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119 Cards in this Set
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Political Party |
Group of officials who are linked with a sizable group of citizens into an organization; objective is to ensure that its officials attain and maintain power |
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Party Identification |
Publicly acknowledging the political party with which one may be associated with |
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One Party System |
Government only permits a single political party (ex. China, Cuba, Nazi Germany) |
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Party System |
Set of all/multiple parties |
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Dominant Party System |
Single party holds power all/most of the time |
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Two Party System |
2 parties normally expected to have a chance at holding power, but room for other parties |
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Multiparty System |
More than two major parties (ex. Norway) |
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Interest Group |
Organized group of citizens whose central political goal is to ensure the state follows certain policies |
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Free Riders |
Potential members of an interest group who don't join because they get benefits from a group's activity whether they join or not, therefore saving them money. |
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Selective Benefits |
Benefits that can be withheld from anyone who does not join the interest group |
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Sectoral Interest Group |
Represent a sector of the economy |
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Institutional Interest Groups |
Set up for purposes other than political activity, such as lobbyists for college government funding. |
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Promotional Interest Groups |
Organize around an idea or point of view (support ethnicity, religious values, recreational activity) |
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Lobbying |
Representatives of an interest group meet with officials regarding a law or regulation |
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Outside Lobbying |
An interest group uses its members to to help its lobbyists influence a bill (write, send emails, phone call, etc.) |
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Public Information Campaigns |
Interest group may try to change policy by means of social media towards the entire population |
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Litigation |
Attempting to affect policy within the court system and through court cases |
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Pluralism |
Idealized system in which all interests compete freely and no one group is able to dominate |
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Neocorporatism |
System where all interests are organized and the government deals directly with all affected interests at all stages in the making and administration of policy |
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Clientelism |
To rely on a patron involved with government in return of their loyalty and support |
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Social Movement |
Informal movement of ordinary people who are loosely coordinated in result of contentious politics |
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Contentious Politics |
Confrontations between ordinary people and governing or economic elites |
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Constitution |
Set of rules by which power is distributed among the members *No group of people engaged in politics could exist w/o rules of this kind* |
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Principles of Constitution Design |
1. Importance of long standing tradition 2. Importance of Amedability 3. Importance of Incentive Compatibility |
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Incentive Compatibility |
Holders of power should have personal rewards/incentives to do what society needs done and to be personally punished when they do not |
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Unitary State |
No other governmental body but the central government has any areas of policy exclusively under their control |
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Federal State |
Regional authorities are given certain political decisions over which they have legal control (ex. States in the U.S.) |
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Constitutionalism |
Faithful adherence to the letter and spirit of the Constitution (Do they follow strictly to the laws written in the Constitution?) |
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Gross Domestic Product (GDP) |
Total amount of all economic transactions in the state |
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PPP per capita GDP |
A per capita GDP that takes into account the fluctuations in value of other currencies relative to the dollar |
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Court(s) |
Interpret and adjudicate all parts of the law |
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Law |
Collection of rules laid down by the government, binding all members of the state, including government members |
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Legal Systems |
Organized sets of legal principles that form the basis of law and adjudication in states |
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Case Law (Common Law) |
Views courts as largely independent of the state's government; Cases serve as precendents for future decisions (Legal System in America) |
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Habeas Corpus |
Innocent until proven guilty; may not be detained more than 24 hours without a charge |
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Code Law |
Law is an instrument of government rather than semi-independent |
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Sharia Law (Religious Law) |
Supplements and blends with Western law; differing from state to state how they administer it |
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Criminal Law |
person disobeyed a law prescribing proper conduct (State vs. Defendant) |
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Civil Law |
Regulates relations between people |
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Constitutional Law |
Disputes about the nature of the political process and whether laws are consistent with the constitution |
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Judicial Review |
The ability to overrule actions of other parts of the government if they violate the constitution |
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Policy Characteristics |
1. Must be "just;" treat people the way they deserve 2. Must be "effective;" produce the greatest good at the least cost |
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Justice |
People should be treated as they deserve; Weight of contributions vs. Need |
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Substantive Justice |
