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






2. Shared sets of meanings






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






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






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






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






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






8. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






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






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






11. 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






12. Force + Legitimacy






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






14. 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






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






16. how many seats are allotted to each electoral district






17. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






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






19. 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.






20. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






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






22. The making of collectively binding decisions






23. 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.






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






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






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






27. 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






28. Charismatic - Rational-legal - Traditional/patrimonial






29. 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






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






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






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






33. 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






34. 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.






35. 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






36. 19th - in the United States and Western Europe.






37. 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.






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






39. Concentration vs. dispersal of power

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






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






42. 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?






43. Efficiency vs. representativeness

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






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






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






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






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






49. monopoly over the legitimate use of force






50. 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