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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. Political violence by non-state actors against civilian targets






2. 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'






3. 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






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






5. The opportunity to choose among alternative candidates and positions






6. 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






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






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. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






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






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






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






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






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






15. Hypotheses based on what has been observed.






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






17. 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.






18. 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






19. Basically - density and quality of civil society






20. 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.






21. Shared sets of meanings






22. 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






23. 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?






24. 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






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






26. 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






27. 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






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






29. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






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






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






32. 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






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






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






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






36. 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)






37. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






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






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






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






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






42. 19th - in the United States and Western Europe.






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






44. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






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






46. The making of collectively binding decisions






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






48. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






49. 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






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?