Chapter 1 and 2 Close Up

What is a Nation State?

A sovereign political entity combining a governed geographical area with a population sharing a unified cultural identity and history.

What are the four components of a Nation State?

Population, Territory, Government, Sovereignty.

What is political activity?

Any purposeful, collective action taken by individuals or groups to influence, participate in, or change government operations, laws, policies, or public leadership.

What are the five sources of power?

Formal Authority, Expertise, Coercion, Rewards, Persuasion.

What is authority?

The legitimate, constitutionally or legally recognized right to exercise power and demand conformity from subordinates.

What are the two basic building blocks of government?

Means of coercion and means of collecting revenue.

What is the purpose of government?

To maintain public order and stability while providing public goods and services.

What is legitimacy and what does it depend on?

The quality of being accepted as a proper, lawful authority, which depends on the consent of the governed.

What is coercion?

The deliberate use of physical force or threats to compel individuals to perform tasks against their immediate choice.

What is an institution?

An enduring, stable social organization or structure of persistent rules and norms that shapes collective behavior over time.

What are the five political games?

Horse Trading, Walkout, Power Struggle, Demolition Derby, Civil Disobedience.

What is Horse Trading?

Winning by bargaining or giving up something for a mutually beneficial solution. Example: The Missouri Compromise.

What is Walkout?

Refusing to continue participating until specific demands are granted. Example: Cesar Chavez's grape boycotts.

What is Power Struggle?

Winning through strategy and control. Example: The Cuban Missile Crisis.

What is Demolition Derby?

Complete destruction of the opponent to eliminate them from the political arena. Example: The Punic Wars.

What is Civil Disobedience?

Publicly breaking an unjust law to highlight moral wrongdoing. Example: Martin Luther King Jr.'s marches.

What is a Unitary System?

A system where geographic power is concentrated at the national government level. Example: The United Kingdom.

What is a Confederal System?

A system where power is concentrated at the subnational level, with a weak central government. Example: The United States under the Articles of Confederation.

Give an example of a confederal system.

The United States under the Articles of Confederation.

What is a federal system?

A system where power is divided constitutionally and shared between central and regional governments.

Give an example of a federal system.

The modern United States, Germany, or India.

What is the oldest form of government today?

Monarchy.

What is the most common form of government in the world today?

Democracy, specifically representative democracy.

What form of government is the United States?

A constitutional democracy.

Who rules a monarchy and how do they get their power?

A monarch, who inherits power or claims it by divine right.

What type of government limits the power of the monarch?

A constitutional monarchy.

What is a theocracy?

A government headed by religious leaders who claim divine authority.

Give two modern examples of a theocracy.

Vatican City and Iran.

How does a dictator get their power?

By seizing and retaining absolute power, often through force.

What is the difference between a presidential democracy and a parliamentary democracy?

In a presidential democracy, voters elect the president directly; in a parliamentary democracy, the majority party elects the prime minister.

What form of government has a prime minister?

A parliamentary democracy.

What is sovereignty?

The supreme power of a nation-state to govern itself without outside interference.

What are the two primary types of democracy?

Direct democracy and representative democracy.

What is the difference between direct democracy and representative democracy?

Direct democracy involves citizens making decisions directly; representative democracy involves elected officials making decisions on behalf of citizens.

What form of government has broad control over the lives of its citizens?

An authoritarian regime.

What is fascism?

A totalitarian system marked by centralization of authority under a dictator and aggressive nationalism.

What is communism?

A system where a single party controls the government and economy, aiming for a classless society.

What is totalitarianism?

An extreme form of authoritarian rule that seeks to control all aspects of life.

What is socialism?

An economic system advocating for public or collective ownership of the means of production.

What is anarchy?

A state of lawlessness due to the absence of government or political authority.