Ch. 2 Government Terms

Front 1

Autocracy

Back 1

A system of government in which the power to govern is concentrated inthe hands of one individual.

Front 2

Democracy

Back 2

A system of government in which, in theory, the people rule, eitherdirectly or indirectly.

Front 3

Democratization

Back 3

A process of transition as a country attempts to move from anauthoritarian form of government to a democratic one.

Front 4

E-Government

Back 4

Online communication channels that enable citizens to easily obtaininformation from government and facilitate the expression of opinions to governmentofficials.

Front 5

Elite Theory

Back 5

The view that a small group of people actually makes most of theimportant government decisions.

Front 6

Interest Group

Back 6

An organized group of individuals that seeks to influence publicpolicy; also called a lobby.

Front 7

Majoritarian Model of Democracy

Back 7

The classical theory of democracy in whichgovernment by the people is interpreted as government by the majority of the people

Front 8

Majority Rule

Back 8

The principle—basic to procedural democratic theory—that thedecision of a group must reflect the preference of more than half of those participating;a simple majority.

Front 9

Minority Rights

Back 9

The benefits of government that cannot be denied to any citizen bymajority decisions.

Front 10

Oligarchy

Back 10

A system of government in which power is concentrated in the hands of afew people.

Front 11

Participatory

Back 11

A system of government where rank-and-file citizens rulethemselves rather than electing representatives to govern on their behalf.

Front 12

Pluralist Model of Democracy

Back 12

An interpretation of democracy in which governmentby the people is taken to mean government by people operating through competinginterest groups.

Front 13

Political Equality

Back 13

Equality in political decision making: one vote per person, with all votes counted equally.

Front 14

Procedural Democratic Theory

Back 14

A view of democracy as being embodied in adecision-making process that involves universal participation, political equality,majority rule, and responsiveness

Front 15

Representative Democracy

Back 15

A system of government where citizens elect publicofficials to govern on their behalf

Front 16

Responsiveness

Back 16

A decision-making principle, necessitated by representativegovernment, that implies that elected representatives should do what the majority ofpeople wants.

Front 17

Substantive Democratic Theory

Back 17

The view that democracy is embodied in thesubstance of government policies rather than in the policymaking procedure.

Front 18

Universal Participation

Back 18

The concept that everyone in a democracy should participatein governmental decision making.