Key Concepts in Political Science and Democracy Theories

Social Contract (Locke)

An agreement where people give up some freedom to a government in exchange for the protection of their natural rights (life, liberty, property); if the government fails, citizens can overthrow it.

Social Contract (Hobbes)

An agreement where people surrender all rights to an absolute ruler to escape a brutal "state of nature" and ensure survival and order.

Popular Sovereignty

The principle that the authority of a government is created and sustained by the consent of its people, who are the source of all political power.

Universal Suffrage

The right of all adult citizens to vote in an election, regardless of property ownership, race, gender, income, or social status.

Pluralist Theory

A theory of democracy emphasizing that politics is mainly a competition among open groups, where no single group dominates and policy is forged through compromise.

Majoritarian Theory

A traditional theory of democracy where policy decisions are driven by the desires of the majority of the population (majority rule).

Elitist Theory

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

Eminent Domain

The power of a government to take private property for public use, provided that the owner receives just compensation (protected by the 5th Amendment).

Political Culture

A set of widely shared beliefs, values, and norms concerning how citizens relate to governments and to one another.

Government

The formal institutions, individuals, and processes through which public policies are made and binding decisions are enforced for a society.

Political Socialization

The lifelong process by which individuals acquire their political beliefs, values, attitudes, and behaviors (with the family being the primary agent).

Totalitarianism

A political system in which the state holds total authority over the society and seeks to control all aspects of public and private life.

Direct Democracy

A form of government where citizens vote directly on laws and policies, rather than electing representatives to make decisions for them.

Direct Democracy in the USA

Does not exist at the federal level, but exists locally/statewide through initiatives, referendums, and New England town meetings.

Representative Democracy

A system of government in which citizens elect representatives to make laws and govern on their behalf.

Democratic Republic

A specific type of representative democracy where the head of state is not a monarch, and supreme power rests in the hands of citizens who vote for representatives accountable under a constitution.

Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations

The 1776 foundational text of modern capitalism that advocates for free markets, the "invisible hand," and a laissez-faire approach (minimal government intervention in the economy).

Delegate Model

A model of representation where legislators feel duty-bound to vote exactly according to the strict wishes and instructions of their constituents.

Trustee Model

A model of representation where legislators use their own best judgment, conscience, and expertise to make policy decisions, even if it goes against the immediate wishes of their constituents.

Politico Model

A model of representation where legislators act as delegates on issues that their constituents care deeply about, but act as trustees on more complex or less visible issues. (they do what is right for the nation as a whole despite what others might think.)