Test your basic knowledge |

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






2. Efficiency vs. representativeness

Warning: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in /var/www/html/basicversity.com/show_quiz.php on line 183


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






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






5. 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






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






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






8. 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






9. 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






10. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






11. 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






12. 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






13. 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?






14. 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)






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






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






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






18. 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.






19. A government with a one house legislature.






20. 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'






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






22. 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






23. 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






24. 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






25. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






36. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






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






38. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






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






40. Force + Legitimacy






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






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






43. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






44. 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.






45. 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






46. 19th - in the United States and Western Europe.






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






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






49. Shared sets of meanings






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