Glossary of Political Science Terms, Quizzes of Political Science

Download Glossary of Political Science Terms and more Quizzes Political Science in PDF only on Docsity! TERM 1 globalization DEFINITION 1 the increasing interdependence of citizens and nations across the world TERM 2 government DEFINITION 2 the legitimate use of force to control human behavior; also the organization or agency authorized to exercise that force TERM 3 national sovereignty DEFINITION 3 a political entity's externally recognized right to exercise final authority over its affairs. Sovereignty is the quality of being supreme in power or authority. TERM 4 order DEFINITION 4 Established ways of social behavior. Maintaining order is the oldest purpose of government. TERM 5 Liberalism DEFINITION 5 The belief that states should leave individuals free to follow their individual pursuits. TERM 6 Communism DEFINITION 6 A political system in which, in theory, ownership of all land and productive facilities is in the hands of the people, and all goods are equally shared. The production and distribution of goods are controlled by an authoritarian government. TERM 7 Public goods DEFINITION 7 Benefits and services, such as parks and sanitation, that benefit all citizens but are not likely to be produced voluntarily by individuals. TERM 8 Freedom of DEFINITION 8 An absence of constraints on behavior, as in freedom of speech or freedom of religion. TERM 9 Freedom from DEFINITION 9 Immunity, as in freedom from want TERM 10 Police power DEFINITION 10 The authority of a government to maintain order and safeguard citizens' health, morals, safety, and welfare TERM 21 Libertarianism DEFINITION 21 A political ideology that is opposed to all government action except as necessary to protect life and property TERM 22 Libertarians DEFINITION 22 Those who are opposed to using government to promote either order or equality TERM 23 Laissez faire DEFINITION 23 An economic doctrine that opposes any form of government intervention in business TERM 24 Anarchism DEFINITION 24 A political philosophy that opposes government in any form TERM 25 Conservatives DEFINITION 25 Those who are willing to use government to promote order but not equality TERM 26 Liberals DEFINITION 26 Those who are willing to use government to promote equality but not order TERM 27 Communitarians DEFINITION 27 Those who are willing to use government to promote both order and equality TERM 28 Autocracy DEFINITION 28 A system of government in which the power to govern is concentrated in the hands of one individual TERM 29 Oligarchy DEFINITION 29 A system of government in which the power is concentrated in the hands of a few people TERM 30 Democracy DEFINITION 30 A system of government in which, in theory, the people rule, either directly or indirectly TERM 31 Procedural democratic theory DEFINITION 31 A view of democracy as being embodied in a decision making process that involves universal participation, political equality, majority rule, and responsiveness TERM 32 Universal participation DEFINITION 32 The concept that everyone in a democracy should participate in governmental decision making TERM 33 Majority Rule DEFINITION 33 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 TERM 34 Participatory democracy DEFINITION 34 A system of government where rank-and-file citizens rule themselves rather than electing representatives to govern on their behalf TERM 35 Representative democracy DEFINITION 35 A system of government where citizens elect public officials to govern on their behalf TERM 46 Republic DEFINITION 46 A government without a monarch; a government rooted in the consent of the governed, whose power is exercised by elected representatives responsible for the governed TERM 47 Confederation DEFINITION 47 A loose association of independent states that agree to cooperate on specified matters TERM 48 Articles of Confederation DEFINITION 48 The compact among the original 13 states that established the first government of the United States TERM 49 Virginia Plan DEFINITION 49 A set of proposals for a new government, submitted to the Constitutional Convention of 1787; included separation of the government into three branches, division of the legislature into two houses, and proportional representation in the legislature TERM 50 Legislative Branch DEFINITION 50 Law-making branch of the government TERM 51 Executive Branch DEFINITION 51 Law-enforcing branch of the government TERM 52 Judicial Branch DEFINITION 52 Law-interpreting branch of the government TERM 53 New Jersey Plan DEFINITION 53 A set of nine resolutions that would have preserved the Articles of Confederation by amending rather than replacing