Democratization Midterm

Which of the following is NOT one of the four hurdles to establishing causality

A. Finding at least one confounding variable

B. Ruling out reverse causality

C. Establishing a credible causal mechanism

D. Checking covariation between variables

A. Finding at least one confounding variable

Why must researchers control for confounding variables?

A. To improve parsimony

B. To ensure the relationship between variables is not spurious

C. To eliminate the need for theory

D. To create more hypotheses

B. To ensure the relationship between variables is not spurious

In social sciences, how is causality typically understood?

A. As deterministic

B. As unpredictable

C. As random

D. As probabilistic

D. As probabilistic

What trade-off often exists between generality and parsimony in theories?

A. The two are unrelated in political science

B. Increasing generality usually requires fewer assumptions

C. Increasing generality may reduce parsimony

D. Increasing parsimony increases applicability across cases

C. increasing generality may reduce parsimony

What is a confounding variable?

A. A variable that influences both IV and DV

B. A variable unrelated to either IV or DV

C. A variable affecting only IV

D. A variable affecting only DV

A. A variable that influences both IV and DV

What is a defining feature of modern representative institutions?

A. Legislatures with power over taxation

B. Written constitution

C. Independent judiciary

D. Unitary executive power

A. Legislatures with power over taxation

Why was women’s suffrage often strategically granted by elites?

A. To conform to international norms

B. To expand industrial labor

C. To gain electoral advantage

D. To balance male voter turnout

C. To gain electoral advantage

What condition is essential for ensuring that decisions in a representative system are implemented effectively?

A. Majority rule must prevail

B. The executive must control the judiciary and legislature

C. Decisions must be enforced by experts

D. Implementation must be by elected, accountable agents

D. Implementation must be by elected, accountable agents

Aristotle classified regimes based on:

A. existing traditions

B. existing cultural hierarchies

C. existing economic system

D. the number of rulers and whether they rules for the common good

D. the number of rulers and whether they rules for the common good

Which of the following is not a condition for collective decision-making in democracy?

A. Implementation by elected officials

B. Equal influence for all

C. Effective individual influence

D. Economic equality

D. Economic equality

What distinguishes democracy from other regime types?

A. Direct rule by all citizens in every policy area

B. Norms and institutions ensuring rulers are accountable to citizens

C. Exclusive reliance on free, unregulated market

D. The efficiency of government decision-making

B. Norms and institutions ensuring rulers are accountable to citizens

What fallacy does “electoralism” refer to?

A. Believing authoritarian regimes cannot hold elections

B. Thinking elections can replace constitutions

C. Equating any form of elections with democracy

D. Assuming elections must always be direct

C. Equating any form of elections with democracy

What does the term “bounded uncertainty” mean in democracies?

A. Only economic polities are uncertain

B. Outcomes of elections are predetermined

C. Political actions and outcomes are unpredictable, but mostly within constitutional limits

D. The majority always decides the government policy

C. Political actions and outcomes are unpredictable, but mostly within constitutional limits

What does the term “polyarchy” represent in democratic theory?

A. Total decentralization of political power

B. Full realization of direct democracy

C. High levels of contestation and inclusion

D. Rule by the experts

C. High levels of contestation and inclusion

How does liberal democracy differ from majoritarian democracy?

A. Liberal democracy emphasizes electoralism

B. Liberal democracy removes all checks on majority rule

C. Liberal democracy emphasizes economic freedom over political equality

D. Liberal democracy prioritizes minority rights and institutional fragmentation

D. Liberal democracy prioritizes minority rights and institutional fragmentation

Which type of support reflects attachment to democratic principles regardless of government performance?

A. Unconditional support

B. Specific support

C. Internal support

D. Diffuse support

D. Diffuse support

Which model posits that democratic understanding is shaped primarily by national context and experience?

A. Diffusion model

B. Minimalist model

C. Logic of learning model

D. Cultural learning model

C. Logic of learning model

How does the diffusion model explain the spread of democratic norms?

A. Through coercion by strong democratic states

B. Through economic incentives

C. Through global promotion

D. Via internal revolution

C. Through global promotion

Which question measures specific support for democracy?

A. Army rule is acceptable under crisis conditions

B. Democracy may have problems, but it is better than other forms

C. On the whole, are you satisfied with the way democracy works?

D. Having a democratic system is a good way to govern?

C

Which item is the “Essential to Democracy” battery in WVS likely reflects a substantive rather than minimalist view?

A. Free elections

B. Equal income distribution

C. Obedience to rulers

D. Military takes over during incompetence

Why is overt support for democracy considered insufficient?

A. Due to nearly universal endorsement of democracy

B. It fails to differentiate minimalist from substantive views

C. It excludes different understandings of democracy

D. It focuses only on elections

A. Due to nearly universal endorsement of democracy

Why is overt support for democracy considered insufficient?

