AP Gov Chapter 1 Key Terms

public/collective goods

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

politics

the process of determining the leaders we select and the policies they pursue, produces authoritative decisions about public issues

political participation

all the activities by which citizens attempt to influence the selection of political leaders and the policies they pursue. voting is the most common means of this in a democracy. other means include contacting public officials, protest, and civil disobedience.

single-issue groups

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

policymaking system

the process by which policy comes into being and evolves. People interests, problems, and concerns create political issues for government policymakers. these issues shape policy, which in turn impacts people, generating more interests, problems, and concerns.

linkage institutions

the political channels through which people concerns become political issues on the policy agenda. In the United States, these 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 institution

the branches of gov charged w taking action on polit issues, the US Constitution est 3 of these - Congress, the presidency, the courts, today the power of the bureaucracy is so great that most political scientists consider it a fourth of these

public policy

a choice that government makes in response to a polit issue, a policy is a course of action taken w regard to some problem

democracy

a system of selecting policymakers and of organizing gov so that policy represents and responds to the public’s preferences

majority rule

a fundamental principle of traditional democratic theory. in a democracy, choosing among alternatives requires that the majority’s desire be respected.

minority rights

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

representation

a basic principle of traditional democratic theory that describes the relationship between the few leaders and the many followers

pluralist theory

a theory of american democracy emphasizing that the policymaking process is very open to the participation of all groups with shared interests, with no single group usually dominating, tend to believe that as a result, public interest generally prevails

elite & class theory/elitism

theory of american democracy contending that an upper class elite holds the power and makes policy, regardless of the formal governmental organization

hyperpluralism

theory of american democracy contending that groups are so strong that government, which gives in to the many diff groups, is thereby weakened

policy gridlock

a condition that occurs when interests conflict and no coalition is strong enough to form a majority and establish policy, so nothing gets done

gross domestic product

the sum total of the value of all the goods and services produced in a year in a nation

individualism

the belief that people can and should get ahead on their own

government

the institutions through which public policies are made for a society