comp. pol. midterm
Core Concepts
Comparative politics: The systematic study of political systems, institutions, behavior, and outcomes across different countries or societies.
Independent variable (IV): The factor you think causes or influences something.
Dependent variable (DV): The outcome you are trying to explain.
Example: Does economic development (IV) increase democracy (DV)?
Hypothesis: A testable prediction about the relationship between variables.
Operationalization: Turning an abstract concept into something that can be measured.
Example: Measuring "democracy" using elections, civil liberties, and political competition.
Deductive reasoning: Start with a theory → develop a hypothesis → test it with evidence.
Inductive reasoning: Start with observations → identify patterns → develop a theory.
Correlation: Two variables change together.
Causation: A change in one variable produces a change in another.
Remember: Correlation ≠ causation.
Multicausality: Political outcomes usually have multiple causes, rather than one single cause.
Selection bias: When the cases/evidence selected for study aren't representative and therefore distort the conclusions.
Research Methods
Quantitative methods: Use numerical data and statistical analysis.
Qualitative methods: Use interviews, historical evidence, case studies, observation, documents, etc.
Institutions
Formal institutions: Official rules and organizations, usually written down.
Constitutions, laws, courts, legislatures.
Informal institutions: Unwritten rules, norms, traditions, and expectations.
Patron-client relationships, political customs, corruption networks.
Freedom vs. Equality
Freedom/liberty: Ability of individuals to make choices without unjustified government interference.
Equality: Political, social, or economic equality among people.
A major comparative-politics question is how societies balance individual freedom with equality.
Week 2: States
What is a State?
A state is a political organization that:
Controls a territory,
Has a population,
Exercises sovereignty,
Maintains institutions of government,
Claims a monopoly over legitimate force.
State vs. Government vs. Regime
Easy way to remember:
State = the political structure
Government = who's running it
Regime = the rules for running it
Sovereignty
Sovereignty: The state's ultimate authority over its territory and independence from external control.
Max Weber
Weber defined the state as the organization that successfully claims a monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force within a territory.
Legitimacy
Legitimacy: The belief that a government or political system has the right to rule.
Weber's three types:
Traditional legitimacy: Authority based on tradition and longstanding customs.
Charismatic legitimacy: Authority based on the perceived extraordinary qualities of a leader.
Rational-legal legitimacy: Authority based on laws, rules, and established procedures.
Types of States
Unitary state
Political power is concentrated in the central government.
Local governments receive authority from the center.
Federal state
Power is constitutionally divided between national and regional governments.
Regional governments have constitutionally protected powers.
Devolution
Transfer of power from a central government to regional/local governments.
State Capacity and Autonomy
State capacity: Ability of the state to implement decisions and accomplish goals.
State autonomy: Ability of state officials to make and implement policies without being controlled by powerful social groups.
Scope vs. Strength
Scope: How many areas of life the state attempts to regulate or influence.
Strength: How effectively the state can actually implement its policies.
A state can have:
High scope + high strength
High scope + low strength
Low scope + high strength
Low scope + low strength
Fragile vs. Failed States
Fragile state: Has difficulty providing security, services, or effective governance.
Failed state: Has lost much of its ability to govern its territory or population.
State-Building
State-building: Efforts to create or strengthen state institutions and capacity.
Important Cases
Somaliland
Declared independence from Somalia.
Has developed relatively effective institutions despite limited international recognition.
Useful for thinking about state capacity, legitimacy, and statehood.
Russia's "shock therapy"
Rapid transition from a centrally planned economy toward capitalism after the Soviet Union collapsed.
Demonstrates challenges associated with rapid economic and political transformation.
Egypt
Useful for examining authoritarianism, military influence, state capacity, and legitimacy.
Nigeria
Useful for examining federalism, ethnic/religious diversity, resource politics, and state capacity.
India and Pakistan
Both emerged from British colonial rule and partition in 1947.
India developed a durable democratic system; Pakistan experienced repeated military intervention.
Useful for comparing institutions, state-building, and regime development.
Week 3: Nations and Society
Nation vs. State
Nation: A group of people who believe they share a common identity.
State: A political organization governing a territory.
Therefore:
Nation = people/identity
State = political organization
A nation-state occurs when the boundaries of a nation and state largely overlap.