A. Due to nearly universal endorsement of democracy

B. It fails to differentiate minimalist from substantive views

C. It excluded different understandings of democracy

D. It focuses only on elections

A. Due to nearly universal endorsement of democracy

How does DD Measure conceptualize regime type?

A. As a continuum between democracy and authoritarianism

B. As elite-driven vs. mass-driven

C. As dichotomous: either democracy or dictatorship

D. As substantive, focusing on outcomes

C. As dichotomous: either democracy or dictatorship

Freedom House is often criticized for:

A. Relying only on elections

B. Including non-procedural items like corruption

C. Ignoring civil rights

D. Using a purely minimalist view

B. Including non-procedural items like corruption

When studying democracy’s effect on economic development, which democratic conceptualization is preferable?

A. Minimalist

B. Intrinsic

C. Substantive

D. Instrumental

A. Minimalist

Which democracy measure is most reliable?

A. V-dem

B. Freedom House

C. DD Measure

D. Polity Score

C. DD Measure

Which of the following describes the problem of authoritarian control?

A. Military oversight of the executive

B. The dictator’s management of threats from excluded masses

C. Negotiations among political elites

D. The process of elite succession planning

B. The dictator’s management of threats from excluded masses

Which best describes contested autocracy?

A. Allies can credibly threaten the dictator with rebellion

B. The dictator is threatened by foreign leaders

C. Democratic institutions can constrain the dictator

D. The dictator rules without any coalition

A. Allies can credibly threaten the dictator with rebellion

Which two fundamental conflicts shape authoritarian politics?

A. Personalists vs. monarchs; party vs. military

B. Elite vs. masses; military vs. party

C. Party vs. military; executive vs. legislature

D. Ruler vs. ruled; ruler vs. allies

D. Ruler vs. ruled; ruler vs. allies

Which institution in authoritarian regimes embodies the “double-edged sword” dynamic- strengthening the regimes in the short term but also empowering actors who might overthrow it?

A. The military

B. Political parties

C. Leadership council

D. Secret police

A. The military

Which concept refers to a single dictator’s tenure in office?

A. Leader survival

B. Continuous authoritarian spell

C. Ruling coalition survival

D. Regime duration

A. Leader survival

Which statement best summarizes competitive authoritarianism?

A. It is a transitional stage always leading to democracy

B. It abolishes all democratic rules

C. It combines meaningful democratic institutions with systematic authoritarian manipulation

D. It appears identical to full authoritarianism

C. It combines meaningful democratic institutions with systematic authoritarian manipulation

Which of the following is NOT one of the four arenas of contestation in competitive authoritarianism?

A. Legislatures

B. Civil society

C. Judiciaries

D. Elections

B. Civil society

What inherent tension makes competitive authoritarianism unstable?

A. The presence of international democratic alliances

B. The coexistence of democratic institutions with authoritarian ambitions

C. The elimination of independent institutions

D. The frequent occurrence of mass protests

B. The coexistence of democratic institutions with authoritarian ambitions

What distinguishes competitive authoritarianism from full authoritarianism?

A. Opposition has no ability to challenge leaders

B. Some democratic institutions remain meaningful and must be taken seriously

C. Incumbents eliminate all meaningful democratic institutions

D. Elections are never held

B. Some democratic institutions remain meaningful and must be taken seriously

According to the strategic approach, transitions to democracy are primarily driven by:

A. International organizations

B. Middle-class protest

C. Elite interactions

D. Social movements

C. Elite interactions

What marks the initial phase in the strategic model of democratization?

A. Social mobilization

B. Liberalization

C. Consolidation

D. Democratization

B. Liberalization

A major critique of formal economic models is that they:

A. Overstate the importance of economic conditions

B. Ignore elite interactions

C. Fail to include structural conditions

D. Assume individuals have perfect information

D. Assume individuals have perfect information

Which of the following is not one of the four dominant approaches to democratization discussed?

A. Strategic

B. Structural

C. Economic

D. Rationalist

D. Rationalist

What term describes the number of others needed before an individual joins a protest?

A. Revolutionary threshold

B. Preference falsification

C. Collective action ratio

D. Revolutionary bandwagon

A. Revolutionary threshold

How do large group sizes (N) affect collective action problems?

A. They make monitoring and punishing free riders easier

B. They make monitoring and punishing free riders harder

C. They eliminate the free-rider issue

D. They guarantee higher participation

B. They make monitoring and punishing free riders harder

Which two characteristics define a public good?

A. Rivalry and exclusion

B. No rivalry and non-excludability

C. No rivalry and excludability

D. Low cost and unlimited access

B. Nonrivalry and nonexcludability

What does a high revolutionary threshold indicate about an individual?

