Unit 1: Intro to Comparative Politics

Consolidated democracies

1/3 classification regimes; political systems have been stably democratic for long time & consistent adherence to core democratic principles.

Transitional democracies

2/3 classification regimes; countries moved from authoritarian gov't to democratic; newly est. democracies.

Authoritarian regimes

3/3 classification regimes; authoritarian.

Representation

A basic principle of traditional democratic theory that describes the relationship between the few leaders and the many followers.

Legitimacy

A belief by ppl that a state exercises rightful authority; 1) consent of governed - democratic procedures, 2) good level development & distribution resources.

Cold War

A critical juncture that propelled independence movements & collapse of communism.

Dictatorship

A form of government in which the leader has absolute power and authority.

Constitutional

A form of government in which the monarch's power is limited by a basic set of laws

Democratization

A process of transition as a country attempts to move from an authoritarian form of government to a democratic one. Marketization goes along.

Ideologies

A set of beliefs and preferences. Ex: communism vs. democracy

Theocracy

A state governed by divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided. ex: Iran

Sovereignty

A state's claim to exercise authority w/in a given territory.

Linkage institutions

A structure w/in society that connects ppl to govt/centralized authority ex: elections, political parties, media, special interest groups

Authoritarian rule

A system of rule in which power depends not on popular legitimacy but on the coercive force of the political authorities.

Authoritarian

A system of rule that depends on force of political authorities; little freedom; absolute power of executive branch, little legislative & judicial control.

Pluralism

A theory of government that holds that open, multiple, and competing groups can check the asserted power by any one group. Equal access, civil society. More democracy. vs. Corporatism

Hybrid democracy

AKA illiberal democracy. Governing system in which, although elections take place, citizens are cut off from knowledge about the activities of those who exercise real power because of the lack of civil liberties.

Judiciary

Administration of justice & det. constitutionality of state decisions.

Executive

Agency of gov't that executes policy; most important. Ex: president, cabinet

Judicial review

Allows the court to determine the constitutionality of laws. Sees if govt can be controlled.

Comparative approach

An approach to politics that uses case studies to compare domestic politics, political institutions, and conflict of countries.

Critical juncture

An important historical moment that shapes institutions and future outcomes. Ex: 1989 - fall of Berlin Wall

Cold war

An indirect conflict btwn US and the Soviet Union w/ deadly threats.

Freedom in the World rating

Annual eval by NGO Freedom House; ID level freedom in countries

United Nations

Association of 200 countries to maintain international peace & advance rule of international law & prospects for econ and social development.

Political culture

Attitudes, beliefs, symbols that influence political behavior.

World Bank

Bank that provides low-interest loans, no-interest credit, policy advice, and tech assistance to developing countries to reduce poverty.

Purchasing Power Parity (PPP)

Calculate cost of living thru "basket of goods"; compare size econ among countries.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

Calculation of total good & services produced by country during a given yr.

Cult of personality

Characteristic of authoritarian govt. Belief that leader is infalliable. ex: Mao

Head of gov't

Chief executive branch & from ruling political party.

Typology

Classification of large # case into smaller types; facilitate comparison.

Comparativists

Comparative gov't political scientists.

Most different case analysis

Comparison across clusters & types; analyze what produces the substantial differences we observe.

Procedural democracies

Democracy in which the people or citizens of the state have less influence than in traditional liberal democracies. Voters choosing to elect representatives in free elections.

Corruption

Dishonest action by those in power. Can lead to less democracy.

Countries

Distinct, politically defined territories that encompass political institutions, cultures, econ, ethnic/social identities.

Nation-state

Distinct, politically defined territory in which state & national ID coincide.

Sustainable development

Ecologically sound ways to modernize econ & raise standard living.

Third World

Econ less developed countries in Asia, Africa, Latin American; many recently independent.

Neoliberalism

Econ policy to reduce gov't regulation & promote competition.

Civil liberties, rights, and freedoms

Freedoms to think and act without government interference or fear of unfair legal treatment.

