called
ideology