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Final Study Guide
Government |
The legitimate use of force to control human behavior; also, the organization or agency authorized to exercise that force |
National Sovereignty |
A political entity's externally recognized right to exercise final authority over its affairs |
Order |
Established ways of social behavior. maintaining order is the oldest purpose of government |
Communism |
A complex theory that gives ownership of all land and productive facilities to the people-in effect, to the government |
Public goods |
Benefits and services that benefit all citizens but are not likely to be produced voluntarily by individuals |
Police power |
The authority of government to maintain order and safe guard citizens' safety, health, welfare, and morals. |
Political equality |
Equality in political decision making: one vote per person, with all votes counting equally |
Social equality |
Equality of wealth, education, and status |
Equality of opportunity |
The idea that each person is guaranteed the same chance to succeed in life |
Equality of outcome |
The concept that society must ensure that people are equal, and governments must design policies to redistribute wealth and status to achieve economic and social equality |
Rights |
The benefits of government to which every citizen is entitled |
Political ideology |
A consistant set of values and beliefs about the proper purpose and scope of government |
Totalitarianism |
A political philosophy that advocates unlimited power for the government to enable it to control all sectors of society |
Socialism |
A form of rule in which the central government plays a strong role in regulating existing private industry and regulating the economy, although it does allow some private ownership of productive capacity |
Democratic socialism |
A socialist form of government that guarantees civil liberities such as freedom of speech and religion. Citizens determine the extent of government activity through free elections and competitive political parties |
Captialism |
The system of government that favors free enterprise (privately owned businesses operating without government regulation). |
Libertarianism |
A political ideology that is opposed to all government action except as necessary to protect life and property |
Laissez faire |
An economic doctrine that opposes any form of government intervention in business |
Anarchism |
A political philosophy that opposes government in any form |
Liberals |
Those who are willing to use government to promote equality but not order |
Conservatives |
Those who are willing to use government to promote order but not equality |
Libertarians |
Those who are opposed to using government to promote either order or equality |
Communitarians |
Those who are willing to use government to promote both order and equality |
Democracy |
A system of government which, in theory, the people rule, either directly or indirectly |
Procedural democratic theory |
A view of democracy as being embodied in a decision-making process that involved universal participation, majority rule, political equality, and responsiveness |
Universal participation |
The concept that everyone in a democracy should participate in governmental decision making |
Majority rule |
The principle-basic to procedural democratic theory-that the decision of a group must reflect the preference of more than half of those participating; a simple majority |
Plurality rule |
The group should do what the largest group wants, even if fewer than half of those involved hold that view |
Participatory democracy |
A system of government where rank-and-file citizens rule themselves rather than electing representatives to govern on their behalf |
Representative democracy |
A system of government where citizens elect public officials to govern on their behalf |
Responsiveness |
A decision making principle, necessitated by representative government, that implies that elected representatives should do what the majority of people wants |
Four principles of procedural democracy |
Universal participation
Political equality
Majority rule
Government responsiveness to public opinion |
Substantive democratic theory |
Substantive democratic theory |
Minority rights |
The benefits of government that cannot be denied to any citizens by majority decisions |
Majoritarian model of democracy |
The classical theory of democracy in which government by the people is interpreted as government by the majority of the people |
Interest group |
An organized group of individuals that seeks to influence public policy |
Pluralist model of democracy |
An interpretation of democracy in which government by the people is taken to mean government by people operating through competing interest groups |
Elite theory |
The view that a small group of people actually makes most of the important government decisions |
Oligarchy |
A system of government in which power is concentrated in the hands of a few people |
Democratization |
A proces of transition as a country attempts to move from an authoritarian form of government to a democratic one |
Social contract theory |
The belief that the people agree to set up rules for certain purposes and thus have the right to resist or remove rulers to act against those purposes |
Republic |
A government without a monarch, a government rooted in the consent of the governed, whose power is exercised by elected representatives responsible to the governed. |
Confederation |
A loose association of independent states that agree to cooperate on specified matters |
Virginia Plan |
A set of proposals for a new government, submitted to the Constitutional Convention of 1787; including separation of powers, bicameral legislation, and proportional representation in the legislature |
New Jersey Plan |
Submitted by the head of the New Jersey delegation to the Constitutional Convention, a set of 9 resolutions that would have amended the Art. of Con. instead of replacing them |
Great Compromise |
Also the Connecticut Compromise, calls for bicameral legislation, HoR apportioned to population, Senate gets equal representation |
Republicanism |
A form of government in which power resides in the people and is exercised by their elected representatives |
Federalism |
The division of power between a central government and regional governments |
Enumerated powers |
The powers explicitly granted to Congress by the Constitution |