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






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






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






4. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






5. 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






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






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






8. Efficiency vs. representativeness


9. 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






10. monopoly over the legitimate use of force






11. Political parties - Interest groups - Social movements






12. 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






13. 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






14. 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.






15. 19th - in the United States and Western Europe.






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






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






18. 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






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






20. 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.






21. 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.






22. 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.






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






24. Force + Legitimacy






25. how many seats are allotted to each electoral district






26. 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






27. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






28. 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






29. Traditionally measured as capacity and autonomy






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






37. 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






38. 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






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






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






41. Basically - density and quality of civil society






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






43. Any identity that significantly shapes our political decisions






44. 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






45. 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'






46. Charismatic - Rational-legal - Traditional/patrimonial






47. 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?






48. A government with a one house legislature.






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






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