AP Gov Vocab Unit 1: Political Systems, Regimes, and Governments

Empirical Data

fact based information from observation or experimentation

Normative Statement

value or opinion statement that cannot be proven or disproven

qualitative date

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

correlation

when there is an association between two or more variables

causation

something caused something else. complex to determine with certainty in comparative politics, as numerous variables often influence political policies and or regime stability, with no way to isolate and demonstrate which is producing the change.

Human Development Index

comes from UN Development Program as a “summary measure of average achievement in key dimensions of human development,” including statistics about life expectancy, amount of schooling, and income.

Gross Domestic Product

market value of goods and services produced over a specific time in a country. GDP can depict the overall size of a national economy

GDP Per capita

can reflect the size of the national economy compared to the population size, measures one persons economic output measured in USD of goods and services.

Gini Index

shows income inequality within a country. A Gini of 100% indicates perfect inequality, whereas a Gini of 0% indicates ideal equality.

Governmental transparency

the ability of citizens to access information about a government’s policymaking and policy implementationto help hold officials accountable

Governmental corruption

when public officials abuse power for personal benefit

Political Systems

comprise the laws, ideas, and procedures that address who should have authority to rule and what the government’s influence on its people and economy should be.

states

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

Regimes

refer to the fundamental rules that control access to and exercise political power. They typically endure from government to government

Freedom House

Scores are reported by a nongovernmental organization that ranks countries based on scores of 1-7 for political rights and civil liberties

government

the set of institutions or individuals legally empowereed to make binding decisions for a state

Soverignty

the independent legal authority over a population in a particular terrritory

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 laws and not arbitrary decisions made by individual government officials

independence of governmental branches

prevents any one branch from controlling all governmental power

independent election commissions

attempt to reduce voter fraud and manipulation and enhance electoral competition

suffrage

synonym for voting right. universal suffrage means that every citizen above a certain age is leally eligible to vote

civil rights

the protection of groups of citizens from discrimination by the government or other individuals

civil liberties

an inidvidual’s protection against anbuse of powers by the government

corporatist system

the government created and supported interest groups (typically for labor groups, business owners, and agricultural workers) that became the government’s preferred linkage institutions for citizen participation

pluralist system

citizens can affiliate with more independent interest groups to attempt to shape public policies

Democratic electoral systems

accommodate ethnic diversity and increase multiparty competition with rule adjustments, including gender or cultural quotas, proportional representation, and changes in vote thresholds and district boundaries.

Illiberal democracies and hybrid regimes

hold elections with little competition toward the ruling party, which tends to diminish civil liberties

One party states

when rival parties are prohibited from controlling government power

theocracies

require the state to be controlled by leaders of a particular religion

Totalitarian governments

authoritarian governments that severely limit citizen rights to movement and free choice of employment

military regimes

when military leaders hold top positions of governing authority

democratization

a transition from an authoritarian regime to a democratic regime'; the transition process can start or temporarily change direction but typically moves toward more competition, fairness, and transparency in elections; increased citizen participation in policy-making process; universal suffrage for adult citizens; greater governmental transparency; protected civil rights and liberties; equal treatment of citizens; and establishment of the rule of law.

democratic consolidation

the process by which a democratic regime matures in terms of election rules, separation of powers, and protection of civil liberties, making it unlikely to revert to authoritarianism without an external shock.

power

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

authority

the state’s legitimate right to enforce a power

sources of power and authority

includes constitutions, religions, military forces, political parties, legislatures, and popular support

Federal states

divide power among different levels of government to confer a degree of local autonomy in supplying social and educational services while reserving powers for the national government

Unitary States

concentrate power at the national level with more uniform policies and potentially more efficient policymaking

Devolution

the delegation of power to regional governments that can enhance or weaken legitimacy and create opportunities for and obstacles to resolving social, poiltical, and economic issues

Legitimacy

refers to whether a government’s constituents believe their government has the right to use power in the way they do. Legitimacy confers authority on and can increase a regime’s and government’s power

Sources of legitimacy

can include popular elections, constitutional provisions, nationalism, tradition, governmental effectiveness, economic growth, ideology, religious heritage, organizations, and the dominant political party’s enforcement

political stability

the ability of government to consistently provide services that meet the basic needs of most of the population, to foster the public’s confidence in the institutions of the state

Coercion

the use of government force to guide citizen behavior and actions, It can be small as a citation and small fine, to as large as brute force and violence.