POL1004F: Introduction to Politics

Flashcards about key concepts and approaches in political studies, based on lecture notes from an introductory course.

According to David Easton, what does politics involve?

The authoritative allocation of values, or the allocation of benefits, rewards, and penalties by government.

How does Robert Dahl define a political system?

Any persistent pattern of human relationships that involves, to a significant extent, power, rule, or authority.

What is Harold Laswell's definition of politics?

The study of the shaping and sharing of power.

According to Max Weber, what is politics?

The enforcement of order within a given territory through the application and threat of force.

List the components of the public sphere.

The state, the legislature, government, courts, police, and army.

List the components of the private sphere.

The church, school, family, businesses, trade unions, and social clubs.

Describe the empirical approach to the study of politics.

Focuses on the empirical and descriptive aspects of politics, using objective phenomenon or quantitative data.

What theoretical frameworks are part of the empirical approach?

Behavioralism, rational-choice theory, and the institutional approach.

What is the aim of the normative approach (philosophical approach) to politics?

Primarily the area of political theory or political philosophy.

What is the public sphere?

The state, government, legislature, courts, police, army.

What is the private sphere?

Church, school, family, businesses, trade unions, clubs

What concepts are used to describe how decisions are made within a society?

Compromise, deliberation, conciliation and negotiation.

What is power?

The ability to achieve a desired outcome through whatever means.

How the philosophical tradition concerns itself with ethical, prescriptive or normative questions?

The study of what “should, ought, or must be” and involves the study of ideas and doctrines or ideologies and discourses – the history of thought.

What does empiricists believe about knowledge?

Knowledge can only be attained through the analysis of objective phenomenon.

What is Behaviouralism based on?

Political analysis should be based on the testing of quantifiable data against a hypothesis focusing on voting behaviour, behaviour of legislatures, the behaviour of municipal politicians and lobbyists, the behaviour of individuals.

The rational-choice theory is drawn from where?

Political economy or economic theory which focuses on how consumer make their choices

What is the focus of the institutionalist approach?

Largely focuses on the study of institutions, “the rules procedures and formal organisations of government

Examples of Critical approaches?

Marxism, structuralism, feminism, poststructuralism, anti- colonialism, postcolonialism, postmodernism.