them TERM 54 Great Compromise DEFINITION 54 A plan calling for a bicameral legislature in which the House of Representatives would be apportioned according to population and the states would be represented equally in the Senate TERM 55 Electoral College DEFINITION 55 A body of electors chosen by voters to cast ballots for president and vice president TERM 56 Extraordinary Majority DEFINITION 56 A majority greater than the minimum of 50 percent TERM 57 Republicanism DEFINITION 57 A form of government in which power resides in the people and is exercised by their elected representatives TERM 58 Federalism DEFINITION 58 The division of power between a central government and regional governments TERM 59 Separation of Powers DEFINITION 59 The assignment of lawmaking, law-enforcing, and law- interpreting functions to separate branches of government TERM 60 Checks and Balances DEFINITION 60 A government structure that gives each branch some scrutiny of and control over the other branches TERM 71 Grant-in-aid DEFINITION 71 Money provided by one level of government to another to be spent for a given purpose TERM 72 Categorical Grants DEFINITION 72 Grants-in-aid targeted for a specific purpose by either formula or project TERM 73 Formula grants DEFINITION 73 Categorical grants distributed according to a particular set of rules, called a formula, that specify who is eligible for the grants and how much each eligible applicant will receive TERM 74 Project grants DEFINITION 74 Categorical grants awarded on the basis of competitive applications submitted b prospective recipients to perform a specific task or function TERM 75 Block grants DEFINITION 75 Grants-in-aid awarded for general purposes, allowing the recipient great discretion in spending the grants money TERM 76 Policy entrepreneurs DEFINITION 76 Citizens, members of interest groups, or public officials who champion particular policy ideas TERM 77 Preemption DEFINITION 77 The power of Congress to enact laws by which the national government assumes total or partial responsibility for a state government function TERM 78 Mandate DEFINITION 78 A requirement that a state undertake an activity or provide a service, in keeping with minimum national standards TERM 79 Restraint DEFINITION 79 A requirement laid down by act of Congress, prohibiting a state or local government from exercising a certain power TERM 80 Coercive federalism DEFINITION 80 A view that the national government may impose its policy preferences on the states through regulations in the form of mandates and restraints TERM 81 Redistricting DEFINITION 81 The process of redrawing political boundaries to reflect changes in population TERM 82 Municipal Governments DEFINITION 82 The government units that administer a city or town TERM 83 County Governments DEFINITION 83 The government units that administer a county TERM 84 School District DEFINITION 84 The government unit that administers elementary and secondary school programs TERM 85 Special Districts DEFINITION 85 Government units created to perform particular functions, especially when those functions are best performed across jurisdictional boundaries TERM 96 Political participation DEFINITION 96 Actions of private citizens by which they seek to influence or support government and politics TERM 97 Conventional participation DEFINITION 97 Relatively routine political behavior that uses institution channels and is acceptable to the dominant culture TERM 98 Unconventional participation DEFINITION 98 Relatively uncommon political behavior that challenges or defies established institutions and dominant norms TERM 99 Terrorism DEFINITION 99 Premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents TERM 100 Direct action DEFINITION 100 Unconventional participation that involves assembling crowds to confront businesses and local governments to demand a hearing TERM 101 Supportive behavior DEFINITION 101 Action that expresses allegiance to government and country TERM 102 Influencing behavior DEFINITION 102 Behavior that seeks the modify or reverse government policy to serve political interests TERM 103 Class action suit DEFINITION 103 A legal action brought by a person or group on behalf of a number of people in similar circumstances TERM 104 Voter turnout DEFINITION 104 The percentage of eligible citizens who actually vote in a given election TERM 105 Suffrage DEFINITION 105 The right to vote. Also called franchise TERM 106 Progressivism DEFINITION 106 A philosophy of political reform based on the goodness and wisdom of the individual citizen as opposed to special interests and political institutions TERM 107 Direct primary DEFINITION 107 A preliminary