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CLEP Political Science

Subjects : clep, political-science
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
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  • 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. 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






2. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






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






4. 19th - in the United States and Western Europe.






5. 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






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






7. Concentration vs. dispersal of power


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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






17. Basically - density and quality of civil society






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






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






20. 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






21. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






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






23. The opportunity to choose among alternative candidates and positions






24. The making of collectively binding decisions






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






26. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






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






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






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






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






31. 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






32. 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.






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






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






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






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






38. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






39. 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.






40. 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






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






42. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






43. 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)






44. 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






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






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






47. 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






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






49. Charismatic - Rational-legal - Traditional/patrimonial






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