PS 210 Exam 2 Study Guide
What is an illiberal democracy?
"Partly-free" Countries. Regimes that combine elements of democracy, such as voting and elections, with non-democratic elements, such as restrictions on political contestation and individual rights. Ex: Venezuela.
What are the waves of regime change?
- 1st Wave (1825-1925): US, UK, France, Germany -REVERSE WAVE (1925-1945): Germany - 2nd Wave (1945-1960): Germany, Italy, Japan - REVERSE WAVE (1960-1974): Brazil, Chile - 3rd Wave (1974-1995): Brazil, Chile
What are the leading domestic explanations for regime change?
- Civic Culture (civic engagement, political equality, solidarity) - Class Conflict (Strong Middle Class) - Modernization Theory (Economic development fosters value change) - Military Identity (military perceives itself as independent of civilian authority)
What are domestic and international causes of regime change?
- Civic Culture (civic engagement, political equality, solidarity) - Class Conflict (Strong Middle Class) - Modernization Theory (Economic development fosters value change) - Military Identity (military perceives itself as independent of civilian authority) - Major Powers' Foreign Policies (US, USSR, EU, Catholic Church) - Globalization
What are the major problems with the civic culture argument?
- Civic Engagement does not accurately gauge "civic-ness". Density of social groups will show engagement, but could be involved in "bad group" like KKK, gangs, etc. - Can not determine if "civic-ness" causes democracy to emerge or democracy causes people to be more civic
What are the main forms of political identity?
- Marx's Economic Identity - Weber's Cultural Identity
What are the different ways interest groups can be organized in a country? What are the differences between these two?
1) Pluralism: openness and competition allowed between interest groups for the attention of law makers (US) 2) Corporatism: state sponsored and controlled (Sweden)
What motivates individuals to participate in civil conflict?
1) cultural grievances: discrimination, exclusion, or oppression (ancient hatred) 2) greed: money, no viable job options (blood diamonds) 3) pressure to join: outright or indirect force 4) individual psychology: passion for the movement
What causes the outbreak of civil war?
1) state weakness 2) colonial legacies 3) international factors 4) geography 5) poverty
What are the causes of revolutions?
1) state weakness 2) colonial legacies 3) international factors 4) geography 5) poverty 6) widespread popular grievances that gain support (do not alienate normal people with child soldiers, rape, or stealing)
Define: 2nd Vatican Council.
1965 meeting of Catholic authorities from around the world that modernized Catholicism
Where does the U.S. rank in terms of women's numeric representation?
68th
What is a gender quota? Why would a country adopt a gender quota?
A gender quota means that a certain number of women must be in Congress/Parliment in a country. A country would adopt this for many reasons such as: making sure women are represented as equally as men, giving light to issues that women typically support.
Define: Party in the Electorate.
A party's core supporters among voters. It's "card-carrying" members and its local/regional level organizations, but not its national level
Define: Party Organization.
A political party's national headquarters and professional staff
What are the major distinctions between civil war and revolutions?
A revolution is a civil war in which the insurgents win. In civil wars, the insurgents lose or a stalemate is created. Both the insurgents and the state claim the allegiance of a significant portion of the population. Authority over the state is forcibly transferred from the state to the insurgents. The insurgents bring a wholesale political change when they win.
Can people's identities change over time?
According to constructivist views, yes. Primordialists say no
What is the resource curse and how is it believed to shape the probability of democracy in the Arab world?
Any country whose economic growth relies on one valuable natural resource is unlikely to result in an equitable distribution of wealth, which in turn creates problematic, political sequences. It shapes the probability, because it acts as an incentive for the current ruler to not give up power, when his time is up.
What is the relationship between growth, equality, and democracy?
As a country grows economically, and the wealth of the country is distributed throughout society then democracy is more likely to take root
How has modernization changed secularization in society?
As people become more modern in time they become more secular
Why does political violence happen?
Because they have been unable to achieve their goals in a normal fashion
How does Marx explain the formation of political identity?
Began in the Industrial Revolution, created "class-consciousness". Collective identity of those in the same economic group would wipe out nationalism. Haves vs. Have-nots.
Define: Sharia.