election, run by the state government, in which the voters choose each party's candidates for the general election TERM 108 Recall DEFINITION 108 The process for removing an elected official from office TERM 109 Referendum DEFINITION 109 An election on a policy issue TERM 110 Initiative DEFINITION 110 A procedure by which voters can propose an issue to be decided by the legislature or by the people in a referendum. It require gathering a specified number of signature and submitting a petition to a designated agency TERM 121 Electoral dealignment DEFINITION 121 A lessing of the importance of party loyalties in voting decisions TERM 122 Majority representation DEFINITION 122 The system by which one office, contested by two or more candidates, is won by the single candidate who collects the most votes TERM 123 Proportional representation DEFINITION 123 The system by which legislative seats are awarded to a party in proportion to the vote that party wins in an election TERM 124 Party identification DEFINITION 124 A voter's sense of psychological attachment to a party TERM 125 National committee DEFINITION 125 A committee of a political party composed of party chairpersons and party officials from every state TERM 126 Party conference DEFINITION 126 A meeting to select party leaders and decide committee assignments, held at the beginning of a session of Congress by Republicans for Democrats in each chamber TERM 127 Congressional campaign committee DEFINITION 127 An organization maintained by a political party to raise funds to support its own candidates in congressional elections TERM 128 Party machine DEFINITION 128 A centralized party organization that dominates local politics by controlling elections TERM 129 Responsible party government DEFINITION 129 A set of principles formalizing the ideal role of parties in a majoritarian democracy TERM 130 Bureaucracy DEFINITION 130 A large, complex organization in which employees have specific job responsibilities and work within a hierarchy of authority TERM 131 Bureaucrats DEFINITION 131 Employees of a bureaucracy, usually meaning a government bureaucracy TERM 132 Departments DEFINITION 132 The biggest units of the executive branch, covering a broad area of government responsibility. The heads of the departments, or secretaries, form the president's cabinet TERM 133 Independent agencies DEFINITION 133 Executive agencies that are not part of a cabinet department TERM 134 Regulatory commissions DEFINITION 134 Agencies of the executive branch of government that control or direct some aspect of the economy TERM 135 Government corporations DEFINITION 135 Government agencies that perform services that might be provided by the private sector but that either involve insufficient financial incentive or are better provided when they are somehow linked to the government TERM 146 Government Performance and Results Act DEFINITION 146 A law requiring each government agency to implement quantifiable standards to measure its performance in meeting state program goals TERM 147 Criminal cases DEFINITION 147 Court cases involving a crime, or violation of public order TERM 148 Civil cases DEFINITION 148 Court cases that involve a private dispute arising form such matters as accidents, contractual obligations, and divorce TERM 149 Plea bargain DEFINITION 149 A defendant's admission of guilt in exchange for a less severe punishment TERM 150 Common (judge-made) law DEFINITION 150 Legal precedents derived from previous judicial decisions TERM 151 U.S. district courts DEFINITION 151 Courts within the lowest tier of the three-tiered federal court system; courts where litigation begins TERM 152 U.S. courts of appeals DEFINITION 152 Court within the second tier of the three-tiered federal court system, to which decisions of the district courts and federal agencies may be appealed for review TERM 153 Precedent DEFINITION 153 A judicial ruling that serves as the basis for the ruling in a subsequent case TERM 154 Stare decisis DEFINITION 154 Literally, "let the decision stand"; decision making according to precedent TERM 155 Original jurisdiction DEFINITION 155 The authority of a court to hear a case before any other court does TERM 156 Appellate jurisdiction DEFINITION 156 The authority of a court to hear cases that have been tried, decided, or reexamined in other courts TERM 157 Federal question DEFINITION 157 An issue covered by the Constitution, national laws, or treaties TERM 158 Docket DEFINITION 158 A court's agenda TERM 159 Rule of four DEFINITION 159 An unwritten rule that requires at least four justices to agree that a case warrants consideration before it is reviewed by the Supreme Court TERM 160 