Poli278 Exhaustive Political Science Study Guide
Foundations of Politics and Political Science
Difference Between Political Science and Politics:
Politics: Activity related to influencing, making, or implementing collective decisions for a political community (e.g., a country, local community, or global community). Example: Passing laws in Canada’s Parliament.
Political Science: The systematic study of those activities, focusing on how, why, and with what consequences decisions are made. It aims to analyze politics objectively using theory and evidence.
Relevance of Definition: How politics is defined shapes perception. If defined as binding decision-making, the focus is on governments. If defined as power struggles, it includes corporations, media, and social movements (e.g., Black Lives Matter).
Power and Influence:
Political Power: The exercise of influence by individuals, groups, or governments to change or control the conduct of others—making them do what they otherwise would not do (Dahl ).
Influence: Shaping preferences so coercion is not required. It is often invisible and embedded in rules and practices.
Relationship: Influence can sustain power; power can enforce influence. Liberal democracies prefer influence and consent over coercion to maintain legitimacy.
Authority and Legitimacy:
Forms of Authority:
Charismatic Authority: Based on the perception of a leader having extraordinary or supernatural qualities (e.g., Nelson Mandela).
Traditional Authority: Based on customs establishing the right of certain persons to rule (e.g., Monarchy).
Legal-Rational Authority: The right to rule based on legal rules and procedures. This is most common in liberal democracies as it is viewed as the most effective establishment of legitimacy.
Authority Without Legitimacy: Possible when power is exercised without the acceptance of the governed (e.g., North Korea maintaining authority through coercion).
Moral Authority: Martin Luther King, Jr. and the civil rights movement used moral authority (founded on conduct and reasoned arguments) to challenge legal authority and end legalized racism. Changing the law does not automatically change social power structures.
Theoretical Frameworks:
Elite Theory: Premised on a political world divided into the few (elites) and the rest (masses/ruled). Focuses on political leadership.
Class Analysis: Views politics as rooted in economic class structures and social structures. Understands power as embedded in social structures creating inequitable relationships.
Foucault’s Power and Knowledge: Power is inseparable from knowledge claims and expert discourses that shape behavior. They are mutually reinforcing. Criticized when power overrides individual rights (e.g., COVID- disciplinary measures and mask mandates).
Political Ideologies
Core Concepts of Ideology:
Definition: A package of interrelated ideas and beliefs about government, society, economy, and human nature that inspire political action. They frame concepts like justice, freedom, and equality.
Modern Post-Enlightenment Ideologies:
Liberalism: Emphasizes individual freedom, inherent dignity, and the rule of law. Aims to protect individual rights from government interference. Assumes individuals are rational.
Conservatism: Values order, stability, tradition, and respect for authority. Views humans as inherently imperfect with limited reasoning capacity. Prefers gradual change (moderate) or opposes reform (reactionary).
Socialism: Reacted to worker exploitation in capitalism. Views humans as social beings. Critical of competition and advocates for collective/social ownership of production to serve the common good.
Differentiating Liberal Currents:
Reform Liberalism: Supports individual freedom but believes government action is needed to remove obstacles to development and assist the disadvantaged.
Classical Liberalism: Views government purpose as limited solely to protecting life, liberty, and property.
Neo-liberalism: Strong belief in the free marketplace and opposition to government intervention. Emphasizes privatization, globalization, and reduced taxes.
Alternative and Radical Ideologies:
Fascism: Combines aggressive nationalism with a belief in natural inequality. Opposes liberal democracy and communism. Focuses on the corporate state (business and labor working for the nation).
Feminism: Views society as patriarchal and seeks full independence and equality for women.
Environmentalism: Focused on ecological sustainability and changing humanity's relationship with nature to ensure life-sustenance.
Anarchism: Views the state as the key source of oppression; seeks replacement with voluntary cooperation.
Populism: Advocates putting power in the hands of the people rather than elites. Can be left-wing or right-wing and often views elites as corrupt.
The New Right: A blend of economic conservatism (free markets, low taxes) and social conservatism (traditional moral/religious values and national unity).
Political Culture and Socialization
Political Culture Types:
Parochial: Citizens largely unaware of the system; no expectations of government.
Subject: Citizens aware of policy but not oriented toward affecting it.
Participant: Citizens aware of the system and active in seeking to affect government.
Theories of Development:
Fragment Theory (Hartz): European colonized societies reflect only a “fragment” of the mother country's ideology. US and English Canada are liberal fragments.
Horowitz Modification: Argued the United Empire Loyalists brought traditional conservative values to Canada, allowing for a “socialist” element not found in the US.
Lipset’s Analysis: US was founded on revolution (individualism, distrust of authority); Canada was counter-revolutionary (respect for order, law, and government institutions).
Political Socialization: The process by which political values and beliefs are transmitted.