Body of Islamic Religious law, which governs individuals' public and private life.
How can we distinguish social & cultural characteristics of masculinity & femininity from biological features of sex?
By thinking of the traditional views and the more developed views; also, voting patterns and stuff category and process? maybe
Define: Race.
Categorization of humans into large populations based on heredity, such as skin color, facial features, hair texture, etc.
What is the civic culture argument?
Civic Culture can determine regime change by... 1) citizens involvement in non-political groups, such as choirs, bowling leagues, etc. 2) density of a society's social networks, ratio of groups to total population
What are the explanations for the different types?
Civil War: Revolution. Genocide: Terrorism.
How do individuals coordinate their separate interests to mobilize collectively?
Coercing, appealing, enticing
Define: Gender.
Concept used to distinguish the social and cultural characteristics associated with femininity and masculinity from the biological features associated with sex, such as male and female reproductive organs
Define: Kinship Bonds.
Connection to others formed by blood, marriage, or other family relations
Define: Partition.
Creation of 2 separate sovereign states out of a territory that initially composed only one state, in order to separate antagonist groups
What are short-term catalysts of regime change?
Death of a longtime leader, economic crisis, etc.
Define: Political Cleavage.
Deep, lasting salient dimension of political conflict and competition within a given society, such as religion, ethnicity, ideology, etc.
What is the modernization argument? How does the modernization theory differ from the class conflict argument?
Democracy is not simply a function of economic growth, but rather a function of the cultural changes that accompany economic growth. Where the class-conflict argument points to the growth of a middle class as a key cause of regime change, the modernization theory economic development encourages citizens' values to be more supportive of democracy.
Define: Wage Gap.
Difference between what a man and woman earn for doing the same job.
Define: Religious Pluralism.
Diversity of forms of worship
Why is Samuel Huntington's Primordial Argument incorrect?
Doesn't explain international warfare between those of the same civilizations and civil wars within states
What factors shape the modern gender gap?
Economic change opens up jobs and educational opportunities for women, which changes their attitudes towards an array of public policies
Define: Resource Curse.
Economic growth that relies on one valuable natural resource is unlikely to result in an equitable distribution of wealth, which creates problematic political consequences.
Where do political identities come from?
Economic standing or Cultural background
What are the elements of civic culture and how can we measure civic culture?
Elements: - Civic Engagement - Political Equality - Solidarity Measured by: - Citizen involvement in non-political social groups - Social Group density, ratio of social groups to total population
Define: Bourgeoisie.
Elite Class of wealthy capitalists during the Industrial Revolution
What are some ways in which governments have tried to construct nationalist identities in the past?
Encouragement of literacy and widespread schooling throughout the country of Brazil
Define: Arab.
Ethnic group defined by language and geographic location, in countries in North Africa and the Middle East
Define: Gender as a Category.
Form of socially constructed political identity that considers variation in the social meaning of masculinity and felinity around the world. Example: In contrast to the last 50 years, most people accept the fact women will gain a much education as men.
What is the difference between gender as a category and gender as a process?
Gender as a category: form of socially constructed political identity that considers variation in social meaning of masculinity and felinity around the world Gender as a process: individual involvement in political institutions to either preserve or change gender relations or ways that existing social and political institutions shape one's relative ability to preserve and or change gender relations
What is a private good?
Good only one person or few people can consume
What is a public good?
Goods everyone can consume, whether you helped produce it or not
Define: Coalition Government.
Government comprising of several parties that hold at least one cabinet portfolio. Frequent in multiparty systems.
Define: Secularization.
Gradual decline in societal importance of religion
Define: Ethnicity.
Group of people who share an understanding of the same common heritage based on religion, language, territory, or family ties
How does globalization effect regime change?
If a country is democratic, odds are countries surrounding will follow suit.
How has the role of the Catholic Church changed throughout history? Have they always been advocates of democracy?
In 1st and 2nd Wave of regime change , democracy did not flourish. In 3rd wave Catholic Church began to fully support democratic regimes.
Define: Mestizo.
In Latin America, a person of mixed white and native ancestry
Define: Gender as a Political Process.
