Political Science

  1. Definition of Democracy

    • "A regime whereby political power is widely spread, where power in some way rests with the people" (p. 72).

    • A political system that allows citizens to participate in political decision-making or to elect representatives to government bodies.

    • A system of government by the whole population or all eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives.

    • A government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation, usually involving periodically held free elections.

    • PEOPLE (demos) + POWER (kratos) = DEMOCRACY

  2. Interpretations of Democracy

    1. Everyone governs.

    2. Everyone is involved in decision-making.

    3. Rulers are accountable to the ruled.

    4. Rulers are accountable to the representatives of the ruled.

    5. Rulers are chosen by the ruled.

    6. Rulers are chosen by the representatives of the ruled.

    7. Rulers act in the interests of the ruled.

  3. Types of Democracy

    • Liberal democracy: Linking of democracy with liberal principles.

    • Direct democracy: People rule directly (e.g., referendums, Switzerland, ballot measures).

    • Representative democracy: People choose others to represent their interests (e.g., parliamentary government, Spain).

    • Associative democracy: Reduce the role of the state for voluntary, self-governing associations within civil society. 'Third Way' between capitalism and state-socialism.

    • Cosmopolitan democracy: Promotes international individual inclusion in democracy. Directly voting for international organizations.

    • Deliberative democracy: Emphasizes the deliberative role of public discourse in democracy as necessary and desirable. Requires deliberation to be balanced, inclusive, respectful, informed, and consensual.

    • Ecological democracy: Democracy should account for future generations and non-human animals under the 'all-affected principle.'

  4. Theories of Democracy

    • Classical theory of democracy

      • A.k.a. ‘participatory’, ‘developmental’ or ‘procedural.’

      • Emphasizes active participation of citizens in political decision-making.

      • Views democracy as an end in itself.

    • Elitist theory of democracy

      • A.k.a. ‘revisionist’, ‘protective’ or ‘substantive.’

      • Emphasizes that political leaders are accountable to the wishes of the voters.

      • Views democracy as a means to an end.

  5. Definitions of Democracy (Proceduralist, Instrumentalist, Empirical)

    • Pure Proceduralism

      • Democracy empowers people in a tangible way.

      • Elections.

      • Universal Suffrage.

      • More than one party.

      • Free Press.

    • Pure Instrumentalism

      • Democracy benefits people in a tangible way.

      • Economic growth.

    • Soft Proceduralism

      • Democracy empowers people in an intangible way.

      • Popular empowerment.

    • Soft Instrumentalism

      • Democracy benefits people in an intangible way.

      • Responsive government.

  6. Pure Proceduralism (Robert Dahl, 1971)

    • Elections.

    • Universal Suffrage.

    • More than one party.

    • Free Press.

  7. Definition of Epistocracy

    • Epistocracy means the rule of the knowledgeable.

    • More precisely, a political regime is epistocratic to the extent that political power is formally distributed according to competence, skill, and the good faith to act on that skill (Brennan, p. 14).

  8. Brennan's Proposals for Epistocracy

    • Restricted suffrage: People can vote based on qualifications.

    • Plural voting: People with qualifications get more votes.

    • Enfranchisement lottery: People are randomly assigned to citizen assemblies (like jury duty).

    • Epistocratic veto: Experts get to veto laws.

    • Weighted voting: People’s vote is weighted by a test.

  9. Who Holds Power?

    1. Foreign Power

    2. King or President

    3. Military

    4. Dominant Party

    5. Religious Figures

    6. Oligarchy

  10. Types of Hybrid Regimes

    1. Competition between Elites?

      • Yes → Weak pluralism

      • No → Dominant power

    2. Is there a Functioning State?

      • Yes → Democratic/authoritarian

      • No → Failed/Fragile States

    3. What is the Role of Ideology?

      • Strong Role → Totalitarianism

      • Minimal Role → Kleptocracy

  11. Flashcard: J-Curve

    1. Authoritarian regimes are quite stable.

    2. Openness has a destabilizing effect.

    3. Fully open societies are the most stable.

  12. Regime Change

    1. What Causes a Change of Regime?

      • Military defeat

      • Economic collapse

      • External intervention

      • Socio-economic change

      • Dominant coalition splits

  13. How to Avoid Regime Change

    1. Mobilizing Support (single-party, socialization, etc.)

    2. Disarticulating Social Structure of Opposition

      • Repression

      • Elimination of active/passive and real/potential opponents

      • Divide and rule (controlled opposition)

  14. Group Theory

    1. Definition of Group Theory

      • Different interests offset ill effects of a locally dominant interest opposed to the general good.

