Chapter 1 vocab (unit 1)

Government

The institutions through which public policies are made for a society.

Collective Goods

goods and services, such as clean air and clean water, that by their nature cannot be denied to anyone.

Politics

The process determining the leaders we select in the policies they pursue. Politics produce authoritative decisions about public issues.

Political participation

All the activities used by citizens to influence the selection of political leaders or the policies they pursue. The most common means of political participation in a democracy is voting; other means include protest and civil disobedience.

Single-issue groups

groups that have a narrow interest on which their members tend to take on uncompromising stance.

Policymaking system

The process by which policy comes into being an involves. Peoples interest, problems, and concerns, create public political issues for government policy makers. These issues shape policy, which, in turn impacts people, generating more interest, problems, and concerns.

Linkage Institution

The political channels through which people‘s concerns become political issues on the policy agenda. In the United States, Linkage institutions include elections, political parties, interest, groups, and the media.

Policy agenda

The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people involved in politics at a point in time.

Political issue

an issue that arises when people disagree about a problem and how to fix it.

Policymaking institutions

The branches of government charged with taking action on political issues. The US constitution establishes established three policy, making institutions line, constitution or Congress, the presidency, and the courts. Today, the power of the Bureaucracy is so great that most political scientist consider it a fourth policy making Constitution.

Public policy

A choice that government makes in response to a political issue. A policy is a course of action taken with regard to some problem.

Democracy

A system of selecting policy makers and of organizing government, so that policy represents in response to the public preferences

Majority rule

A fundamental principle of traditional democratic theory. In a democracy, choosing among alternatives, require the majority desire be respected.

Minority rights

A principle of traditional democratic theory that guarantees rights to those who do not belong to majorities.

Pluralism

A theory of American democracy, emphasizing that the policy making process is very open to the participation of all groups with shared interest, when a single group usually dominating. Pluralists tend to believe that as a result, public interest, generally prevails.

Elitism

A theory of American democracy, contenting that an upper class elite holds the power and make policy, regardless of the formal governmental organization

Hyperpluralism

A theory of American democracy, arguing that a wide variety of interest groups have become empowered with the ability to be a policy change, they’re leading to regular gridlock in Washington

Policy gridlock

A condition that occurs when interest conflicts with no collision is strong enough to form a majority and established policy, so nothing gets done.

Political Culture

an overall set Values widely shared within a society.