Individual involvement in political institutions to either preserve or change gender relations, or ways that existing social context and political institutions shape one's relative ability to preserve and/or change gender relations. Example: Marriage and Divorce laws have historically favored men over women.
Define: Coercive Recruitment.
Individuals are forced to take up arms to sustain an insurgent army in a civil war
Define the constructivist view of political identity.
Individuals have some choice over their political identities, but those choices are constrained by social context. Identity seen as evolving and malleable.
What is class-consciousness? How does this shape political identity?
Individuals' self-awareness of the political implications of being a member of a certain economic group. Those that share the same economic group have the same dilemmas, money, etc. "creating" same political identity
What are some ways people participate collectively in politics?
Interest groups, social movements, political parties, etc.
How is a country's economic change believed to effect regime change?
Interests: Class Conflict Identities: Modernization Theory
How can economic change cause interests and identities to change?
Interests: economic development can cause creation of new social class who fight for political power (class conflict) Identities: economic modernization change's people's values that become more supportive of democracy (modernization fosters change)
Define: Cultural Polarization.
Intergroup hatred fostered by cultural exclusion or repression
How do we define and think about gender?
It is a concept used to distinguish the social and cultural characteristics associated with felinity and masculinity from the biological features associated with sex, such as male or female reproductive organs
How does mobilization occur? How do leaders create abstract appeals and provide concrete enticements?
It occurs by creating incentives for people to join their cause, Coercion like taxation. The relative openness of the political context allows for sustained mobilization
Define: Civic Culture.
Key aspect of a country's cultural identity characterized by: 1) Civic Engagement 2) Political Equality 3) Solidarity
What are gender quotas?
Laws that require that a certain proportion of candidates for office or legislative seats be reserved for women
Some people argue that the status of women in the Middle East is related to the probability of democracy in those countries. What are the main points of this argument and is there support for it?
Many Islamic societies have higher amounts of men then women. This imbalance can lead to selective abortion, inferior nutrition in infancy, poor healthcare for girls, or family infanticide. Illiteracy is also high in women, causing little-to-no success outside of the home. This gender discrimination may account for the predominance of non-democracy in the Islamic world, though there is nothing to support this. Because gender discrimination varies throughout the Islamic world, it cannot be to blame.
Define: Proletariat.
Middle/Low Class wage laborers that worked in the factories during the Industrial Revolution
What is the most common type of regime change?
Military Coup: Elements in a county's armed forces overthrow a democratically elected civilian government
What is a military coup? Do they only happen in one type of regime?
Military Coup: Elements in a county's armed forces overthrow a democratically elected civilian government; can occur in many types of regimes
Can political scientists fully explain regime change?
No
What are the main reasons Islam and democracy may be at tension? Is there strong support for any of these reasons? If so what is the support?
No clear separation of church and state. Lack of equal gender rights in many Muslim societies. Arab societies are more unlikely to be democratic than on-Arab Muslim societies. The Resource Curse: oil gives Arab rulers incentive to stay in office. Wealthy countries subsidize non-democracy in Arab world to maintain stable access to oil and prevent regional war. No strong support for any of these reasons
How does Weber explain the formation of political identity?
No creation of "haves vs have-nots" because they could share cultural background. Political identity not rooted in economic interests.
Are different religions more or less compatible with democracy? Why or why not?
No, no evidence supports this claim. Democracy took centuries to evolve with no predetermined outcome.
Does having a predominantly Christian religious tradition necessarily mean democracy will emerge?
No, there is no primordial connection between Christianity and Democracy.
How do political parties take hold of power?
Nominated candidates represent different social groups, form and sustain government, aggregate political interests, mobilize voters, recruit and socialize potential leaders
What is a collective action problem?
Occurs when members of society have an incentive to free ride. When no one wants to contribute to collective action, but they still want the benefits
How are attitudes about gender different around the world?
People in poor societies tend to focus more on childbearing and rearing. They therefore, don't are about fairness in divorce laws, and rights for homosexuals. They are concerned with surviving. People in wealthier societies tend to focus on things beyond simple childbearing. They are also more likely to allow women to make their own decisions beyond being a baby-making machine. Oh, they acer more about homosexuals and divorce and abortion and stuff too
How does socioeconomic modernization change attitudes about gender?
