Political & Citizenship Terms and Concepts

Vocabulary flashcards covering political and citizenship terms and concepts from lecture notes.

Illiberal democracy

A system where elections occur, but leaders weaken or ignore constitutional protections, restrict freedoms, and undermine democratic institutions.

Duty-Bound citizenship

Focuses on duties such as obeying laws, paying taxes, and voting.

Engaged citizenship

Adds active participation beyond duties, such as protesting or volunteering.

Four pillars of democratic citizenship (Allen)

1. Social mobility – giving people from all backgrounds access to opportunity.

2. Civic education – teaching students how democracy works and why it matters.

3. Stewardship of facts – protecting truth through research and evidence.

4. Purposeful pluralism – creating spaces where diverse people and ideas coexist respectfully.

Academic freedom

Protects scholars’ teaching and research from institutional or political interference.

Freedom of speech

Protects all individuals’ expression, distinct from academic freedom which has a specific context.

Liberalism

Values individual rights, freedoms, and limited government.

Democracy

Rule by the people through elections, emphasizing participation and equality.

Liberal democracy

A political system that combines free and fair elections with the protection of individual rights, rule of law, and constitutional limits on government power.

Populism

A political approach that claims to speak for 'the people' against 'elites'; mobilizing but may threaten pluralism.

Ex. Bernie Sanders vs. Trump

Totalitarianism

Where a leader (Dictatorship), state, or party uses a guiding ideology or goal of social change to exercise total control over both public and private life.

Example: North Korea, Nazi Germany

Authoritarianism

A regime based on submission to authority, where ruling elites hold power, political control is centralized, pluralism is limited, opposition is not tolerated, and human rights are often abused.

Example: Russia

Pluralism

A condition where society is made up of diverse groups with competing interests that coexist and influence government, preventing any one group from dominating.

Fascism

National unity through authoritarian state → Strong leadership, mass mobilization, emphasis on national unity (nationalism) and militarism

Social modernization

• The process where economic growth, education, and urbanization transform traditional societies. As people become more educated and aware, they start demanding greater political participation and individual rights.

• Questioning the world

Generational impact

Impacts on individuals shaped by major events experienced by their age cohort.

Life cycle impact

Impacts that cause shifts in individuals' views or behaviors with age.

Public participation

Involvement in collective decision-making processes.

Autonomy

Individual freedom and self-governance, distinct from collective participation.

Social Order

State power that enforces laws and order, balancing repression and chaos.

Social citizenship

Everyone in a society deserves certain rights, protections, and opportunities, not just political rights like voting but also social rights — things like education, healthcare, and security.

Political authorities

The leaders or governing bodies of a political system.

Regime

The fundamental system or principles of governance within a state.

Political community

The group of people who identify with and share a political system.

Academization

The process of turning skills or topics into subjects of academic study, sometimes leading to over-intellectualization.

Post-modernism

• A critical approach that questions universal truths, objective reality, and grand narratives.

• Questioning the truth

Deconstruction

A method that breaks down systems, language, or ideas to reveal hidden assumptions or biases behind what people call “truth.”

Social science

Study of how people and societies behave using research and data. It looks at causes (independent variables) and effects (dependent variables) through numbers, surveys, and observations.

Service learning

A pedagogy where students learn by working in communities, combining academics with civic engagement. Ronald Daniels supports it as part of democratic education, while Stanley Fish critiques it, saying universities should teach knowledge, not activism.

The Truman Commission

A 1947 presidential report that called for expanding higher education, creating community colleges, federal aid, and making access to college a right essential to democracy and social mobility.

Ronald J. Daniels – What Universities Owe Democracy

• Viewpoint: Universities have four democratic obligations: social mobility, civic education, stewardship of facts, and pluralism.

• Believes higher education is essential for sustaining democracy and should directly prepare students to engage as citizens.

Stanley Fish – Save the World on Your Own Time

• Viewpoint: Universities should teach knowledge and skills only, not activism or moral character.

• Argues against “academicizing” social justice in classrooms—education should be about how to think, not what to think.

Russell J. Dalton – The Good Citizen

• Viewpoint: Defines two models of citizenship.

• Duty-based citizenship – traditional; emphasizes voting, obeying laws, jury duty, and loyalty to the state.

• Engaged citizenship – newer; emphasizes activism, protest, volunteering, and being critical of government.

• Argues that modern democracies are shifting from duty-based to engaged models, especially among younger generations.

Civic Education

Teaching knowledge, skills, and values needed for active, responsible participation in a democracy.

Illiberalism

It’s when a government still claims to be democratic (like holding elections) but undermines freedom, equality, and the rule of law that protect people from abuse of power.

Relativism

Truth depends on perspective. Daniels warns they erode universities' credibility as stewards of facts.

Zakaria

• The thinker who explained how a country can be democratic in form (voting) but illiberal in practice (no real freedom).

• Illiberal Democracy