Solicitor general DEFINITION 160 The third highest official of the Department of Justice, and the one who represents the national government before the Supreme Court TERM 171 Civil rights DEFINITION 171 Powers or privileges guaranteed to individuals and protected from arbitrary removal at the hands of government or individuals TERM 172 Establishment clause DEFINITION 172 The first clause in the First Amendment. Forbids government establishment of religion TERM 173 Free-exercise clause DEFINITION 173 The second clause in the First Amendment. Prevents government from interfering with the exercise of religion TERM 174 Strict scrutiny DEFINITION 174 A standard used by the Supreme Court in deciding whether a law or policy is to be adjudged constitutional. To pass strict scrutiny, the law or policy must be justified by a "compelling governmental interest", must be narrowly tailored, and must be the least restrictive means for achieving that interest TERM 175 Free-expression clauses DEFINITION 175 The press and speech clauses of the First Amendment TERM 176 Prior restraint DEFINITION 176 Censorship before publication TERM 177 Clear and present danger test DEFINITION 177 A means by which the Supreme Court has distinguished between speech as the advocacy of ideas, which is protected by the First Amendment, and speech as incitement, which is not protected. TERM 178 Fighting words DEFINITION 178 Speech that is not protected by the First Amendment because it inflicts injury or tends to incite an immediate disturbance of the peace TERM 179 Public figures DEFINITION 179 People who assume roles of prominence in society or thrust themselves to the forefront of public controversy TERM 180 Bill of attainder DEFINITION 180 A law that pronounces an individual guilty of a crime without trial TERM 181 Ex post facto laws DEFINITION 181 Laws that declare an action to be criminal after it has been performed TERM 182 Obligation of contracts DEFINITION 182 The obligation of the parties to a contract to carry out its terms TERM 183 Miranda warnings DEFINITION 183 Statements concerning rights that police are required to make to a person before he or she is subjected to in-custody questioning TERM 184 Exclusionary rule DEFINITION 184 The judicial rule that states that evidence obtained in an illegal search and seizure cannot be used in a trial TERM 185 Good faith exception DEFINITION 185 An exception to the Supreme Court exclusionary rule, holding that evidence seized on the basis of a mistakenly issued search warrant can be introduced at trial if the mistake was made in good faith, that is, if all the parties involved had reason at the time to believe that the warrant was proper TERM 196 Boycott DEFINITION 196 A refusal to do business with a firm, individual, or nation as an expression of disapproval or as a means of coercion TERM 197 Civil disobedience DEFINITION 197 The willful but nonviolent breach of laws that are regarded as unjust TERM 198 Set-aside DEFINITION 198 A purchasing or contracting provision that reserves as certain percentage of funds for minority-owned contractors TERM 199 Protectionism DEFINITION 199 The notion that women must be protected from life's cruelties; until the 1970s, the basis for laws affecting women's rights TERM 200 Nineteenth Amendment DEFINITION 200 Ensures women the right to vote TERM 201 Sexism DEFINITION 201 Invidious sex discrimination TERM 202 Equal rights amendment (ERA) DEFINITION 202 Failed constitutional amendment declaring that "equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of sex. TERM 203 Affirmative action DEFINITION 203 Any of a wide range of programs, from special recruitment efforts to numerical quotas, aimed at expanding opportunities for women and minority groups TERM 204 Public policy DEFINITION 204 A general plan of action adopted by the government to solve a social problem, counter a threat, or pursue an objective TERM 205 Distributive policies DEFINITION 205 Government policies designed to confer a benefit on a particular institution or group TERM 206 Redistributional policies DEFINITION 206 Policies that take government resources, such as tax funds, from one sector of society and transfer it to another TERM 207 Regulation DEFINITION 207 Government intervention in the workings of a business market to promote some socially desired goal TERM 208 Agenda setting DEFINITION 208 The stage of the policymaking process during which problems get defined as political issues TERM 209 Issue definition DEFINITION 209 Our conception of the problem at hand TERM 210 Policy formulation DEFINITION 210 The stage of the policymaking process during which formal proposals are developed and adopted