People in poor societies tend to focus more on childbearing and rearing. They therefore, don't are about fairness in divorce laws, and rights for homosexuals. They are concerned with surviving. People in wealthier societies tend to focus on things beyond simple childbearing. They are also more likely to allow women to make their own decisions beyond being a baby-making machine. Oh, they acer more about homosexuals and divorce and abortion and stuff too
Define: Value Emphasis on Personal Survival.
People who emphasize the importance of nuclear family, childbearing, handwork. Worry about having enough money and wish for greater government involvement in the economy
How do citizen's interests shape their identities?
People whom share same interests may share same identity, regardless of economic/cultural identity
Define: Value Emphasis on Personal Well-Being.
Place higher value on individual freedom, leisure time, and being happy. Finds work as a source of personal satisfaction and value freedom of expression and the ability to participate in politics
What is the most institutionalize of the forms of collective action?
Political Parties
Define the Primordial view of political identity.
Political identities are innate, largely unchanging, and emerge through deep psychological processes in early childhood.
Define: Elite Party.
Political party dominated by leaders who hold office in government rather than the party in the electorate of the organization
Define: Mass Party.
Political party whose members in the electorate and the party organization are relatively important in deciding the party's policies or ideology.
How has the relationship between Catholicism and democracy changed over time?
Pre-1965: Did not support freedom of conscious, separation of church and state, or religion. Post-1965: Supported freedom of conscious, separation of church and state, or religion.
What does it mean for an identity to become politicized?
Primordialism and Constructivism views of identity
What are the principle differences between these two approaches to explaining political identity?
Primordialism: 1) Emphasizes kinship bonds as building blocks of identity 2) assumes we're born with our identities and cannot be changed Constructivism: 1) Emphasizes how changes in social context and competition for power shape politicization of identity 2) assumes our identities are malleable
What is the difference between private and public goods?
Private goods you can keep to yourself, public goods you share
What are the potential tensions between religious traditions & principles of democracy?
Protestantism: Church leaders do not always support democracy Catholicism: Church "allied" with governments to promote Catholicism as the "official" faith Islam: No clear separation of church and state. Lack of equal gender rights in many Muslim societies. Arab societies are more unlikely to be democratic than on-Arab Muslim societies. The Resource Curse: oil gives Arab rulers incentive to stay in office. Wealthy countries subsidize non-democracy in Arab world to maintain stable access to oil and prevent regional war.
What is the relationship between Christianity and democracy?
Protestantism: No primordial connection, and favored separation of church and state. Though, not all Protestant supporters support democracy. Catholicism: After 1965 Second Vatican Council, Catholic Church became supporter of democracy and separation of church and state. Though, the Pre-1965 Catholic Church "allied" with supporters of the "true" religion of Catholicism, opposing freedom of religion
What are some examples from your book about how identities change over time?
Racial acceptance for political gain (Brazil)
What is class conflict? And how can it cause regime change?
Reducing of elite class, causing an emergence of middle and working class who want more rights. This brings strife between classes. Middle/working class organize political parties, unions, etc to gain more rights that led to democratization
Define: Civil Law Code.
Set of laws that cover issues pertaining to private property rights and family law
What is democratization?
Shift from a non-democratic regime to a democratic regime
What is the least institutionalized of the forms of collective action?
Social Movements
What are the three types of collective action?
Social movements: loosely organized around a general feeling of something rather than a hard and fast public preference. Can lose momentum and be qualified as riots. Often centered around charismatic leaders. Political Parties: Formalized, get people elected, can be large or small depending on the country and the nature of the electorate to join their party of support their candidate. In US, tend to focus on broad policies via party platform. Interest Groups: Incredibly focused and professional, relation to government depends on corporation vs pluralism, only care about one issue.
Define: Globalization.
Spread of political, economic, and cultural dynamics among governments, groups, and individuals, beyond the borders of any particular country.
What is the best reason why a state will enter a civil war?
State weakness
What is collective memory?
Successive generations in a society tend to attach the same meaning and significance to particular historical events
What is the relationship between Islam and democracy?
