CPO2001 Final Exam UF

comparative politics

the study and comparison of domestic politics across countries

international relations

contrasted with comparative politics; concentrates on relations between countries (foreign policy, war, trade and foreign aid)

institutions

organizations or activities that are self-perpetuating and valued for their own sake

politics

the struggle in any group for power that will give one or more persons the ability to make decisions for the larger group; often occurs where there are people and organizations

power

the ability to influence others or impose one's will on them

power vs. politics

politics is the competition for public power; power is the ability to extend one's will

comparative method

a way to compare cases and draw conclusions

inductive reasoning

the means by which we go from studying a case to generating a hypothesis

deductive reasoning

starting with a puzzle and from there generating some hypothesis about cause and effect to test against a number of cases

problems in comparative research

1. controlling the variables in the case study

2. interactions between the variables themselves

3. the limits to our information and information gathering

4. how we access the few cases we do have

5. focus is limited to a single geographic region

6. bias makes it harder to control for variables and select the right cases

7. the search for cause and effect

multicausality

many variables tied together to produce particular outcomes

endogeneity

problem of distinguishing cause and effect

theory

integrated set of hypotheses, assumptions and facts

modernization theory

as societies developed, they would become capitalist democracies

freedom

an individual's ability to act independently, without fear of restriction or punishment by the state or other individuals or groups in society

equality

a material standard of living shared by individuals within a community, society, or country

quantitative method

gathering of statistical data across many countries to look for correlations and test hypotheses about cause and effect; emphasis on breadth over depth

qualitative method

detailed study of history, language and culture; depth over breadth

correlation ____.

does not prove causation

traditional approach to comparative politics

emphasis on describing political systems and their various institutions

behavioral revolution in comparative politics

the shift from a descriptive study of politics to one that emphasizes causality, explanation and prediction

tories

conservatives in the UK

whigs

liberals in the UK

Labour Party

British working-class political party established in the 1890s and dedicated to reforms and a peaceful transition to socialism

Third Way

a political compromise between the right and the left in the UK

the UK is comprised of what countries?

England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland

The Crown

represents the ceremonial and symbolic trappings of the British state. It represents the rules governing British political life (the regime) and the unhindered capacity (the sovereignty) to enforce and administer these rules and to secure the country's borders

common law in the UK

a system based on local customs and precedent rather than formal legal codes

Magna Carta

became a royal promise to uphold feudal customs and the rights of England's barons; signed by King John in 1215

English Civil War

pitted the defenders of Charles I against the supporters of Parliament, who won the war and executed Charles I in 1649

UK Commonwealth

includes the United Kingdom and 54 of its former colonies and serves to maintain some of the economic and cultural ties established during its imperial rule

House of Lords

upper house of the British parliament; represented the aristocracy

House of Commons

lower house of the British parliament; represented the interests of the lower nobility and merchant class

hung parliament

no party obtained a majority of seats

UK's political regime has highly ____ features

majoritarian

important documents to the United Kingdom

1. Magna Carta

2. Bill of Rights

3. Act of Union

T/F: The UK has no single document that defines the rules of politics.

True

What are the essential political features of the United States?

plurality electoral system, presidential system, federal division of power

One of the potential obstacles to comparative research has to do with variables that may be either the cause or the effect of an outcome. What is the term used to refer to this particular problem?

endogeneity

T/F: In Politics as a Vocation, Max Weber argued that states are founded on two kinds of legitimacy: traditional, and legal rational

False

three types of legitimacy

traditional, charismatic, rational-legal

UK: legislative-executive system

parliamentary

UK: unitary or federal division of power

unitary

UK: electoral system for lower house

plurality

UK: chief judicial body

House of Lords

UK: head of the state

British Crown

UK: the monarch's purpose

purely ceremonial figure; she can act only at the behest of the cabinet; spends her time signing papers and dedicating public works. the government allocates a budget for the royal family's expenses