      • A "balance of interests" serves as "countervailing power" to avoid "majority tyranny."

      • Political influence varies by source, issue, and has countervailing forces.

      • The state aggregates political influence in policymaking.

      • The governmental process is a process of interaction and power among economic interests.

    2. Policy in Group Theory

      • Policy is the process of interaction among political groups.

  15. Pluralism

    1. Dahl’s Pluralism

      • Citizens have variable motivations to use resources for political power.

      • Resources might be contributed to the organizing of interest groups.

      • Competitive elections play a crucial role.

      • Policy is influenced by political parties, politicians, government agencies, and interest groups.

    2. Neopluralism

      • Policy is influenced by a plurality of interests, with none being dominant.

      • Government agencies are autonomous.

      • The plurality of separate issue areas does not equal fair representation.

      • Countervailing power results from "public interest groups."

  16. Elitism

    1. Power Elite Theory

      • A national power elite dominates politics.

      • Consists of a small alliance of political, economic, and military elites.

    2. Multiple-Elite Theory

      • Separate coalitions, based on interest groups, dominate numerous different areas of public policy.

      • Policymaking is dominated by multiple elites.

      • Policy involves collective action problems regarding public goods.

  17. Corporatism

    1. Centralized Authorities in Policymaking

      • These theories emphasize the role of centralized authorities in the policymaking process.

      • German social theory: The state is sovereign and autonomous.

      • Statism: Autonomous government agencies dominate interest groups.

      • Corporatism: Policies are negotiated among centralized segments of groups and government.

    2. Types of Corporatism

      • Societal corporatism: Peak associations emerge from pressure from below.

      • State corporatism: The state designates its preferred partners.

    3. Benefits of Corporatism

      • Arrangements of regular consultation of key interest groups.

      • Represent views of politically or economically strategic sections of society.

      • Better policymaking, regular consultation, negotiations, or 'interest intermediation.'

  18. Public Sphere

    1. Definition of Public Sphere

      • A set of institutional spaces (newspapers, coffee houses, forums) and discursive rules forming a site where public opinion is formed.

      • Developed by Habermas as the area where the public deliberates social issues.

      • It lies between the private realm and government authority.

    2. Examples of Public Sphere Spaces

      • Agora

      • Royal Court

      • Church

      • Coffeehouse

  19. Media

    1. Positive View of Media

      • Extra-parliamentary means of holding the executive to account.

      • Important branch of civil society.

      • Embodies the liberal democratic principle of freedom of expression.

    2. Concerns about Media

      • Ownership concentration in a few hands makes it an imperfect champion of 'pluralism.'

    3. Functions of Media (Schudson, 2008)

      1. Information: Provides the public with reliable information.

      2. Investigation: Conducts investigations into social issues.

      3. Analysis: Provides coherent frameworks of interpretation for complex issues.

      4. Social Empathy: Shines a light on the conditions of other members of society.

      5. Public forum: Provides a forum for dialogue.

      6. Mobilization: Provides a platform for advocacy.

      7. Publicizing representative democracy: Helps the public monitor their representatives in office.

  20. Media Models

    1. Polarized Pluralism Model (Mediterranean Model)

      • Journalists align with political parties (more partisan).

      • Weaker focus on objectivity and professionalism.

    2. Democratic Corporatist Model (Nordic Model)

      • Media is largely public (state intervention and subsidies).

      • Strong focus on professionalism and self-regulation.

    3. Liberal Model (North American Model)

      • Media is private and profit-driven (market regulation).

      • Strong professionalization.

  21. New Technologies in Public Sphere

    1. New Communication Technologies (NCTs)

      • Provide additional opportunities for ordinary citizens to take advantage of the new public sphere.

      • New arenas for activity, greater ability for citizen organization, and democratization of the media.

      • Introduce new forms of decision-making (e-democracy).

  22. Representation Modes

    1. Delegate Model

      • Representatives convey the views of their constituents.

      • "The delegation of the government to a small number of citizens elected by the rest" (Madison).

    2. Trustee Model

      • Representatives act on behalf of their constituents.

      • "Your representative owes you, not his industry only, but his judgment; and he betrays, instead of serving you, if he sacrifices it to your own opinion" (Burke).

    3. Politico Model

      • Representatives use a hybrid of the two depending on the issue with the purpose of getting elected.

