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






2. The opportunity to choose among alternative candidates and positions






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






4. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






5. 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






6. 19th - in the United States and Western Europe.






7. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






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






9. 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.






10. 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






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






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






13. Force + Legitimacy






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






15. 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






16. 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






17. monopoly over the legitimate use of force






18. 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)






19. Hypotheses based on what has been observed.






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






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






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






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. Describes the principal characteristics of what has been studied.






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






26. Charismatic - Rational-legal - Traditional/patrimonial






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






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






29. 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






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






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






32. 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






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






34. 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.






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






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






37. 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






38. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






39. 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






40. Efficiency vs. representativeness


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






42. 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






43. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






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






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






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






47. 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.






48. Shared sets of meanings






49. 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.






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