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






2. Hypotheses based on what has been observed.






3. how many seats are allotted to each electoral district






4. 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.






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






6. 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






7. 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)






8. The identities that can become political are those formed very early in life or perhaps vaguely racial/genetic. Struggles to explain (rapid) cultural change - or which identities become politicized






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






10. monopoly over the legitimate use of force






11. A systematic study of the structures of two or more political systems (such as those of Britain and the People's Republic of China) to achieve an understanding of how different societies manage the realities of governing. Also considered are politica






12. An identity-based community - where the identity is strong enough that we think we should probably be sovereign...






13. 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






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






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






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






17. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






18. Basically - density and quality of civil society






19. State of nature (collective action problem) - Hobbes' solution: the social contract






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






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






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






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






24. 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






25. Public vs. private goods - Non-exclusivity. The owner can't deny access - Inexhaustability. The good is never used up - Jointness of supply. Its existence depends on our combined contribution; truly 'collective' - Free riding. We generally fail to co






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






27. Force + Legitimacy






28. 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






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






30. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






31. 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.






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






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






34. 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






35. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






36. 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?






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






38. 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'






39. 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.






40. The rules about making the rules - often embodied in a constitution.






41. The making of collectively binding decisions






42. 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






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






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






45. 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






46. A government with a one house legislature.






47. The opportunity to choose among alternative candidates and positions






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






49. Shared sets of meanings






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.