  23. Other Conceptions of Representation

    1. Dyadic vs Collective Representation (Weissberg, 1978)

      • Dyadic: Representative represents their constituency.

      • Collective: Representative represents the country as a whole.

    2. Descriptive vs Substantive Representation (Pitkin, 1967)

      • Descriptive: Representatives resemble their constituents.

      • Substantive: Representatives reflect the interests of their constituents.

  24. Legislature Types

    1. How Much Power Does It Have?

      • Power that the legislature vs. the executive: active, reactive, vulnerable, marginal, and minimal.

    2. How Many Are There?

      • Unicameralism vs. Bicameralism: Whether there is one or two chambers.

      • Reasons for two chambers: Tradition, Federalism, Legislation, Power distribution (typically, the lower one has more power).

  25. Alternative Decision-Making Forms

    1. Sortition

      • Selecting representatives by lottery.

      • Pros: Impartial, simpler and cheaper, integration (equal chance), 'serenity effect' (no one feels left out).

    2. Citizens’ Assembly

      • Randomly selected citizens assemble to decide policy issues under the guidance of experts.

      • Pros: Balance between competence and equal representation.

  26. Electoral Systems Around the World

    1. Definition

      • Systems used to translate votes into seats in the political landscape.

  27. Electoral Systems

    1. Association with Single-Member Districts

      • Tend to be associated with majoritarian systems like FPTP.

    2. Association with National Constituencies

      • Tend to be associated with proportional systems.

    3. Duverger’s Law

      • Proportional systems lead to multi-party systems.

      • Majoritarian systems lead to two-party systems (e.g., US and UK).

    4. Electoral Reform

      • Shifts from majoritarian to mixed or proportional systems due to established parties' fear of being replaced.

  28. Median Voter Theory

    1. Concept

      • Voters have spatial ideologies.

      • Support candidates/options that align with their preferences.

      • Elections are won by the median voter (pivotal to the election).

  29. The Simpsons on Duverger’s Law

    1. (Image or relevant quote depicting the humorous take on Duverger’s Law)

  30. Legislatures

    1. Assembly Definition

      • Permanent collegial institution renewed every 4-5 years.

      • Based on the representative principle with pluralism in democratic assemblies.

    2. How Assemblies Contribute to Democracy

      • Representative, transparent, accessible, accountable, and effective.

    3. Functions

      • Representation, governmental, procedural.

  31. Party Systems

    1. Definition

      • Systems of interactions resulting from interparty competition (Sartori 1976, p. 44).

    2. Main Characteristics of Party Systems

      • Number of parties.

      • Alignment of parties with the electorate.

      • Stability of party alignments.

    3. Determinants of Party Systems

      • Political System (Democratic-Authoritarian, Federal-Unitary, Parliamentary-Presidential).

      • Social Cleavages (Centre-Periphery, State-Church, Urban-Rural, Owner-worker).

      • Electoral System (Majoritarian-Proportional, SMD or MMD).

  32. Number of Parties

    1. Classification Types

      • Single-party (e.g., China).

      • Dominant Party (e.g., Japan).

      • Two-party (e.g., US).

      • Multi-party (e.g., Netherlands).

    2. Measurement

      • Effective number of parties (ENP).

  33. Cleavage Theory

    1. Definition

      • Suggests that political conflicts are mainly organized by social divides.

    2. Major Cleavages (Lipset and Rokkan, 1967)

      • Rural-Urban: Landowning elite versus Industrial elite, Protectionism versus free trade.

      • Church-State: Church power versus State sovereignty, Theocracy versus secularism.

      • Center-Periphery: National 'core' versus peripheral regions or minority interests, Nationalism versus regionalism/minority interests.

      • Owner-Working (Class Cleavage): Owners of the means of production versus the workers, Capitalism versus socialism.

    3. Freezing Hypothesis

      • The party systems reflect the cleavage structure of the past, providing stability.

      • Parties act as mediators between social and political conflict.

  34. Alignment, Dealignment, and Realignment

    1. Elements of a Cleavage

      • Structural: Social divide, groups with conflicting interests.

      • Attitudinal: Ideological differences shaping voters' political views.

      • Organizational: Political parties translating divisions into voting blocs and government representation.

  35. Electoral Volatility

    1. Definition

      • The stability of electoral alignments or volatility.

    2. Factors Influencing Volatility

      • Mass parties tend to be more stable, representing segments of society.

