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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. 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






2. 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






3. 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.






4. Also known as interpersonal trust & tolerance






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






6. 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






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






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






9. how many seats are allotted to each electoral district






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






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






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






13. Use of method of inference to create generalizeable explanations






14. 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






15. 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.






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






17. 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






18. 19th - in the United States and Western Europe.






19. 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






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






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






22. Efficiency vs. representativeness


23. Shared sets of meanings






24. 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?






25. Hypotheses based on what has been observed.






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






27. The opportunity to choose among alternative candidates and positions






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






29. 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.






30. All voluntary associations/all secondary associations






31. Concentration vs. dispersal of power


32. 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






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






34. 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'






35. 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






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






37. The making of collectively binding decisions






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






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






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






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






42. 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






43. 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






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






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






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






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






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






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






50. Process or moment of changing from one regime type to another Ex: Arab Springs (Causes: cultural or economice - or military culture) - (int'l factors: U.S. foreign policy - Soviet foreign policy - Changes to Catholic doctrine - EU accession - Globali