comparative politics conceptuals

analytical concepts, methods, ideals

three components of the study of comparative politics

politics

the struggle in any group for power that will give a person or people the ability to make decisions for the larger group

comparative politics

the study of the struggle for power across countries and how comparison can shed light on politics here and abroad

inductive

type of reasoning that is theory-generating

deductive

type of reasoning that is theory-testing

control, cases, barriers, bias

the limits of the comparative method

endogeneity

difficulty of determining what is cause and what is effect

quantitative

research method with a number of cases, more scientific, but data might be skewed

qualitative

research method with intensive study of cases, but result is only descriptive

institutions

organizations or patterns of activity that are self perpetuating and valued for their own sake

efficiency, inclusion

what are the two things that institutions must balance

freedom, equality

what are the two outcomes of political action

modernization

post-WWII theory about how countries will eventually modernize into capitalism and democracy

behavioralism

shift from institutions to focus on individual political actions, greater use of statistics

sovereignty

ability to carry out actions independently of internal/external challengers

state

institution that creates standards through which public goals such as freedom and equality can be achieved

regime

institution that serves as the fundamental rules and norms of politics to create long-term goals

government

institution that is in charge of running the regime within the state

consensus

bottom-up origin of political organization; security through cooperation

coercion

top-down origin of political organization; security through domination

legitimacy

a value where someone or something is recognized or accepted as right and proper

traditional, charismatic, rational-legal

what are the three forms of legitimacy

federalist

what type of organization are these states: US, Germany, Russia, Canada, Mexico

unitary

what type of organization are these states: UK, Japan, France, Sweden

scope, strength

according to fukuyama, ____ appears to be more important than ____ when considering the legitimacy of a state

democracy

according to Tudor, _____ improves life expectancy, schooling, domestic peace, and economic growth

society

a collection of people bound by shared institutions that define how human relations are conducted

ethnicity

specific attributes and societal institutions that make one group of people culturally different from others

national identity

a sense of belonging to a group and a belief in its political aspirations; demand for greater freedom and equality

nationalism

pride in one’s people and belief in sovereign destiny; create or preserve one’s own political group through a state

citizenship

an individual’s or group’s relationship to the state; state provides benefits while people have obligations in return

patriotism

pride in one’s state, which arises from citizenship

ethnic conflict

struggle between groups to achieve economic/political goals at the other groups’ expense

national conflict

struggle between groups for political independence

assimilation, separation, decentralization, devolution

what are ways to resolve conflict?

political attitudes

views regarding the necessary pace and scope of political change; range from radicals to reactionaries

liberalism

political ideology with individual freedom, weak state, higher inequality, and liberal democracy

communism

political ideology with low individual freedom, high equality, and a strong state with high autonomy

social democracy

political ideology with balance of individual freedom and collective equality, relatively strong welfare state

fascism

political ideology with low individual freedom and inequality; high state autonomy and capacity

anarchism

political ideology with high individual freedom and equality; seek stateless society

fundamentalism

political ideology that seeks to unite religion with the state to make faith the sovereign authority

political culture

basic norms for political activity in a society; what is politically acceptable

multiculturalism

according to Modood, ______ does not fuel polarization but instead fuels civic, inclusive, nation-building attitudes

political economy

how politics and economies are related and how each affects the balance between equality and freedom

markets

interaction between forces of supply and demand; creates value for goods and services; decentralized

property

ownership of goods and services; often is accompanied by certain rights

public goods

things that are used by society, not privately owned because they don’t do well in the marketplace

social expenditures

aka welfare; state provision and/or redistribution of public benefits

money

the legitimacy of ______ is backed by the state through central banks

hyperinflation

inflation of more than 50% a month for two months in a row

deflation

too many goods chasing too few dollars

liberalism

political-economic system arguing that a weak state and strong capital markets foster democracy; ex. USA

social democracy

politica-economic system that accepts private property and markets, but seeks to regulate them; ex. many European countries

neocorporatism

state, labor, and business set policy in concert, not through conflict

communism

political-economic system where property and markets are viewed as instruments of exploitation, so they are all nationalized; ex. Cuba, N. Korea

mercantilism

political-economic system where market is viewed as a tool of international power; private property and national ownership co-exist; ex. Japan, S. Korea