A. They support the regime ideologically

B. They need to see many others protests before joining

C. They are the first to act against the regime

D. They will never join a protest

B. They need to see many others protests before joining

In collective action theory, what is the significance of the gap between K (minimum participants required) and N (total group size)?

A. A small gap makes free-riding more appealing

B. A small gap discourages protest because success seems unlikely

C. A large gap increases the likelihood of individual participation

D. A large gap intensifies the free-rider problem by reducing individuals’ sense of decisiveness

D. A large gap intensifies the free-rider problem by reducing individuals’ sense of decisiveness

Which of the following correctly represents the full preference ordering of the opposition? (BD = Broadened Dictatorship, D = Democracy, I = Insurgency, ND = Narrow Dictatorship, SQ = Status Quo)

A. D > BD > DQ > I > ND

B. D > I > BD > SQ > ND

C. D > SQ > BD > I > ND

D. BD > D > SQ > ND > I

A

Which of the following correctly represents the full preference ordering of soft-liner? (BD = Broadened Dictatorship, D = Democracy, I = Insurgency, ND = Narrow Dictatorship, SQ = Status Quo)

A. SQ > BD > ND > D > I

B. BD > ND > SQ > D > I

C. BD > SQ > ND > D > I

D. BD > D > SQ > ND > I

C

According to the Transition game, if repression succeeds following opposition mobilization, the outcome is:

A. Broadened dictatorship

B. Narrow dictatorship

C. Democratization

D. Insurgency

B

In the transition game with weak opposition, what equilibrium outcome emerges?

A. Broadened dictatorship

B. Democratization

C. Status quo

D. Insurgency

A. Broadened dictatorship

Which of the following best summarizes the “lessons from the transition game”?

A. Only insurgency leads to democratization

B. Democratization requires incomplete information about opposition strength

C. Strong opposition ensures democracy regardless of elite choices

D. Top-down democratization always succeeds when elites liberalize

B. Democratization requires incomplete information about opposition strength

What is the opposition’s attitude toward the status quo in the preference hierarchy?

A. Least preferred outcome

B. Most preferred

C. Ranked above insurgency but below democracy

D. Equally preferred with insurgency

C. Ranked above insurgency but below democracy

Which religious tradition is historically linked to promoting democracy due to its emphasis on individualism?

A. Orthodoxy

B. Islam

C. Protestantism

D. Catholicism

C. Protestantism

Which mechanism allows people to update their formative year attitudes under the Life-Long Learning model?

A. Religious conversion

B. Improved economic evaluations

C. Exposure to democratic norms

D. Regime propaganda

B. Improved economic evaluations

Political socialization refers to how people

A. Form long term political attitudes and values

B. Learn politics by engaging with protesters

C. Develop collective voting strategies during elections

D. Decide which political groups to join

A. Form long term political attitudes and values

According to Acemoglu, what determined whether colonial institutions were extractive or inclusive?

A. The type of religion introduced

B. The ice of indigenous populations

C. Mortality rates among settlers

D. The presence of natural resources

C. Mortality rates among settlers

What value orientation prioritizes order, security, and conformity?

A. Self-expression values

B. Survival values

C. Traditional values

D. Secular-rational values

B

Economic models of democratization predict that high income inequality:

A. Promotes democratic consolidation

B. Hinders democratization

C. Has no effect on regime change

D. Hinders de-democratization

B

What value shift accompanies the transition from agrarian to industrial society?

A. Tribal to individual values

B. Survival to self-expression values

C. Traditional to secular-rational values

D. Religious to secular values

C

Which theory argues that economic development leads to conditions favorable for democracy?

A. Modernization Theory

B. World-Systems Theory

C. Neoliberalism

D. Dependency Theory

A

What term describes states that derive most of their income from natural resource rents rather than taxation?

A. Primitive states

B. Clientelist states

C. Authoritarian states

D. Rentier states

D

According to Levitsky and Way, which combination of linkage and leverage is most conducive to democratization?

A. High linkage, high leverage

B. Low linkage, low leverage

C. Low linkage, high leverage

D. High linkage, low leverage

A

What does Levitsky and Way’s concept of Western leverage depend on?

A. A state’s military spending levels

B. A state’s proximity to the West

C. A state’s size and aid-dependence

D. A state’s modernization levels

C

What does “emulation” refer tot in democratization studies?

A. Copying successful democratic transitions

B. Copying successful authoritarian transitions

C. Imposing sanctions on autocracies

D. Militarily forcing democracy

A

How does foreign direct investment (FDI) differ from portfolio investment in its democratizing impact?

A. Portfolio investment always strengthens democratic norms

B. Portfolio investment is more democratizing than FDI

C. FDI promotes democracy due to its long-term engagement

D. FDI has no political consequences

C

Democratic peace theory helps explain which diffusion mechanism?

A. Imposition

B. Emulation

C. Globalization

D. Cosmopolitanism

A