AP Comparative Government Vocab

Empirical Comparisons (Quantitative)

Drawing conclusions on the basis of facts, measurement, statistics, or observation; Economic development of countries, including GNP, per capita income, imports/exports, etc; Example - Gov reports, polls, questionnaires, tables, charts, graphs; Example - The median household income in a city is $65,000

Normative Comparisons (Qualitative)

Based on value judgements; Whether or not statistics bode well for country; Focuses on philosophies, norms, or "should"; Examples - speeches, foundational documents, political cartoons, political commentary; Example - An income of $65,000 is insufficient to afford a median-priced home in this market

Comparative Method

the systematic study and comparison of different political systems to find patterns, similarities, and differences

Advanced democracy

Well established democratic governments and high level of economic development; Ex - UK

Communist and post communist countries (authoritarian)

Aimed to create a system that limits individual freedoms to divide wealth equally; Ex - China (communist); Ex - Russia (post communist)

Newly Industrializing Countries (NICs)

rapid economic growth and have tendency towards democratization and political stability; Ex - Mexico and Iran

Less Developed Countries (LDCs)

lack significant economic development and have authoritarian gov; Ex - Nigeria

Hypothesis

proposed explanation for an event or observation; Example - If a country switches from a Single-Member District Plurality system to a Proportional Representation system, then the number of viable political parties represented in the legislature will increase.

Independent variable

Factor that a researcher changes, controls, or manipulates in an experiment to test its effects on another factor; Example - The type of legislative electoral system

Dependent variable

Changes in response to the independent variable. This is the variable you are measuring or trying to explain; Example - The number of viable political parties in the legislature

Correlation

Exists when there is an association between two or more variables; Shows a relationship or pattern between two things (they change together).; Can be positive, negative, or zero; Example - high reliance on oil revenues often moves hand-in-hand with authoritarian governance

Causation

Means a strict cause-and-effect link exists.; Action A makes event B happen.; Example - A Single-Member District First-Past-The-Post (SMD/FPTP) electoral system causes a two-party system.

Sovereignty

Right and ability for state to carry out actions and policies within its territory; Independent legal authority over a population; Who controls the state? The state itself.

Authority

legitimate right a state has to enforce policies and decisions over the people; Who has the right to control the people? The government

Power

Ability to make someone do something they would otherwise not do; coercion, persuasion, or leadership

Legitimacy

Belief that the government has right to rule and exercise authority; Popular acceptance of authority

Tradition (source of legitimacy)

How it is usually done determines who should rule and how; We are used to it like this so this is how it should be done!

Charismatic (source of legitimacy)

dynamic personality of a leader

Rational-legal (source of legitimacy)

based on well established laws and procedures; Adherence to rule of law; Common law; Code of law (Constitutions)

Other Sources of Legitimacy

Nationalism; Shared political culture or ideology; Shared religion; Governmental effectiveness; Economic growth; Dominant parties endorsement; Common enemy

State

Political system with international recognition that controls a specific territory and the people living in it; NOT THE PEOPLE CURRENTLY RUNNING IT!

4 Key Components of a State

Territory; Population; Sovereignty; Monopoly on legitimate use of force

Territory

controls a defined geographic area; Example - China has defined borders

Population

People live in that territory; Example - Control over the 1.4 billion people in China

Sovereignty (component of a state)

state's ability to act without internal or external interference; Example - China makes own laws rather than being governed by other country

Monopoly on legitimate use of force

Determines who can use force / when they can use it / how it can legally be used; Done through use of institutions

Institutions

Has organizations that create and enforces rules to keep state functioning; Example - Legislature, courts, bureaucracy, military

Nation

Group of people that share a common political identity such as a distinct culture, language, history, and ethnicity

Nationalism

sense of belonging and identity that distinguishes itself from another; Strong sense of loyalty that someone feels for nation and belief that they have own destiny; Can lead to violence and marginalization of minority groups

Multinational state

A single state that contains multiple distinct nations or ethnic groups; Minority ethnic groups may feel so strongly about their separate identities that they demand their independence.

Government

The people and institutions with the authority and power to make, enforce, and interpret decisions or laws; Aims to establish and maintain an ordered society, control certain behaviors of citizens, and promote certain social goals.; The chief policy makers of the State; Very fluid - Leaders change all the time!

Regime

Type of political system; Permanent norms about how political power is distributed and used within a political system; Fundamental rules that control access to and the exercise of political power; Determines levels of democracy; In democratic systems, leaders answer to citizens; in authoritarian systems, citizens answer to leaders

Regime Change

Change in fundamental system of government

Coup d'etat

overthrow of government by small amount of people, usually military leaders

Revolution

an overthrow of a regime based on widespread popular support

Democratic regime

political systems in which citizens have civil and political rights and can meaningfully participate in choosing and influencing their government.; Rule of Law; Free and fair elections; Citizen participation in government; Transparency

Rule of Law

Government officials are subject to the same laws and penalties as citizens

Transparency

the ability of citizens to know what the government is doing

Liberal democracy

a system with free and fair elections that provide citizens with a wide array of civil rights and liberties; Also known as substantive or consolidated; Typically include: Competitive elections, Civil liberties, Rule of law, Neutrality of the judiciary, Open Civil Society, Government control of military; Promotes participation, competition, and liberty.

