Untitled Flashcards Set

Politics

The ability of people or groups to gain access to government and use its power to influence society.

Nation state

Countries where people share a national language or culture.

Democracy

A political system in which people can directly vote for their representatives or even on specific rules or policies.

Lobbying

Contacting elected representatives to argue for a particular position.

Activists

People who believe normal methods of exerting political influence are insufficient or illegitimate.

Social movements

Groups organized to push for social change through contentious means; also called protest movements.

Revolutionary movements

Social movements that lead to the fall of governments.

State

Ultimate authority within some geographical territory, with a monopoly on the use of force within that area.

Monopoly of force

Having the only legitimate claim to use force.

Taxation

Using the force of government to collect funds that are used to pay for services.

Welfare states

States where a large part of the budget is spent on social services.

Policy

Rules, laws, and services provided by a government.

Axis of politics

How states are made, acquire power, and use power to further goals through policy.

Democratic society

Citizens or residents get to vote on who runs the state.

City state

Government controls a single city and the surrounding area.

Direct democracy

People vote directly on policies through a referendum.

Representative democracy

People influence the state and its policies by voting for representatives.

Competitive democracy

Voters have genuine opinions and alternatives when voting.

Aristocracy

Government ruled by royalty, i.e. kings and queens.

Formal policies

Those written into law.

Informal policies

Widespread methods of regulating behavior that are not written into law.

Political parties

Networks of people and organizations that represent particular interests or positions.

Median voter model

Predicts that governments offer policies that reflect the preferences of voters in the center.

Salience

Degree to which people care about an issue.

Elite theory

Predicts that governments offer policies preferred by elites.

Pluralism theory

Predicts that government policies will reflect the balance of power between various interest groups.

Electoral college system

System in which presidential votes are tallied at the state level, rather than from a simple national count of all votes.

Suffrage

The right to vote.

Electorate

Group of people allowed to vote.

Poll tax

Fee charged for voting.

Literacy test

Test of reading ability administered to determine who was allowed to vote.

Grandfather clause

Laws passed in southern states restricting voting to only those individuals whose grandfathers could vote.

Black codes

Laws that barred African Americans from holding certain jobs.

Voting rights act of 1965

Federal law that barred states from discriminating against black voters.

Liberal

Political position that supports more taxation so governments can provide a wider array of services.

Social conservatives

Voters who emphasize religious values and oppose changing social roles.

Ideologies

Systems of ideas.

Liberal state

Governments that are fairly permissive in economic affairs.

Corporatist states

Governments in which various factions are part of state entities that determine social policy.

Social democratic states

States with relatively high taxes that are used to pay for generous social services.

Feminist movement

Social movement aimed at improving the status of women and reducing gender-based discrimination.

Institutional politics

Influencing politics in official and sanctioned ways.

Contentious politics

Efforts to influence politics outside of the official and accepted system.

Grassroots

Structure where control of a social movement is local, and members don’t answer to a central leadership.

Social movement sector

Individuals and organizations that organize protests and work to change public opinion on issues.

Social movement outcomes

Effects of social movement efforts.

Authoritarianism

Governing style that relies on strict obedience to leaders.

Nationalism

Belief that government should put national interests first by closing borders and waging trade wars.

Gender discrimination

Different treatment based on gender.

Gender pay gap

Systematic difference in average pay between men and women.

Gendered segregation of work

Concentration of men and women into different jobs.

Gender-typed jobs

Jobs perceived to be more appropriate for either men or women but not for both.

Economic sociology

Field dedicated to understanding how social factors are connected to what we buy, how we run businesses, and who works in which jobs.

Economic institutions

Rules and systems we use to organize economic life.

Division of labor

System in which people specialize in particular jobs and rely on one another for other items they need.

Economic inequality

Differences in income and jobs.

Poverty line

Official US measure of the amount of money needed to provide a minimally sufficient level of food and shelter.

Human capital theory

Theory that income is based on a worker’s skills.

Human capital

Skills and knowledge that can be sold on the job market.

College premium

Extra money earned by those with a college degree.

Discrimination theory

Theory that income differences are due to discrimination against certain groups by employers.

Taste-based discrimination

Employers or customers treat members of one group better than others, regardless of their productivity.

Statistical discrimination

Employers pay less to all members of a certain group because on average that group is less productive.

Social closure

Efforts to exclude members of other groups from desirable jobs.

Black codes

Laws that banned newly freed slaves from entering desirable trades.

Corporation

Group of people organized together by business owners in order to generate a profit.

Formal institutions

Institutions governed by official laws and written policies about what they are allowed to do.

Informal institutions

Institutions guided by unwritten rules about what is expected.

Social norms

Unwritten rules guiding behavior.

Political activists

People who organize around a political issue.

Stakeholders

People who have financial or political investments in a corporation.

Bureaucracy

A structure providing clear lines of authority and discipline, written rules, and expert employers.

Open system

An organization with loose boundaries that allow people and ideas to enter or leave.

Money

A method of recording value in a particular society.

Fiat currency

Coins or other items that a government declares is money.

Commodity currency

Money that is itself a commodity or that represents a commodity.

Inflation

A type of money’s loss of value.

Bitcoin

Digital form of currency that is not tied to any government or nation.

Economic inequality

A situation in which economic resources are unevenly distributed among people.

Income

All money earned in a year.

Wealth

Total value of all assets you own.

Current population survey

Yearly study of the US population conducted by the federal government.

Median annual household income

Amount at which half of households make less than that income and half make more.

US census bureau

Federal organization that conducts a census of all households every ten years and sets key definitions such as the poverty line.

Poverty rate

Percentage of people who are classified as poor.

Poverty threshold

Income level below which a family would not be able to afford basic needs such as food and shelter.

Financialized economy

Economy in which a large proportion of wealth is generated by financial transactions by banks and investment firms.

Political economy

Large scale analysis of markets and the social systems they exist within.

Creative destruction

Displacement of older businesses and forms of employment as innovative businesses enter the marketplace.

Contradictions within a market economy

Political instability created due to the exploitation of workers.

Socialist economy

Economy in which workers collectively own economic organizations and there is little or no private industry.

Revolutionary politics

Politics aimed at overthrowing an existing government or economic system.

Capitalist economy

Economy in which people privately own businesses and seek to make profits.

Deviance

Behaviors that violate social norms.

Norms

Expectations for behavior.

Folkways

Norms about customs, traditions, and etiquette.

Mores

More seriously protected norms that reflect the morals and values of a social group.

Laws

Most seriously protected norms; codified and require specific enforcement.

Social control

Ways societies try to influence members’ behavior to maintain social order.

Moral panics

Overheated, short-lived periods of intense social concern about an issue.