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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. Regime where the rulers are accountable to the ruled.






2. 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






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






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






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






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






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






8. 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






9. 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.






10. 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






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






12. Basically - density and quality of civil society






13. 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.






14. Efficiency vs. representativeness


15. 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






16. 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






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






18. Force + Legitimacy






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






20. Concentration vs. dispersal of power


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






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






23. 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






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






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






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






27. 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






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






29. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






30. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






31. 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






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






33. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






34. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






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






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






37. 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.






38. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






39. Hard to amass resources (money and information) - Short-lived - The dilemma of formalization






40. 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






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






42. Shared sets of meanings






43. 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?






44. when you must get a minimum percent of votes to have your votes count or (sometimes) to retain your party registration






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






46. The making of collectively binding decisions






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






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






49. 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.






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