Test your basic knowledge |

CLEP Political Science

Subjects : clep, political-science
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. An identity-based community - where the identity is strong enough that we think we should probably be sovereign...






2. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






3. An organization that seeks elective office - Currency/instrument: votes






4. Describes the principal characteristics of what has been studied.






5. Number of Parties 2 - Constitutional Review: Parliamentary supremacy - Number of chambers: Unicameral/weak bicameral - Federalism: Unitary






6. The making of collectively binding decisions






7. Shorter-lived - Slightly less repressive - Ideology not so clear - In favor of capitalism - though with state involvement - Based more on Social Darwinism/racism/nationlsm - Conservatism run amok?






8. A subset of culture - based on our ability to attach labels to ourselves and others - or to define ourselves in terms of the groups we belong to - Some political examples: Partisan identity - Class identity - Ethnic identity - National identity






9. Concentration vs. dispersal of power

Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /var/www/html/basicversity.com/show_quiz.php on line 183


10. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






11. A non-meritocratic system in which jobs and contracts are distributed according to partisan support - (The U.S. 'spoils system' of the 19th century')






12. monopoly over the legitimate use of force






13. The organized study of government and politics. It borrows from the related disciplines of history - philosophy - sociology - economics - and law.






14. A political system controlled by rulers who deny popular participation in government






15. Monarchies - Single-party regimes - Military regimes - Oligarchies - Theocracies - Personalistic regimes






16. Charismatic - Rational-legal - Traditional/patrimonial






17. Process or moment of changing from one regime type to another Ex: Arab Springs (Causes: cultural or economice - or military culture) - (int'l factors: U.S. foreign policy - Soviet foreign policy - Changes to Catholic doctrine - EU accession - Globali






18. Individual rationality does not always lead to collective rationality - Walking on the grass - Policy implementation is problematic - Voting; protests; interest groups; etc. are underprovided (Olson's point)






19. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






20. Historical origins. A response to the old feudal order and the rise of modern capitalism - 'The highest good of society [is] the ability of the members of that society to develop their individual capacities to the fullest extent' (p. 26) One of the 3






21. Process tracing through case studies. Requires a well-developed theory and minute examination ('process tracing')






22. Regime where the rulers are accountable to the ruled.






23. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






24. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






25. Energy or righteous zeal wins large numbers of participants - Nimble in framing issues and changing tactics






26. Situation where all fully qualified citizens have an equal say






27. Identities are malleable - and anything can become politicized. Struggles to explain fundamental patterns in political identity or their grasp on our souls. Can't really explain which identities become politicized either






28. Utility: self-interest - but what constitutes self-interest? Material self-interest? Economics - Politics. Example: vote maximization - The gospel Failures of rationality - Really incomplete information & satisfaction - Intransitivity and other cogni






29. The use of force by states or non-state actors to achieve political goals






30. A political organization that primarily uses lobbying - Currency/instrument: money - information - numbers






31. Basically - density and quality of civil society






32. Analyzing the data that has been collected and offering plausible general principles that can be drawn from what has been observed.






33. (Voluntary) allocation (production and distribution) of goods and services






34. Territorial monopoly over the legitimate use of force. Refers to the government + the people + the territory ('the country')






35. The set of relationships among parties in a country - Often categorized by the effective number of parties.






36. Situation of stability - no party has incentive and ability to undermine the regime (Causes: cultural or economice - or military culture) - (Int'l Factors: U.S. foreign policy - Soviet foreign policy - Changes to Catholic doctrine - EU accession - G






37. Public administration (civil service). All (non-military) government workers not elected to their posts - but hired (United States beginning in 1880s)






38. it works better in the long run - less risk/variability






39. No or low citizen accountability ('subjects' rather than 'citizens') - Reciprocal relationship between leader and selectorate - Totalitarianism vs. authoritarianism






40. Comparative Politics - International Relations - American Politics - (normative) theory or Political Philosophy






41. Shared sets of meanings






42. About agency: we deserve freedom and need to be held meaningfully accountable






43. Tactics An organization that seeks to influence government through 'contentious' or 'disruptive' politics - Currency/instrument: show of force - numbers - brinkmanship - Organization A (non-hierarchical) network of organizations and individuals worki






44. Historical origins. A reaction to liberalism - Central assumption: 'The highest good of society [is] the maintenance of ordered community and of common values' (p. 28) One of the 3 big idealogies






45. Compiling a body of data based on direct observation that can be utilized both to explain what has been observed and to form valid generalizations.






46. Utility maximization - Preferences: Comparability/Completeness - Transitivity - Probability - Incomplete information and uncertainty about future - Mathematical modeling






47. equality in political decision making: one vote per person - with all votes counted equally






48. America's two ideologies (Liberal and Conservative) are two versions of classic liberalism






49. Selective incentives - Small group size - Social (solidary) incentives - Homogeneity - Others? Duty and altruism? Love?






50. The opportunity to choose among alternative candidates and positions