Conception of justice that emphasizes people receiving what they need and deserve |
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Procedural Justice |
1. Is governmental action arbitrary? 2. Are special basic rights violated? 3. Are special overriding social needs present? |
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Arbitrary Governmental Action (Procedural Justice) |
People affected by a decision do not know what to expect before the decision is made and do not learn on what grounds the decision was made |
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Due Process |
We must always follow certain standard procedures in making some policies; if not, then the policy should be void |
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Basic Rights (Procedural Justice) |
1. Right to Survive 2. Right to Free Speech 3. Right to Privacy |
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Effective Policy |
Gives the state and the people of the state the greatest benefits at the least cost |
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Market Mechanism (Effective Policy) |
Government leaves choices such as what goods people are to receive up to the people to choose for themselves (Supply and Demand) |
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Governmental Authority (Effective Policy) |
Government says what the people may or may not do, how much to spend, etc. on the given policy |
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Externality |
Social costs or benefits beyond the individual costs or benefits between 2 individuals (other people effected by the 2 individuals' costs/benefits) |
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Public Administration |
People not directly involved in politics, but involved in construction/implementation of the policies |
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Bureaucracy |
a way to organize public administration: 1. members are appointed and promoted on basis of qualifications for the job 2. Requirements of training or experience are set for the position 3. Administrative procedures are standardized 4. Hierarchical Command Structure 5. shielded from day-to-day political pressure |
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Hierarchical Command Structure |
Clear lines of command are established, in which an order from a high official goes to a lower official, who then passes the order on to the next level until it reaches the point of operation |
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Ombudsman |
Government official whose primary duty is to seek out citizens' complaints of abuse by public administrators and to negotiate changes in the offending practices |
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Higher Civil Service |
Managers, Diplomats, Specialists |
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Parliamentary Government |
Type of government where the head of the state and head of government are separate, and people elect a parliament of representatives; Legislative and Executive are blended |
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Head of State |
Purely symbolic leader of the state, little to no political influence |
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Constitutional Monarch |
Monarch who carries out ceremonial functions but has little or no real political power (same as head of state) |
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Coalition (Parliamentary) |
divide the cabinet positions among themselves |
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Question Time |
Various cabinet members appear regularly to answer questions from other members of parliament about the way they are running their ministry |
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Minority Cabinet |
Cabinet based on a coalition holding less than 50% of the votes in parliament |
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Consensus Parliamentarism |
Parliamentary systems in which government and opposition is more muted than in pure parliamentary government (Neocorporatist interest representation) |
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Presidential Government |
Democratic system in which the legislature and executive branch exist independently and are elected independently |
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Accountability (of a Democratic Government) |
Extent to which citizens can hold members of the government responsible for rewarding them when they do what the citizens want and punishing them when they do not |
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Principal-Agent Problem |
One party delegates powers to another to use on the principal's behalf; problems exist when the agent has different interests that the principal or the principal has difficulty finding out whether or not the agent is truly serving the principal |
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Retrospective Voting |
Look back at an officials term and deciding to reelect or not whether their lives and the lives around them have gone well during that term |
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Feudalism |
A system of agragarian-based production that is characterized by fixed social hierarchies and a rigid pattern of obligations |
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Divine Right |
The doctrine that earthly rulers are chosen by God and thus wield unchallengeable authority; divine right is a defense for monarchical absolutism |
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Absolutism |
A form of government in which political power is concentrated in the hands of a single individual or small group, in particular, an absolute monarchy |
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Classical Liberalism |
A tradition within liberalism that seeks to maximize the realm of unconstrained individual action, typically by establishing a minimal state and a reliance on market economics |
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Modern Liberalism |
A tradition within liberalism that provides that provides a qualified endorsement for social and economic intervention as a means of promoting personal development |
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The Enlightenment |
Intellectual movement that reached its peak in the 18th century and challenged traditional beliefs in religion, politics, and learning in general in the name of reason and progress |
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Atomism |
A belief that society is made up of a collection of self interested and largely self sufficient individuals, or atoms, rather than social groups |
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Human Nature |
The essential and innate character of all human beings: what they owe to nature rather than to society |
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Freedom/Liberty |
The ability to think or act as one wishes, a capacity that can be associated with the individual, a social group, or nation |
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Negative Freedom |
absence of external restrictions or constraints on the individual, allowing freedom of choice |
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Positive Freedom |
Self-Mastery or self-realization; the achievement of autonomy or the development of human capacities |