Open Civil Society

"third sector" of society that operates independently of both the government and the for-profit business market

Illiberal or hybrid democracy

a system which elections may be marred by fraud and the state protects some civil rights and liberties but restricts others

De jure

Many authoritarian regimes have constitutions that guarantee rights like free speech or standard trial procedures on paper (de jure); Not used in practice!; Just because a document says rights are guaranteed doesn't mean citizens actually experience them

Authoritarian Regime

a system without free and fair elections in which civil rights and liberties are restricted; Rely on rule by law; Typically include: Elites who hold political power and make decisions; Some communism; some corporatism; Government officials interact with people and groups outside of government before setting policy; Patron client systems

Rule by law

law is applied arbitrarily and government officials are not subject to the same rules and penalties as everyday citizens

Patron client systems

favors and services to their supporters

Totalitarian Regime

a type of authoritarian government where the state controls nearly all aspects of citizens lives; Possesses strong ideology that seeks to transform and absorb aspects of state, society, and economy; Very repressive; Use violence and terror; Examples - Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, Mussolini Italy; Example Modern Day - North Korea

Linkage Institutions

Elections - are they free and fair?; Political parties - are they actually competitive? If so, how? If not, why? Is government restricting?; Media - can they criticize the government without consequence?; Interest groups - to what extent can they access legislatures?

Civil Society/Civil Liberties/Civil Rights

Essential freedoms - speech, religion, petition, assembly - are these protected? are they restricted?; Minority groups (religious, gender, ethnicity) are there laws to protect or restrict them?; Daily life - are there restrictions on basic daily activities?

Institutions of government

Are branches independent or tools of another branch or individual

Democratization

the process of transitioning from an authoritarian regime to a democratic regime

Democratic consolidation

the process by which a regime has developed stable democratic institutions and significant protections of civil liberties and is unlikely to revert to authoritarianism

Democratic backsliding

occurs when there is a decline in the quality of democracy, including a decrease in citizen participation, rule of law, transparency, and accountability

Unitary System

One central government controls states; Concentrates all policy making powers in one geographic place; Central government is responsible for most policies

Federal System

Power divided between the central government and states/provinces; State can have own legislatures; Regional bodies have significant powers; Examples - Taxation, lawmaking, keeping order

Confederate

Power spread among many subunits (for example - states); Weak central government

Devolution

Transfer power from central government to lower or regional government; Decentralize power

Ethnic forces (cause of devolution)

Identity based on language, religion, customs; See themselves as distinct nation with right to autonomy

Economic forces (cause of devolution)

Regional inequalities in income or standard of living

Spatial forces (cause of devolution)

Usually occur on the margins or borders of a state

System of Government

Structures of political system; Every country is different → Legislatures, executives, judicial systems, bureaucracies, armies, etc.

Separation of Powers

Power is divided into several bodies with the ability to check the power of the other

Fusion of Powers

All or most of the authority is concentrated in one body

Parliamentary System

A system of government where the executive and legislature are fused

Member of Parliament

person elected to serve the legislature

Prime minister

head of government; Member of the legislature; Selected by the majority party

Presidential System

A system of government where the executive and legislature are elected independently and have separate independent power

Semi Presidential System

System that divides executive power between a directly elected president and a prime minister; Powers spelled out in the Constitution

Bureaucracy

implement policy as part of executive branch; Well functioning - members chosen based on qualifications; Corrupt countries - source of personal gain and jobs; Often led by a cabinet which consists of heads of major departments

Legislative oversight

Legislature's power to hold cabinet officials and members of the bureaucracy accountable for their actions and policies

Head of State

Symbolizes and represents the people; May or may not have policy making power; Conducts ceremonies

Head of Government

The executive tasked with running the government; Makes day to day economic and other political decisions

Cabinet

A body of high-ranking officials who head executive departments and ministries and advise the head of government or head of state; Most important decision making body in Parliamentary systems

Vote of No Confidence

Vote by Parliament to remove a government official (Prime minister and cabinet) from power; May occur in a parliamentary system; Majority party wishes to hold the prime minister/cabinet accountable for their policies; Can lead to government official removal and a new government being formed

Impeachment

The process provided to legislatures in most presidential systems which provides for the removal of the executive; More difficult than Vote of No Confidence = supermajority

Coalition Government

Occurs when 2 or more parties agree to work together to form a majority and select prime minister

Divided Government

When one or both houses the legislature are controlled by a political party other than the party of the president; can occur because the executive and legislature are elected separately