Unit 2 European Government & Economics Study Guide

Vocabulary flashcards covering European government systems, legislative structures, and economic concepts from Unit 2.

Autocracy

A government where one leader has all the power and citizens do not get to participate.

Democracy

A government where citizens hold the power and choose their leaders by voting.

Parliamentary Democracy

A government system where citizens vote for members of parliament, who then choose the Prime Minister or Chancellor as the head of the executive branch.

Presidential Democracy

A government system where citizens vote directly for the president.

United Kingdom (Government Structure)

A parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy led by a Monarch (Head of State) and a Prime Minister (Chief Executive), with a two-house parliament consisting of the House of Commons and House of Lords.

Germany (Government Structure)

A parliamentary democracy where the Chancellor is the Chief Executive, the President holds the least power, and parliament consists of the Bundestag (Lower) and Bundesrat (Upper).

Russia (Government Structure)

A presidential democracy where the President has the most power, the Prime Minister is Head of Government, and the legislature is the Federal Assembly (State Duma and Federation Council).

Command Economy

An economic system where the government makes all the choices for the economy.

Market Economy

An economic system where choices are made by the people, and everyday citizens own the businesses.

Traditional Economy

An economic system that does things the way they have always been done in the past.

Mixed Economy

An economic system that is a mix of traditional, market, and command economies.

Exchange Rate

A value that tells you how much the money (currency) of one country is worth when traded for the money of another country, making trade between nations possible.

Free Trade

Trading goods between countries without trade barriers like taxes or limits stopping them.

Quota

A limit on the number of imported goods allowed into a country.

Embargo

A government order stopping all trade with another country.

Tariff

A tax added to goods brought in from another country.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

The total amount of money a country makes from all its goods and services in one year.

Literacy Rate

The amount of people in a country who can read and write.

Standard of Living

A term that describes how good or bad people live in a country.

Specialization

When a country makes the goods it is really good at making, and then trades for the things it cannot make.

Entrepreneur

A person who starts a new business (like the boss of a store) and creates new stores, jobs, and goods for people to buy.

Human Capital

The people who make goods and services, supported when governments invest in public education, health care, and skill training programs.

European Union

A group of European countries that work together on trade, laws, and shared goals.

Euro (€)

The money (currency) used by most countries in the European Union.