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Paternalism |
Authority exercised from above for the guidance and support of those below, modeled on the relationship between fathers and children |
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Justice |
Moral standard of fairness and impartiality |
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Equality |
The principle that human beings are of identical worth or are entitled to be treated in the same way |
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Meritocracy |
Literally, rule by those with merit, merit being intelligence plus effort; a society in which social position is determined exclusively by ability and hard work |
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Pluralism |
A belief in diversity or choice, or the theory that political power should be widely and evenly dispersed |
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Autonomy |
The ability to control one's own destiny by virtue of enjoying independence from external influences |
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Social Contract |
Agreement amongst individuals through which they form a state in order to escape from the disorder and chaos of the state of nature |
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State of Nature |
Pre-political society characterized by unrestrained freedom and the absence of established authority |
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Democracy |
Rule by the people; implies both popular participation and government in the public interest |
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Written Constitution |
A single authoritative document defining duties, powers, and functions of government institutions and so constitutes 'higher law' |
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Bill of Rights |
Specifies the rights and freedoms of the individual and defines the relationship between the state and its citizens |
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Rule of Law |
Principle that all conduct and behavior should conform to a framework of law |
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Separation of Powers |
Principle that legislative, executive, and judicial power should be separated through the construction of three independent branches |
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Federalism |
Territorial distribution of power based on the sharing of sovereignty between central and regional government |
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Civil Liberty |
Private sphere of existence belonging to the citizen not to the state;freedom from government |
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Civil Society |
A realm of autonomous associations and groups formed by private citizens and enjoying independence from the government |
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Majoritarianism |
A belief in majority rule; implies that the majority dominates the minority |
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Natural Rights |
God-given rights that are fundamental to human beings and are therefore inalienable (can't be taken away) |
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Mercantilism |
A school of economic thought that emphasizes the state's role in managing international trade and delivering prosperity |
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Free Market (Laissez-Faire) |
Market free from government interference |
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Market Fundamentalism |
An absolute faith in the market, reflecting the belief that the market mechanism offers solutions to all economic and social problems |
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Altruism |
Concern for the interests and welfare of others based either upon enlightened self interest or a belief in a common humanity |
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Welfare State |
State taking primary responsibility for social welfare of its citizens (social security, health, education) |
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Transnational Corporation |
A company that controls economic activity in two or more countries |
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Commercial Liberalism |
A form of liberalism that emphasizes the economic and international benefits of free trade leading to mutual benefit and general prosperity as well as peace among states |
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Republican Liberalism |
highlights the benefits of republican government (link between democracy and peace) |
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Humanitarian Intervention |
Military intervention in the affairs of another state that is carried out in pursuit of humanitarian rather than strategic objectives |
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Authoritarianism |
Strong central authority, demands unquestioning obedience; ruler is divine/sent from above |
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New Right |
An ideological trend within conservatism that embraces a blend of market individualism and social authoritarianism |
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Anomie |
Weakening of values, associated with feelings of isolation and meaninglessness |
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Organicism |
A belief that society operates likes an organism or living entity, the whole being more than the individual parts, but each being important for functioning |
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Functionalism |
Theory that social institutions and practices should be understood in terms of the functions they carry out in sustaining the larger social system |
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Natural Aristocracy |
The idea that talent and leadership are innate qualities and cannot be acquired through effort or self-advancement |
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Privatization |
The transfer of state assets from the public to the private sector , reflecting a contraction of the state's responsibilities. |
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Populism |
Belief that popular instincts and wishes are the legitimate guide to political action, often reflecting distrust or hostility towards political elites |
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Economic Liberalism |
Belief in the market as a self regulating mechanism that tends naturally to deliver general prosperity and opportunities for all |
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Neoliberalism |
Dedicated to market individualism and minimal statism |
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Neoconservatism |
Emphasizes need to restore order and return to traditional values |
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Washington Consensus |
Neoliberal framework embraced since the 1980s by key Washington-based institutions, reflecting support for fiscal discipline, privatization, and financial and trade liberalization |
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Civic Conservatism |
Calls for a transformation of the civic culture to counter balance "excesses" of the state control and the free market |