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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. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






2. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






3. Efficiency vs. representativeness

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4. 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'






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






6. 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






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






8. 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






9. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






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






11. Shared sets of meanings






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






14. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






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






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






17. 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






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






19. 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






20. 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






21. Concentration vs. dispersal of power

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






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






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






25. 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






26. 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






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. A government with a one house legislature.






29. 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






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






31. 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.






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






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






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






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






36. monopoly over the legitimate use of force






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






38. 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.






39. 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






40. 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






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






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






43. 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






44. 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






45. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






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






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






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






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






50. 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.