Ethnic Identity
A sense of belonging based on perceived shared ancestry, history, language, culture, religion, or traditions.
National Identity
A shared sense of belonging to a political community or nation.
Nationalism
The belief that a particular nation should have political self-determination and/or that national identity should be politically important.
Benedict Anderson — "Imagined Communities"
Nations are "imagined" because members of a nation will never personally know most other members.
They are nevertheless perceived as belonging to the same community.
Citizenship
Legal membership in a political state, usually involving both rights and responsibilities.
Patriotism vs. Nationalism
Patriotism: Attachment or loyalty to one's country.
Nationalism: Political ideology emphasizing the nation and often national self-determination.
Political Attitudes
Political Ideology
A coherent set of ideas about how society and government should be organized.
Political Culture
Shared beliefs, values, and attitudes about politics and government.
Fundamentalism
A movement emphasizing strict adherence to foundational religious or ideological principles.
Managing Diversity
States can manage ethnic, linguistic, religious, or regional diversity through:
Federalism
Decentralization/devolution
Autonomy
Power-sharing
Integration/assimilation
Minority rights
Cases
Kurds
Ethnic group spread across several states, particularly Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria.
Important example of the distinction between nation and state.
Quebec
French-speaking province within Canada.
Demonstrates issues involving linguistic identity, nationalism, federalism, and separatism.
Sri Lanka
Ethnic conflict between Sinhalese and Tamil populations.
Shows challenges of managing ethnic diversity.
Singapore
Multiethnic society with strong state institutions.
Useful for examining nation-building and management of diversity.
Nepal
Useful for examining ethnic/regional diversity, political change, and federalism.
Week 4: Political Economy
Political Economy
The study of how politics and economics influence each other.
Markets
Systems in which buyers and sellers exchange goods and services.
Property Rights
Rules determining who has the right to own, use, transfer, and benefit from resources.
Public Goods
Goods that are:
Non-excludable: Difficult to prevent people from using them.
Non-rivalrous: One person's use doesn't significantly reduce availability to others.
Examples: national defense, clean air.
Free-Rider Problem
People can benefit from a public good without paying their share of the cost.
Externalities
Costs or benefits of an economic activity that affect third parties.
Negative externality: Pollution.
Positive externality: Education benefiting society beyond the individual student.
Monopoly
A market dominated by one seller.
Regulation
Government rules designed to influence economic behavior.
Regulatory Capture
When a regulatory agency becomes overly influenced by the industry it is supposed to regulate.
Central Banks and Inflation
Central bank: Institution responsible for managing monetary policy and often the money supply and interest rates.
Inflation: General increase in prices.
Hyperinflation: Extremely rapid and uncontrolled inflation.
Deflation: General decrease in prices.
Major Economic Systems/Ideologies
Liberalism
Markets
Private property
Limited government intervention
Individual economic freedom
Social democracy
Capitalist markets combined with substantial government programs and redistribution.
Strong welfare state.
Communism
Seeks collective/social ownership of productive resources.
Historically associated with centrally planned economies.
Mercantilism
Government actively promotes national economic power, often through trade restrictions and support for domestic industries.
Tariffs
Taxes placed on imported goods.
Comparative Advantage
A country has a comparative advantage when it can produce something at a lower opportunity cost than another country.
Measuring Economic Development
GDP
Gross Domestic Product: Total value of goods and services produced within a country.
GDP per Capita
GDP divided by population.
Useful for comparing average economic output across countries.
Purchasing Power Parity (PPP)
Adjusts economic comparisons based on differences in the cost of living between countries.
Gini Coefficient
Measures economic inequality.
0 = perfect equality
1 (or 100) = maximum inequality, depending on the scale used.
Human Development Index (HDI)
Measures development using dimensions including:
Income
Education
Life expectancy
Inclusive vs. Extractive Institutions
Inclusive institutions
Broad participation
Secure property rights
Political/economic opportunities
Distribute opportunities relatively broadly
Extractive institutions
Concentrate political/economic power and resources among a small group.
Resource Curse
The paradox that countries with abundant natural resources can experience poor economic and political outcomes.
Possible causes include:
Corruption
Rent-seeking
Conflict
Weak institutions
Dependence on volatile commodity prices
Cases
United States vs. Sweden
Useful comparison of different approaches to capitalism, taxation, redistribution, and welfare policy.