TENSIONS WITH DEMOCRACY No clear separation of church and state (though this separation is not needed for a democracy). Lack of equal gender rights in many Muslim societies (Though this discrimination varies throughout the Muslim world). Arab societies are more unlikely to be democratic than on-Arab Muslim societies (implies lack of democracy cannot be a function of the religious doctrine). The Resource Curse: oil gives Arab rulers incentive to stay in office (implies religion is not the reason non-democracy dominates Arab world). Geopolitics: Wealthy countries subsidize non-democracy in Arab world to maintain stable access to oil and prevent regional war (contradicting hypothesis implications).
Define: Secular-Rational Values.
Tend to not be religious and skeptical of authority figures in general. Reluctant to affirm difference between good and evil.
How do geopolitics shape the probability of democracy in the Middle East.
The US and other wealthy countries subsidize non-democracy in the Arab world to maintain stable access to oil and prevent a regional war.
What are some of the differences in policy preferences between wealth and poor societies?
The people in poor countries do not have women's concerns on their policy agenda. Wealthy countries, however, are more likely to examine divorce, abortion, homosexual equality, and women's equality as viable policy questions.
What is political violence?
The use of force by states or non-state actors to achieve political goals
Define: Political Opportunity Structure.
The way a country's political system shapes, promotes, checks, or absorbs the challenges it confronts from organized civil society
How do men and women's political identities change with economic modernization?
They both become more liberal
What are the historic trends of regime change?
Three waves of democratization, two followed by reverse waves.
What role has U.S. Foreign policy played in regime change? What about soviet foreign policy? European Union?
US: Initially inconsistent, contributed to 3rd wave regime change Soviet: Fall of Soviet Union, left no non-democratic superpower, causing nations to become democratic EU: Those wishing to become members must be fully democratic, contributed to 3rd wave regime change
Define: Traditional Values.
Value traditional forms of political authority such as kings, tribal chiefs, and religious leaders. Tend to be more religious and naturalistic, express respect for hierarchical authority relations and express a belief in a clear difference between good and evil
What is a civil war?
War between state and non-state actors; armed combat within the boundaries of a sovereign state between parties that are subject to common authority at the state hostilities
Define: Guerilla Warfare.
Wars in which small groups of insurgents use irregular military tactics, such as ambush and sabotage, to engage the state's military forces
Define: Political Identity.
Ways individuals categorize themselves and others, and how they understand the power relationships of domination and oppression that exists between groups
How does this impact policy concerning women?
Wealthier countries generally tend to treat women better, and have more opportunities for them
Define: Hard-Targets.
Wealthier, strong states with accessible terrain
Define: Neighborhood Effect.
When countries in a particular geographic region follow their neighbors in terms of adopting a regime type.
Define: Spillover Effect.
When violence in one state spills over to others, because neighboring states are weak and can't control their borders
What is the modern gender gap?
Women are more politically liberal than men
What is the traditional gender gap?
Women were more traditionally conservative than their male counterparts
Why might having more women in office translate to women-friendly policies?
Women wil support policies that care more for their gender
Is gender socially constructed?
Yes
Does the level of secularization do more to explain democracy than the religion itself?
Yes, certain types of modernization...ones where the people develop equally, promotes secularization However, secularization is more of the development of religion rather than the full-blown secularization of the entire populous, because most wealth countries remain mostly christian
Why do people participate collectively in politics?
You can get more with a group than as an individual.
What are the significant hurdles for policy change?
getting women elected; politicians interests (aka women's policy wants don't really matter when there is a depression); culture (family law codes); male domination
How does gender impact politics?
influences the political identity
Why do genocides sometime occur during warfare? What counts as a genocide?
occurs because warfare creates an atmosphere in which ethnic differences can degenerate into genocide; inability of international force to intervene; ethnic divisions; on going civil war must systematically remove an entire group; must be from coercive pressure from the government; must be deliberate, methodical, and organized; drive by strategic political calculations; does not require mass support; must be seen as a means to a political end, not just crazy homicidal maniac-ness
How to attitudes about gender influence politics?
public policy, elections, representation, etc.
