what is ideological eclecticism, transition pluralism and coalitional flexibility?

Answer 1

Big words for simple concepts.

"Ideological eclecticism" means taking many different individual concepts from different schools of thought, rather than embracing a single collection of beliefs pre-packaged by one school. It means coming to individual conclusions on each separate issue, rather than accepting an entire platform of ideas.

"Transition Pluralism" means taking the underlying concepts and core elements of an issue, independent of any change in form or presentation. It means looking beyond the surface to what is going on underneath, even if the surface keeps changing.

"Coalitional flexibility" is the willingness to work with different groups (coalitions) depending upon what each is attempting to achieve. So, you may work with group-A on issue-A, but switch to work with group-B on issue-B, regardless of where each groups stand on the other unrelated issue.

For example, let's say you don't believe anyone should ever be killed by another person. You may work with pro-life groups to stop abortion, and with anti-death-penalty groups to stop capital punishment. Even if those two ideas are often associated with different political parties.

In short, all of the above are different ways of describing someone who thinks for themself, and acts independently of how other groups are organized. Your commitment is to your personal stand on each of the issues, not how other groups feel about those issues.