A.P. Comparative Politics Until 1 Vocab

Adam Smith

Scottish philosophers and economists

Anarchy

State without rulers or government

Ascription

Attribution of something to a cause

Authoritarian

Political system in wish a small group of individuals excercises power over the state without being constitutionally responsible to the public

Autonomy

The ability of the state to wield its power independently of the public

Capacity

The ability of the state to carry out basic tasks such as defending territory, making and enforcing rules, collecting taxes, and managing the economy

Central bank

The state institution that controls how much money is flowing through the economy, as well as how much it costs to borrow money in that economy

Centralization

The concentration of control of an activity or organization under a single authority

Citizenship

An individual’s relationship to the state, wherein citizens swear allegiance to that state and the state in return to obligated to provide rights to those citizens

Civil society

Organization outside of the state that help people define and advance their own interests

Communism

political-economic system in which all wealth and property are shared so as to eliminate exploitation, oppression, and ultimately, the need for political institutions such as the state

Comparative advantage

The ability of one country to produce a particular good or service more efficiently relative to other countries efficiency in producing the same good or service

Comparative method

The means by which social scientists make comparisons across cases

Conservatism

A political attitude that is skeptical of change and supports the current order

Consolidated democracy

Stable political system where democratic rules are stable

Corporatism

A method of cooptation whereby authoritarian systems create or sanction a limited number of organizations to represent the interest of the public

Correlation

How to or more relations relate to each other

Decentralization

The process of moving power, functions, or descion-making away from a central authority

Democratization

Introduction of a democratic system or democratic principles

Empirical statement/empirical data

Concept of knowledge derived from direct observation, sensory experience, or experimentation, rather than pure reasoning or theory alone

Ethnic identity

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

Fascism

A political ideology that asserts the superiority and inferiority of different groups of people and stresses a low degree of both freedom and equality in order to achieve a powerful state

Failed states

A state so weak that its political structures collapse, leading to anarchy and violence

Genocide

Deliberate killing and targeted destruction of a people

Gini index

A statistical formula that measures the amount of inequality in a society; it’s scale ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 corresponds to perfect equality and 100 to perfect inequality

Globalization

The process of expanding and intensifying linkages among states, societies, and economies

Government

The leadership or elite in charge of running a state

Gross domestic product

The total market value of all goods and services provided by a country over a period of 1 year

Gross national product

The total market value of all goods and service produced by the residents of a country, including income from abroad

Human development index

A statistical tool that attempts to evaluate the overall wealth, health, and knowledge of a country’s people

Hyperinflation

Inflation of more than 50% a month for more than 2 months in a row

Ideology

Comprehensive system of ideas, beliefs, values, and principles that shape how individuals or groups understand the world

Inflation

An outstripping of supply by demand, resulting in an increase in the general price level of goods and services and the resulting loss of value in a country’s currency

Institutions

An organization or activity that is self-perpetuating and valued for its own sake

Karl Marx

German philosopher, political theorist, economist , journalist, and revolutionary socialist

Legitimacy

A value whereby an institution is accepted by the public as right and proper , thus giving authority power

Liberalism

A political attitude that favors evolutionary transformation (2) a political ideology that favors a limited state role in society and the economy and places a high priority on individual political and economic freedom (3) a political economic system that favors a limited state role in the economy

Market

The interaction between the forces of supply and demand in a county

Mercantilism

A political-economic system in wish national economic power is paramount and the domestic economy is viewed as an instrument that exist primarily to serve the need of the state

modernization

Broad processes of societies transforming form traditional, agrarian ways to modern, industrialized, and technological advanced systems

Monopoly

A single producer that is able to dominate the market for a good or service without effective competition

Nation

A group of people bound together by a common set of political aspirations

National identity

A sense of belonging to a nation and a belief in its political aspirations

Nationalism

Devotion to one’s country

Neo-corporatism

A system of social democratic policy-making in which a limited number of organizations representing businesses and labor work with the state to set up economic policy

Non-tariff boundaries

Policies and regulations used to limit imports through methods other than taxation

Normative statement

Value-based claim about what should or ought to be

Patriotism

Pride in one’s state

Political attitudes

Descriptions of views regarding the speed and scope of things

Political culture

The basic norms for political activity in a society

Political economy

The study of the interaction between states and markets

Political ideology

The basic values held by and individual about the fundamental goals of politics, or the ideal balance of freedom and equality

Politics

Struggle for power

Private property

Good or services that are owned by an individual privately

Property

Goods or services that are owned by an individual or groups, either publicly or privately

Public good

Goods that are sued by most or all in society and which no private person or organization can own

Purchasing power parity

A statistical tool that attempts to estimate the buying power of income across different countries by using prices in the United States as benchmark

qualitative research

Study through in-depth investigation of a limited number or cases

Quantitative research

Study through statistical data form many cases

Radical

A political attitude that favors democratic, often revolutionary change

Reactionary

Seeks to to reverse or undo recent political or social changes

Regime

Fundamental rules and laws of politics

Rule of Law

A system in which all individuals and groups, including those in government, are subject to the law

Social democracy

Political economic system in which freedom and equality are balanced

social expenditures

state provision of public benefits such as education, health care, transportation, etc.

Sovereignty

The ability of a state to carry out actions or policies within a territory independently from external actors or internal rivals

State

The organization that maintains monopoly of force over a given territory

Tarrifs

Taxes on imported goods

Transitional democracy

Weak, unstable state switching from authoritarian rule to a democratic rule

Welfare/welfare states

State actively protects and promotes economic social well-being of citizens