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






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






3. 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






4. Efficiency vs. representativeness

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5. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






6. Shared sets of meanings






7. A government with a one house legislature.






8. Concentration vs. dispersal of power

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9. 19th - in the United States and Western Europe.






10. 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






11. 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






12. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






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






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






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






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






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






18. 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






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






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






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






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






23. 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






24. 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






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






26. how many seats are allotted to each electoral district






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






28. 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






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






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






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






32. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






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






34. 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.






35. 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






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






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






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






39. Force + Legitimacy






40. 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






41. The opportunity to choose among alternative candidates and positions






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






43. The making of collectively binding decisions






44. 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






45. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






46. 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






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






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






49. 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






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