      • Candidate-centered parties are more volatile due to frequent candidate changes.

  36. Dealignment

    1. Definition

      • The process by which elements of a cleavage become unaligned.

    2. Behavioral Dealignment

      • People's political attitudes become detached from their social groupings.

    3. Structural Dealignment

      • People's social groupings become detached from partisan affiliation.

    4. Example

      • Class dealignment.

  37. Realignment

    1. Definition

      • The process by which new political divides emerge, disrupting established divisions.

    2. Behavioral Realignment

      • People's political attitudes are shaped by new issues.

    3. Structural Realignment

      • New social divisions become increasingly salient.

    4. Example

      • New Cultural issues.

  38. Challenges Faced by Parties

    1. Declining Party Membership

      • Parties have reduced their presence in wider society and become part of the state.

    2. Possible Solutions

      • More proportional electoral system.

      • Lowering the minimum age of voting.

      • Public funding of parties.

  39. Challenges Faced by Parties (Continued)

    1. Growing Divide between Party Professionals and Rank-and-File

      • Growing disconnect between party professionals and party voters.

    2. Possible Solutions

      • Open primaries.

      • Public consultations.

      • Direct democracy.

      • Deliberative democracy.

  40. Functional Theory

    1. Why National Government for Redistribution?

      • Fiscal disparities: Richer areas have more money for public services.

      • Mobility of labor and capital within a country.

      • National control over the flow of labor and capital.

    2. Reducing Inequality

      • National government can reduce inequality by providing grants to state/local governments.

  41. Grants

    1. Definition

      • A grant is money that the national government gives to state/local governments.

    2. Categorical Grant

      • Grants for specific purposes, closely regulated, often for redistributive policies (e.g., rent subsidies).

    3. Block Grant

      • Grants for general use, allowing state/local governments flexibility, often used for developmental policies.

  42. Legislative Theory

    1. Principles

      • Voters are sensitive to concentrated benefits/costs and less sensitive to diffuse benefits/costs.

      • Politicians seek credit for benefits and avoid blame for costs.

    2. Development vs. Redistribution

      • Developmental policies offer concentrated benefits.

      • Redistributive policies provide diffuse benefits.

  43. Strategies to Avoid Blame

    1. Secret Ballots

      • Pass necessary but unpopular laws while claiming opposition.

    2. Buck-Passing

      • Delegate decision-making to the executive or state/local governments.

    3. Complex Legislation

      • Craft complicated laws that are hard to understand.

    4. Merging Laws

      • Combine legislation into a single bill where benefits counteract costs.

  44. Legislative Theory Conclusions

    1. National Legislators' Support

      • Support redistribution if it benefits their district.

      • Pass infrastructure spending to claim credit for development benefits.

      • Shift redistribution costs to state/local governments.

  45. Summary

    1. Tension between Governments

      • Tension between national and state/local governments in competence and political interests.

    2. Competence and Interests

      • National governments better at redistribution but incentivized for development.

      • State/local governments better at development but subservient to national government.

  46. New Public Management (NPM)

    1. Definition

      • Managerial approach emphasizing incentives, competition, and performance.

    2. Assumptions

      • Assumes civil servants are self-interested and utility-maximizers.

    3. Summary

      • Advocates running government like a business.

    4. Features

      • Business-oriented, performance-oriented, separates policy functions, uses public contracts, prefers markets.

  47. Agencies

    1. Characteristics

      • Semi-independent, performance-oriented, autonomous.

    2. Purpose

      • Separate policy from implementation, incentivize good performance.

    3. Trend

      • Increasing use referred to as "agencification."

  48. Executive Branch Governance

    1. Governance

      • Coordination of formal and informal public-private interactions.

    2. Government

      • Activities of steering within human groups, from tribes to the state.

    3. Executive

      • Formal steering tasks, including the chief executive and the cabinet.

  49. Good Governance

    1. Definition

      • The capacity of government to make and implement policy.

    2. Criteria

      • Effective state, representation of civil society, market-economy independence and productivity.

    Flashcard: Government Effectiveness (WBI)

    1. Components

      • Policy and institutional effectiveness.

      • Regulatory quality.

      • Rule of law.

      • Control of corruption.

  50. Policy Communities

    1. Definition

      • Community from the interaction of officials and interest groups shaping policy.

    2. Iron Triangles

      • Groups of officials, politicians, and experts formulating policy together.

    3. Issue Networks

      • Activists and professionals promoting specific policies, e.g., abortion groups in the US.