UK: head of government

Prime Minister

UK: prime minister

one of the most powerful heads of government of any contemporary democracy. once named prime minister by the monarch, he or she selects the cabinet

prime minister + cabinet =

the government

vote of no confidence

when the chamber rejects a measure deemed of high importance to the government

UK: the cabinet

about 20 members, usually from the lower house. evolved out of groups of experts who originally advised Britain's monarchs

collective responsibility within the UK cabinet

when individual cabinet members oppose a given policy, the entire cabinet must appear unified and take responsibility for the policy. cabinet members who cannot support a decision must resign

UK: the legislature

aka Parliament; House of Commons = 650 members of Parliament representing individual districts. House of Lords has no veto power over legislation

UK: the judiciary

plays a relatively minor role; Supreme Court of the UK serves as the highest court of appeal on most legal matters

UK: the electoral system

single-member district system based on plurality; members need to win a plurality of votes, not a majority. electoral constituencies are based on population

UK: local government

no formal powers are reserved for regional or local government

state

a series of institutions that maintains a monopoly of violence over a territory. It relies on sovereignty—the ability to carry out actions in a territory independently—and power

regime

the rules and norms of politics; in some non-democratic countries where politics is dominated by a single individual, we may use this term to refer to that leader

government

the leadership in charge of running the state. If the state is a computer, the regime is the software and the government is the operator

legitimacy

the understanding that a state has certain authority to carry out tasks is a key component to stateness and allows the state to carry about its basic functions

traditional legitimacy

built on history and continuity

charismatic legitimacy

embodied in a powerful and inspiring individual

rational-legal legitimacy

built on a foundation of highly institutionalized laws

unitary states

most power is held in a central government

federal states

the governing power is divided into federal and local governing bodies that connect to the national government

federalism

a system in which significant state powers, such as taxation, lawmaking, and security, are devolved to regional or local bodies

asymmetric federalism

power is dispersed unevenly across regional and local bodies, often in order to account for cultural or ethnic diversity

devolution

a process in which political power is "sent down" to lower levels of state and government

strong states

ones that can fulfill basic functions and enforce rules

weak states

ones that cannot execute these tasks well—the most extreme cases called failed states

capacity

its ability to wield power to carry out policies or actions

autonomy

its ability to wield that power without having to consult the public or another outside body

what country has the oldest written Constitution that is still in effect?

United States

United States: political regime

Presidential system, federal division of pwoer

United States: electoral system

plurality SMD

the lower house of the United States Congress

House of Representatives

the upper house of United States Congress

Senate

two important components of United States Constitution

1. federalism

2. separation of power

how many times has the American Constitution been amended?

27

United States: head of state

President

United States: head of government

President

role of U.S. House of Representatives

exclusive power to originate tax and revenue bills, etc.

role of U.S. Senate

ratify treaties and approve presidential appointments

judicial review

the authority to judge unconstitutional or invalid an act of the legislative or executive branch or of a state court or legislature

ethnic identity

a set of institutions that bind people together through a common culture. the components of ethnicity vary from nation to nation but may include language, religion, geographic location, customs, history, among other factors

ethnicity is ____

socially constructed; assigned at birth; NOT political

national identity

a set of institutions that bind people with common political aspiration

nationalism

pride in one's people and the belief that they have their own political sovereignty separate from others'

citizenship

an individual's or group's relationship to the state. states are obligated to provide certain rights to their citizens, and citizenships may require certain obligations from these citizens, such as paying taxes or serving in the armed forces

citizenship is purely ____.

political; the basis for patriotism

patriotism

pride in one's state

ethnic conflicts

struggles between ethnic groups to achieve political or economic goals at each other's expense

national conflicts

struggles between groups over sovereignty; arise from favorites relating to the society, economic or politics

political attitudes

views on the necessary pace and scope of change between freedom and equality in a particular context

radicals

argue for dramatic, sometimes revolutionary change of the current political and economic order

liberals

argue for change, but unlike radicals, they believe change can come within existing political structures

conservatives

do not see change as necessary and argue that current systems and structures are working

reactionaries

seek to restore current political and economic structures to previously established ways

political ideologies

values held by individuals on the fundamental goals of politics