Government Political Power and Social Movements 04 24 2012 Power and Authority Power o The ability of individuals of the members of a group to achieve aims or further the interests they hold Many conflicts in society are struggles over power Authority o A government s legitimate use of power The Concept of the State State Nation states o A political apparatus government institutions plus civil service officials ruling over a given territorial order whose authority is backed by law and the ability to use force o Particular types of states characteristic of the modern world in which governments have sovereign power within defined territorial areas and populations are citizens who know themselves to be part of single nations Characteristics of the state o Sovereignty territorial area o Citizens The undisputed political rule of a state over a given Members of a political community having both rights and duties associated with that membership A set of beliefs and symbols expressing identification with a national community o Nationalism o Citizenship Rights Civil Rights Legal rights held by all citizens in a given national community Political Rights Rights of political participation such as the right to vote in local and national elections held by citizens of a national community Social rights Rights of social and welfare provision held by all citizens in a national community including for example the right to claim unemployment benefits and sickness payments provided by the state Welfare State A political system that provides a wide range of welfare benefits for its citizens Democracy A political system that allows the citizens to participate in political decision making or to elect representatives to government bodies Participatory Democracy o A system of democracy in which all members of a group or community participate collectively in making major decisions o Direct Democracy A form of participatory democracy that allows citizens to vote directly on laws and policies Monarchies and Liberal Democracies o Constitutional Monarchs Kings or queens who are largely figureheads Real power rests in the hands of other political leaders o Liberal Democracies Systems of democracy based on parliamentary institutions coupled to the free market system in the area of economic production o The Spread of Liberal Democracy The internet and democratization The internet provides access to a connection of people throughout the world Government ideas including democracy can easily spread Democracy in the United States o Political Parties An organization of individuals with broadly similar political aims oriented toward achieving legitimate control of government through an electoral process o Politics and Voting o Voter Turnout The development of parties changed the voting process Voter turnout since the 1960 s in the US has generally decreased although recently elections suggest a reversal of that trend o Interest Groups A group organized to pursue specific interests in the political arena operating primarily by lobbying the members of legislative bodies Lobbying The act of persuading influential officials to vote in favor of a cause or otherwise lend support to the aims of an interest group The Political Participation of Women o Women originally saw the right to vote as a symbol of political freedom Women are actively involved in politics today Many women such as Hillary Clinton Nancy Pelosi and Sarah Palin now play central roles in American politics Work and Economic Life 04 24 2012 Work Occupation works Economy Technology The activity by which people produce prom the natural world and so ensure their survival Not exclusively paid employment In traditional cultures there was only a rudimentary monetary system and few people worked for money In modern society there remain types of work that do not involve direct payment housework Any form of paid employment in which an individual regularly The system of production and exchange that provides for the material needs of individuals living in a given society Greatly impacts the social life The application of knowledge of the material world to production the creation of material instruments such as machines used in human interaction with nature The Social Significance of Work The Characteristics of Work o Money A wage or salary is the main resource many people depend on to meet their needs o Activity level Work often provides a basis for the acquisition and exercise of skill and capacities o Variety Work provides access to contexts that contrasts with domestic surroundings o Structuring one s time The Social Organization of Work Division of labor o Social contacts For people in regular employment the day is usually organized around the rhythm of work The work environment often provides friendship and opportunities to participate in shared activities with others Work is usually valued for the sense of stable social o Personal identity identity it offers Unpaid Work o Informal economy Economic transactions carried on outside the sphere of orthodox paid employment o The specialization of work tasks by means of which different occupations are combined within a production system Economic interdependence o The fact that in the division of labor individuals depend on others to produce many or most of the goods they need to sustain their lives Taylorism and Fordism o Taylorism o Fordism A set of ideas also referred to as scientific management developed by Frederick Winslow Taylor involving simple coordinated operations in industry The system of production pioneered by Henry Ford in which the assembly line was introduced Low Trust and High Trust Systems o Low Trust Systems Organizational or work setting in which people are allowed little responsibility for or control over the work task The Modern Economy Capitalism o High Trust Systems Organization or work setting in which individuals are permitted a great deal of autonomy and control over the work task Strikes Labor Unions o A temporary stoppage of work by a group of employees in order to express a grievance or enforce a demand o Exists in all western countries which also all legally recognize the right of workers to strike in pursuit of economic objectives o Union density A statistic that represents the number of union members as a percentage of the number of people who could potentially be union members o An economic system based on the private owner ship of wealth which is invested and reinvested in order to
View Full Document
Unlocking...