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






2. Historical origins. Failure of liberalism to address shortcomings of capitalist industrialization; Marx - Central assumption: All persons are of equal value - but they cannot develop themselves alone






3. 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






4. A consideration of how nations interact with each other within the frameworks of law - diplomacy - and international organizations such as the United Nations.






5. You see a puzzle - You come up with a potential explanation (a 'theory') - You test it with evidence (data drawn from the 5 senses) - You share the results with others and get their feedback - Repeat steps 2 through 4 until you publish






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






7. monopoly over the legitimate use of force






8. Think of this as gender as outcome; what factors - esp. political ones - lead to changes in gender roles? Key finding: politics does matter - especially who has an organized voice. Formal rules - number/identity of parties - etc.






9. 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)






10. A civil war (...) in which one party is the state - the insurgents win - the insurgents have a lot of popular support - and the insurgents implement 'wholesale political change'






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






12. A historical exploration of the major contributions to political thought from the ancient Greeks to the contemporary theorists. It also involves the philosophical and speculative consideration of the political world.






13. Think of this as 'gender as cause'. Gender roles change and/or mix of women in politics changes; what is the consequence? Key finding: having more women in public office changes the policy agenda - i.e. - more focus on women's issues






14. Warfare and military technology - Economic: development of trade and manufacturing and new financial/fiscal instruments - Cultural: Enlightenment - (There are also Environmental/geographic factors)






15. A formal document that sets up the basic rules of the political game






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






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






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






19. A consciously derived - coherent set of beliefs that offers a comprehensive political program






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






21. Number of Parties 2 - Constitutional Review: Judicial Review - Number of chambers: bicameral - Federalism: Federal






22. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






23. Long-lived - Extreme lack of social pluralism - Well-defined ideology - Against capitalism - Based on Marxist arguments about class solidarity - economic determinism - Socialism run amok?






24. 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






25. Hypotheses based on what has been observed.






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






27. The making of collectively binding decisions






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






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






30. how many seats are allotted to each electoral district






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






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






33. Ideology An ideology that seeks the active reshaping of minds of individuals and believes this can/must be done by force - Coercive mobilization - No social or political pluralism






34. The mathematical formula used to allocate the seats according to the vote - Plurality or 'first-past-the-post' - various PR formulas - such as D'Hondt - largest remainders - St. Lague - etc.






35. Efficiency vs. representativeness

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






37. Basically - density and quality of civil society






38. Concentration vs. dispersal of power

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






40. In social movements - rational choice and culture come together - Culture: the sense of a righteous - popular will that has been subverted ('framing'/'grievance') - Motivates collective action - But also determines the choice of organization and tact






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






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






43. Political violence by non-state actors against civilian targets






44. 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






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






46. A government with a one house legislature.






47. 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






48. Basically - synonymous for statistical method - Large numbers of observational data - 'Control' for confounding factors






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






50. A basic plan that outlines the structure and functions of the national government. Clearly rooted in Western political thought - it sets limits on government and protects both property and individual rights.