Venezuela
Useful for studying resource dependence, oil, economic crisis, inflation, and political institutions.
Norway
Important resource-rich country that has largely avoided the resource curse through strong institutions and management of oil wealth.
Week 5: Political Violence
Political Violence
Violence used to achieve political goals.
State Repression
Government use of coercion/violence to suppress opposition.
Revolution
Rapid and fundamental transformation of a political and/or social system.
Terrorism
Political violence deliberately directed toward civilians or symbolic targets, often intended to create fear and influence a wider audience.
Civil War
Sustained armed conflict occurring within a state, typically involving organized groups seeking political control or major political change.
Guerrilla Warfare
Irregular warfare in which smaller forces use tactics such as ambushes and hit-and-run attacks against stronger forces.
Insurgency
Organized effort by a non-state group to challenge or overthrow a government.
Three-I Framework
Political outcomes can be explained through:
Institutions — political structures and rules
Ideas — beliefs, ideologies, identities
Individuals — leaders and individual decisions
Relative Deprivation
People become more likely to rebel when they perceive a gap between:
What they have, and
What they believe they deserve.
State Capacity and Opportunity
Rebellion may become more feasible when governments are weak and unable to suppress challengers.
Incomplete Information
Conflict can occur because actors don't know the opponent's:
Strength
Resolve
Preferences
Capabilities
Commitment Problem
Two sides may reach an agreement but cannot trust each other to honor the agreement in the future.
This can make war more likely even when both sides would benefit from peace.
Issue Indivisibility
Some issues are perceived as impossible to divide or compromise over.
Examples:
Religious sites
National territory
Sovereignty
Political control
Displacement
Refugee: Person who has fled their country because of conflict, persecution, or serious danger.
Internally displaced person (IDP): Person forced to flee their home but who remains inside their country.
Negotiated Settlements
Agreements designed to end political conflict through compromise rather than continued violence.
Cases
Iran, 1979
Iranian Revolution.
Useful for studying revolutionary mobilization, legitimacy, ideology, and state weakness.
Czechoslovakia, 1989
Velvet Revolution.
Example of largely peaceful regime change.
ANC in South Africa
African National Congress opposed apartheid.
Useful for examining resistance, repression, negotiation, and transition to democracy.
FMLN in El Salvador
Left-wing insurgent organization during El Salvador's civil war.
Eventually participated in a negotiated political settlement.
Colombia
Long-running conflict involving the government, guerrilla groups, paramilitaries, and drug trafficking.
Important for studying insurgency, civil war, peace negotiations, and commitment problems.
Week 6: Democracy and Democratic Regimes
What Is Democracy?
A political system in which citizens have meaningful opportunities to participate in choosing their leaders and influencing government.
Three core components:
Participation
Competition
Liberty
Direct vs. Representative Democracy
Direct democracy
Citizens directly vote on policies.
Representative democracy
Citizens elect representatives who make political decisions.
Civil Society
Organizations and groups operating between individuals/families and the state.
Examples:
NGOs
Labor unions
Religious organizations
Community organizations
Civil society can help citizens organize and hold governments accountable.
Civil Liberties vs. Civil Rights
Civil liberties
Freedoms protected from government interference.
Speech, religion, assembly, etc.
Civil rights
Legal protections ensuring equal treatment and political/social participation.
Rule of Law
The principle that everyone, including government officials, is subject to the law.
Democratic Institutions
Parliamentary System
Executive emerges from the legislature.
Prime minister is usually head of government.
Executive typically depends on legislative confidence.
Vote of no confidence: Legislature can remove a government by withdrawing its support.
Presidential System
President is separately elected from the legislature.
President serves as head of government and often head of state.
Executive and legislature have separate electoral mandates.
Semi-Presidential System
Combines:
A directly elected president
A prime minister responsible to the legislature
Electoral Systems
Single-Member Districts
One representative is elected from each district.
Plurality system
Candidate with the most votes wins.
Does not necessarily require more than 50%.
Majority system
Winner must receive a majority, typically over 50%.
May require a runoff.
Proportional Representation (PR)
Parties receive legislative seats roughly according to their share of the vote.
