poli sci 240 final flashcards

Less-Developed Countries (LDCs)

Countries at a relatively low level of economic development.

Infrastructure

Basic structures necessary for social activity, such as transportation and telecommunications networks, and power and water supply.

Primary Products

Raw materials and agricultural products, typically unprocessed or only slightly processed.

Oligopoly

A situation in which a market or industry is dominated by a few firms.

Terms of Trade

The relationship between a country’s export prices and its import prices.

Import-Substituting Industrialization (ISI)

A set of policies pursued by most developing countries to reduce imports and encourage domestic manufacturing.

Export-Oriented Industrialization (EOI)

A set of policies to spur manufacturing for exports, often through subsidies and incentives.

Group of 77

A coalition of developing countries in the UN that seeks changes to the international economic order.

Commodity Cartels

Associations of producers that restrict world supply of commodities to raise prices.

Terrorism

Premeditated use of violence against noncombatant targets to obtain political or social objectives.

Extremists

Actors whose interests are not widely shared by others, politically weak in relation to their demands.

Coercion

Strategy of imposing costs on other actors to induce behavioral change.

Provocation

Terrorist attacks intended to provoke a disproportionate government response.

Spoiling

Terrorist attacks aimed at sabotaging peace between the target and moderate leadership.

Outbidding

Terrorist attacks designed to show superior capability to rival groups.

Rationality

Purposive behavior by individuals or groups pursuing their interests.

Comparative Advantage

The ability to produce a particular good more efficiently than other goods.

Absolute Advantage

The ability to produce more of a good than others with the same resources.

Neo-Mercantilism

Belief that economic policy should encourage exports and discourage imports.

Heckscher-Ohlin Trade Theory

Theory that countries will export goods using their abundant production factors.

Protectionism

The imposition of barriers to restrict imports.

Trade Barriers

Government limitations on international exchange of goods.

Tariff

A tax imposed on imports to raise prices and protect domestic producers.

Quantitative Restrictions (Quota)

Limits placed on the amount of a specific good allowed to be imported.

Nontariff Barriers to Trade

Obstacles to imports other than tariffs.

Stolper-Samuelson Theorem

Theory that trade protection benefits the scarce factor of production.

Ricardo-Viner (Specific-Factors) Model

A model that emphasizes the sector where production factors are employed.

Reciprocity

Mutual agreement in international trade to lower tariffs and trade barriers.

Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) Status

Status ensuring that favorable trading terms extend to all signatories.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

An institution that governs international trade relations and polices trade barrier reductions.

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)

An international institution focused on reducing trade barriers.

Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs)

Agreements among countries to reduce trade barriers within a region.

Global Climate Change

Human-induced change in the environment from greenhouse gas emissions.

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

An international agreement providing a framework for intergovernmental climate efforts.

Paris Agreement

An agreement requiring commitments to control greenhouse gas emissions from all signatories.

Tragedy of the Commons

A problem occurring when a resource is open to all without limit, leading to degradation.

Public Goods

Products that are nonexcludable and nonrival in consumption.

Common-Pool Resources

Goods available to everyone, where one user’s consumption reduces availability for others.

Nonexcludable Goods

Goods that cannot prevent multiple actors from consuming them.

Nonrival Goods

Goods whose consumption by one does not diminish availability for others.

Kyoto Protocol

An amendment establishing targets for reducing emissions of certain greenhouse gases.

Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer

A convention regulating activities that damage the ozone layer.

Montreal Protocol

An international treaty phasing out production of substances that harm the ozone layer.

Cap-And-Trade System

A system that sets limits on emissions and allows trading of credits.

Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC)

Commitments each party makes to contribute to reducing global warming.

Externalities

Costs or benefits from an actor’s decision that affect others.

Human Rights

Rights possessed by individuals by virtue of being human.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)

A declaration defining a common standard of achievement for all peoples.

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)

An agreement detailing the civil and political rights of individuals.

International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)

An agreement specifying the economic, social, and cultural rights of individuals.

International Bill of Rights

Collectively refers to the UDHR, ICCPR, and ICESCR.

Nonderogable Rights

Rights that cannot be suspended for any reason.

Prisoners of Conscience (POCs)

Individuals imprisoned for peacefully expressing their beliefs.

Individual Petition

The right to petition international legal bodies for rights violations.

International Criminal Court (ICC)

A court of last resort for human rights cases. No jurisdiction unless specific conditions are met.

Populism

A broad array of political movements that claim to speak on behalf of the people in opposition to corrupt elites, both domestic and foreign.

Globalization

the spread of activities and ideas across the globe.

Resource curse

countries rich in natural resources are paradoxically less developed and experience worse political and social outcomes.

Free trade

refers to the absence of government-imposed barriers, such as tariffs, quotas, or subsidies, that restrict the exchange of goods and services between countries.

Liberalization

The process of reducing or removing government-imposed restrictions on international trade, such as tariffs, quotas, and regulations to create a more open and competitive global market.

Subsidies

government payments to businesses producing goods and services
to export

self-determination

Peoples and nations have the right to determine their own political status and to pursue their economic, social, and cultural development without external interference.

nationalism

A political ideology that emphasizes the importance of a shared national identity, culture, language, and history. It prioritizes the interests, sovereignty, and independence of a nation-state, often asserting that individuals' primary loyalty should be to their nation