Primary Agent: Family. It is the earliest and most consistent influence on attitudes regarding authority and trust in government.
Civic Engagement and Social Capital:
Putnam’s Theory: Strong democracies depend on citizens active in non-political community associations (choirs, bowling leagues). This builds social capital (trust and cooperation).
Voter Turnout Trends:
Declining turnout weakens legitimacy and accountability.
General reasons: Political cynicism, declining trust, and weakening party identification.
Youth reasons: Lack of habit, lack of knowledge, and disconnection from general politics.
Representation, Parties, and Electoral Systems
Models of Representation:
Formalistic: Representation is fulfilled simply through the act of a free and fair election. The procedure is the legitimacy.
Instrumental: Focuses on what representatives do after election.
Mirror (Descriptive): Legislature should reflect society’s diversity (e.g., if of the population are women, of representatives should be women).
Delegate: Representatives act as a “mouthpiece,” following voter preferences exactly.
Trusteeship: Representatives use their own judgment and expertise for the common good, independent of inconsistent public opinion.
Political Parties:
Cadre Parties: Created internally within legislatures; little formal organization outside parliament; rely on local elites (e.g., Conservative and Liberal Parties of Canada).
Mass Parties: Created externally to represent segments like the working class; large dues-paying membership (e.g., the New Democratic Party/NDP).
Brokerage Parties: Attempt to accommodate a variety of interests (regional/ethnic) in a non-ideological manner.
Electoral Systems:
Single-Member Plurality (SMP/FPTP): Voters elect one representative per district; candidate with the most votes wins. Simple but inaccurately translates vote share to seat share.
Proportional Representation (PR): Seats reflect the proportion of votes obtained. Supports mirror representation and minority inclusion but often requires coalition governments.
Mixed-Member Proportional (MMP): Combines SMP districts with PR seats. Balances local representation with fairness.
Single Transferable Vote (STV): Multi-member districts where voters rank candidates; votes are transferred to ensure proportional outcomes.
Democracy vs. Authoritarianism
Regime Variants:
Liberal Democracy: Combines representative democracy with liberalism (rule of law, limited government, individual rights).
authoritarian: Highly concentrated power with small elites; limited civil liberties and no free elections.
Types: Totalitarian (North Korea), Personal Dictatorship (Saddam Hussein), Institutional (China’s CCP), Absolute Monarchy (Saudi Arabia).
Totalitarianism: Attempt to control all aspects of life through ideology, terror, and economic planning.
Hybrid Regimes: Combine elements of both (e.g., Singapore). Have regular elections and some personal freedom, but the government is effectively unbeatable via control of the media and courts.
Democratic Functions:
Accountability: Citizens can remove representatives in future elections.
Transparency: Obligation to provide access to information.
Plebiscitary Democracy: Includes direct mechanisms like referendums, initiatives, and recall.
Deliberative Democracy: Emphasizes government based on discussion among free and equal citizens.
Global Development and International Relations
Theories of Development:
Market Theory: Emphasizes free-market principles and reduced trade barriers (Neo-liberalism).
Dependency Theory: Derived from Marxist thought; argues economic dominance by wealthy states reinforces disadvantages in developing countries.
Modernization Theory: Argues countries develop by adopting Western models.
Development Metrics:
GDP: Total market value of goods and services produced.
HDI (Human Development Index): Composite measure including life expectancy, education, and income.
International Relations Theories:
Realism: System is anarchic (no central authority); states are pre-eminent actors focused on survival, power, and national interest. Results in a security dilemma.
Liberal Internationalism: Optimistic view of human nature; emphasizes individualism, interdependence through trade, and international institutions (UN, WTO).
Constructivism: Emphasizes the power of ideas and norms; global politics is a construction of human thought and interaction.
Poststructuralism: Challenges objective reality; focuses on discourses and language.
Global Organizations:
UN Security Council: Responsible for peace and security. Five permanent members (China, France, Russia, UK, US) have veto power.
Bretton Woods Institutions: IMF (monetary stability) and World Bank (development).
WTO: Regulates global trade and reduces barriers.
Political Change, Media, and Violence
Mass Media Perspectives:
Libertarian: Media free from government control allows individuals to assess information independently.
Social Responsibility: Media must filter information to serve the public interest.
Dominant Ideology: Media conveys values of the powerful and protects the status quo.
Effects: Agenda-setting (shaping issue importance), Framing (shaping issue interpretation), and Priming (influencing evaluation criteria).
Conflict and Change:
Political Protest: Oppositional action outside formal channels; a fundamental democratic right.
Political Violence: The use of physical force with a political objective. Central to non-democratic regimes.
Guerrilla Warfare: Highly political warfare using irregulars and hit-and-run tactics.
Terrorism: Deliberate use of violence to induce fear for a political objective. State terrorism involves government agents suppressing dissent through fear.