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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. 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






2. Force + Legitimacy






3. Shared sets of meanings






4. 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






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






6. 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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






18. monopoly over the legitimate use of force






19. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






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






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






22. Hypotheses based on what has been observed.






23. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






24. how many seats are allotted to each electoral district






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. 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






28. 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






29. 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.






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






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






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






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






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






35. 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'






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. Concentration vs. dispersal of power


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






39. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






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






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






42. 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.






43. 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






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






45. 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?






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






47. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






48. 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.






49. 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






50. 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.