GDP

total production in a country irrespective of who owns it

PPP

looks at GDP in terms of buying power

GINI index

measures relative wealth & inequality within the state

hdi

focused on outcome of wealth: quality of life, literacy and education, life expectancy and health

easterlin paradox

happiness stagnates above a certain economic threshold

neo-liberalism

a resurgence of liberal economic policies of institutions; decline of communist and social democratic policies

democracy

regime based on participation, competition, liberty, absence of hegemonic power, representative institutions

elites, society, international, culture

what are influences on democratization

executives

those who carry out the laws and policies of a state; leads the country and sets the national agenda

head of government

executive in charge of the everyday tasks of running the state, especially in making policy; elected by legislature and can be removed by a vote of no confidence

head of state

executive in charge with symbolizing the nation at home or abroad; could be directly elected, chosen by legislature, or hereditary

bicameral

federalism commonly uses a ______ legislature to represent different groups

concrete review

the ability of a constitutional court to rule on issues rising from cases brought before the court

abstract review

the ability of a constitutional court to rule on issues without the need of a court case

presidential

institutional system with a directly elected head of state and government; fixed term and not beholden to legislature

parliamentary

institutional system with a PM as the head of government that can be removed by citizens or legislature; head of state is either a monarch or president

semi-presidential

institutional system with the PM charged with domestic policy and a directly elected president who sets the broader agenda and foreign policy

political parties

_______ help establish majority rule but also prevents tyranny of the majority; it also holds politicians accountable

smd

electoral system with one seat per district, and can be plurality or majority

pr

electoral system with multiple seats per district, with various distribution methods and levels of proportionality

mixed

electoral system with a dual ballot or two votes on one ballot; the ability to split vote between parties

multiple parties

systems with smd are less likely to have ______

coalition governments

systems with PR make ________ more likely

civil rights

the rule of law’s promotion of equality

civil liberties

the rule of law’s promotion of freedom

efficient, consensual

according to Schmitter and Karl, democracy is not necessarily more ____ or ________

nondemocratic

regime where a small group of individuals exercises power with no constitutional responsibility to the public and no popular right to choose leaders

totalinarianism

seeks to transform the total fabric of society through the almost inevitable use of force to break people and shatter institutions

kleptocracy

when a state becomes a tool to siphon off resources and keep power consolidated

resource curse

countries with abundant natural resources tend to have lower economic growth, less democracy, and worse development outcomes

war, occupation, imperialism

international contributors to nondemocratic rule

coercion, cooptation

two sources of political control for nondemocratic regimes

corporatism

cooptation with limited number of state-sanctioned organizations and no private organizations allowed

clientelism

cooptation with public exchanges of political support for specific favors or benefits

personality cults

the nondemocratic tactic of promoting the image of the leader above mortal qualities and using the media to do so

personal rule

regime founded upon the claim that one person alone is fit to rule the country, be its protector or embodiment

patrimonialism

the ruler depends on collection of supporters in the state who gain direct benefits from that rule

military rule

regime where the military seizes control of the state through a coup d’etat that lacks a specific ideology

bureaucratic authoritarianism

the state bureaucracy and military support rational authoritarian rule as opposed to emotional democracy

one-party rule

regime where a single political party monopolizes power, and other parties are banned or excluded

theocracy

regime where faith is the foundation and is often the goal of fundamentalists

illiberal

regime that possesses democratic mechanisms but they are not well respected

electoral authoritarianism

according to Schedler, _______ is a type of regime where elections are used to signal legitimacy, manage opposition, and stabilize rule