AP Comparative Government and Politics Unit 1 Flashcards

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the fundamental concepts of political systems, regimes, methodology, and indices from the Unit 1 AP Comparative Government and Politics curriculum.

Empirical data

Fact-based information from observation or experimentation used to identify and explain political behavior.

Normative statement

A value or opinion statement that cannot be proven or disproven, such as whether a leader should or should not be in power.

Quantitative data

Information that can be measured with numbers, often using objective measurements like statistics and governmental reports.

Qualitative data

Information that is difficult to measure, including sources such as speeches, foundational documents, political cartoons, and political commentaries.

Correlation

An association that exists between two or more variables.

Causation

A relationship where one variable produces a change in another; it is difficult to determine with certainty in comparative politics due to numerous variables.

Human Development Index (HDI)

A summary measure from the United Nations Development Programme reflecting average achievement in life expectancy, amount of schooling, and income.

Gross domestic product (GDP)

The market value of all goods and services produced over a certain time in a country, depicting the overall size of the national economy.

GDP per capita

A measurement reflecting the size of the national economy in comparison with the population size.

GDP growth rate

A statistic that shows the rate of national economic expansion.

Gini index

A measure of income inequality within a country where $100\%$ indicates perfect inequality and $0\%$ indicates perfect equality.

Governmental transparency

The ability of citizens to access information about policy making and implementation to help hold officials accountable.

Governmental corruption

A phenomenon in which public officials abuse power for personal benefit.

Fragile States Index

An assessment by The Fund for Peace that ranks countries based on their potential to weaken due to conflicts and domestic turmoil.

Political systems

The laws, ideas, and procedures that address who should have authority to rule and the government's influence on the people and economy.

States

Political organizations that combine a permanent population with governing institutions to exercise control over a defined territory with international recognition.

Regimes

The fundamental rules that control access to and the exercise of political power, typically enduring from government to government.

Government

The set of institutions or individuals legally empowered to make binding decisions for a state.

Sovereignty

The independent legal authority of a state over a population in a particular territory.

Nation

A group of people with commonalities including race, language, religion, ethnicity, political identity, and aspirations.

Rule of law

The principle that a state should be governed by known, non-arbitrary laws rather than individual decisions of government officials.

Theocracy

A political system, such as in Iran, that requires the state be controlled by leaders of a particular religion.

Illiberal democracies

Hybrid regimes that hold elections with little competition toward the ruling party and tend to have diminished civil liberties.

Democratization

A transition from an authoritarian regime to a democratic regime, aiming for competition, fairness, transparency, and universal suffrage.

Democratic consolidation

The process by which a democratic regime matures in terms of election rules and separation of powers, making it unlikely to revert to authoritarianism.

Power

The ability of the state to influence the conduct of individuals and organizations within the state.

Authority

A state's legitimate right to use power to enforce policies and decisions.

Federal states

Systems like Mexico, Nigeria, and Russia that divide power among different levels of government to confer local autonomy.

Unitary states

Systems like China, Iran, and the UK that concentrate power at the national level for more uniform policy making.

Devolution

The delegation of power from a central government to regional governments, which can enhance or weaken legitimacy.

Legitimacy

The degree to which a government's constituents believe their government has the right to use power in the way they do.

Coercion

The use of government force, ranging from citations and fines to brute violence, to guide citizen behavior.

Corporatist system

A system where the government creates and supports specific interest groups that become preferred linkage institutions for citizen participation.

Pluralist system

A system where citizens can affiliate with more independent interest groups to attempt to shape public policies.