Advantages:
More representative
More opportunities for smaller parties
Disadvantages:
Can produce many parties
Coalition governments may be necessary
Mixed Electoral Systems
Combine:
Single-member district representatives
Proportional representation
Germany is an important example.
Gerrymandering
Manipulating electoral district boundaries to benefit a particular party or group.
Ranked-Choice Voting
Voters rank candidates rather than choosing only one.
If no candidate has enough support, lower-ranked candidates are eliminated and their votes are redistributed according to voters' next choices.
Theories of Democratization
Modernization Theory
As societies become:
Wealthier
More educated
More urbanized
More economically developed
they are expected to become more likely to democratize.
Waves of Democratization
Periods when multiple countries transition toward democracy around the same time.
Democratic Consolidation
Democracy becomes stable and widely accepted as the legitimate way to organize political competition.
Democratic Backsliding
A gradual erosion of democratic institutions and norms.
Can involve:
Weakening courts
Restricting media
Attacking opposition
Undermining elections
Concentrating executive power
Week 6 Cases
El Salvador under Bukele
Useful for:
Democratic backsliding
Executive power
Rule of law
Security policy
Japan
Useful for:
Parliamentary democracy
Party systems
Democratic institutions
France
Useful for:
Semi-presidentialism
Executive-legislative relations
Germany
Useful for:
Mixed electoral system
Parliamentary democracy
Proportional representation
Brazil
Useful for:
Presidential democracy
Federalism
Political institutions
Chile, 1988
A major example of a transition away from authoritarian rule through a referendum and subsequent democratization.
South Africa
End of apartheid
Democratic transition
Negotiation and institution-building
Egypt
Useful comparison with democratic transitions and authoritarian resilience.
South Korea and Taiwan
Both experienced transitions from authoritarianism toward democracy.
Poland
Important example of democratization and, more recently, concerns about democratic backsliding.
Mexico, 2000
PRI dominance ended when opposition candidate Vicente Fox won the presidency.
Important example of democratic transition.
Argentina, 1976
Military coup established an authoritarian regime.
Useful for studying authoritarianism, repression, and later democratization.
⭐ High-Priority Comparisons to Memorize
These are especially likely to show up as "compare and contrast" questions.
State vs. Nation
State = political organization
Nation = shared identity/community
Government vs. Regime vs. State
Government = who rules
Regime = rules of political power
State = political organization/territory
Correlation vs. Causation
Correlation = variables move together
Causation = one variable produces an effect on another
Quantitative vs. Qualitative
Quantitative = numbers/statistics
Qualitative = words, interviews, cases, documents
Formal vs. Informal Institutions
Formal = written/official rules
Informal = unwritten norms/practices
Unitary vs. Federal
Unitary = central government is supreme
Federal = constitutional division of power
Parliamentary vs. Presidential
Parliamentary = executive depends on legislature
Presidential = executive separately elected
Civil Liberties vs. Civil Rights
Liberties = freedoms from government interference
Rights = protections ensuring equal treatment/participation
Refugee vs. IDP
Refugee = crosses international border
IDP = remains inside own country
Revolution vs. Insurgency
Revolution = fundamental transformation of political/social order
Insurgency = organized challenge to government authority
GDP vs. GDP per Capita
GDP = total economic output
GDP per capita = output per person
Inclusive vs. Extractive Institutions
Inclusive = broad participation/opportunity
Extractive = power/resources concentrated among elites
🧠 Quick Memorization Sheet
If you're cramming, know these 20 concepts cold:
Independent variable
Dependent variable
Correlation vs. causation
Selection bias
State
Sovereignty
Weber's legitimate use of force
Legitimacy
Federal vs. unitary
Nation vs. state
Nationalism
Public goods/free-rider problem
Comparative advantage
Gini coefficient
Resource curse
Relative deprivation
Commitment problem
Democracy
Parliamentary vs. presidential systems
Democratic backsliding
🎯 The Big Picture
The six weeks fit together around one central question:
How do states organize political power, manage societies and economies, and deal with conflict?
Week 1: How do we study politics scientifically?
Week 2: What is a state, and how does it exercise power?
Week 3: How do identity and nationalism shape politics?
Week 4: How do politics and economics interact?
Week 5: Why does political violence happen?
Week 6: How does democracy work, and why does it succeed or fail?