Gross National Product (GNP)

GDP + income earned abroad by country's residents.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

Global organization to lower/remove barriers to free trade; most countries are members.

Regimes

Gov't or political systems

Political socialization

Govt aims to transform/teach a set of belief. Each society has a set. ex: flag in room, Bill of Rights

Coup d'états

Govt same but ppl in seats change. Can be violent/peaceful. ex: US elections are coups

Collective identities

Groups people identify w/; "building blocks" for social and political action. Ex: gender, class, race, region, religion

Social movements

Groups that demand reforms of existing social practices and government policies. Social movements are less formally organized than interest groups. Ex: Civil Rights Movement

Coinciding cleavage

Groups that don't work together - fight for resources/power. Lose democracy. ex: Nigeria

Crosscutting cleavage

Groups that otherwise don't work together do work together. ex: US

State formation

Historical development of a state marked by critical junctures.

Transparency

How much govt tells its citizens. More transparent, more democratic. How much influence ppl get. ex: vote

Laissez-faire

Idea state hands-off approach & market system of production develop slowly; free enterprise economy. Ex: Britain

Commanding heights

Important materials like steel, iron, etc.

Institutional design

Institutional arrangements that define the relationships between executive, legislative, and judicial branches & between the national government and sub-national units like states in the United States.

Globalization

Intensification worldwide connectedness; incr trade, investment, finance, migration, cultural diffusion, communication.

State

Key political institutions responsible for making, implementing, adjudicating important policies in a country. Aka gov't.

Keynesianism

Keynes; econ policy in which gov't uses econ policies to get stable econ growth.

Reform

Least radical type of change - amend constitution, change law, judicial review

Legislature

Make laws & provide for financial resources for state.

Global Gender Gap

Measure of gender equality; 1) econ participation, 2) econ opportunity, 3) political empowerment, 4) edu attainment, 5) health

Environmental Performance Index

Measure of how close countries meet benchmarks for national pollution control & national resource management.

Human Development Index

Measure used by UN to compare levels health, knowledge, standard living; 1) life expectancy, 2) adult literacy rate, 3) school enrollment stats, 4) GDP at PPP

Revolution

Medium type of change - often violent; radical change in a system in which a system totally reforms to a new system. Not always successful. ex: African independence - not violent

Cabinet

Ministers who direct executive dept.

Unicameralism

One chamber legislature

European Union (EU)

Organization Euro countries to promote econ integration & political cooperation among Euro states; reduce tariff barriers, immigration policies, technical standards, monetary regulation.

Bureaucracy

Organization structured hierarchically; lower-level ppl administer regulations of rules that specify impersonal, objective guidelines for making decisions. Ex: businesses

Political parties

Organization that tries to influence gov. policy by promoting its ideas and backing candidates for office

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Organization to foster global monetary cooperation, financial stability, international trade, high emp, econ growth, reduce poverty; countries must agree to econ liberalization.

Supranational organizations

Organizations of 3/more that est. treaties among members & become subject to rules of organizations. Can cause countries lose legitimacy & lose legitimacy itself when members disobey. ex: EU

Ethnic cleansing, Genocide

Political violence to a minority population to force its expulsion/mass destruction; caused by deep nationalist and ethnic divisions. Ex: Rwanda, Sudan

Technocrats

Ppl hired to work for govt specialized in an area.

Government

Ppl in position of authority ex: Obama

Democratic transitions

Process of a state moving from authoritarian to democratic political system.

Distributional politics

Process of deciding who gets what & how resources distributed.

Social welfare

Programs to help certain groups of people

Head of state

Public figure, can be same as head of govt. ex: Queen Elizabeth

Liberal democracy

Regimes that combine capitalist organization of econ w/ democratic political system. Ex: Western-style

Totalitarian

Regimes that seek to control nearly every aspect of public & private life. Ex: Stalin & Mao

Suffrage, political franchise, the franchise

Right to vote

Electoral systems

Rules that decide how votes are cast, counted & translated into seats - plurality, majority, proportional representation.

Middle-level theory

Seeks to explain phenomena in a limited range of cases like parliamentary regimes, political parties, protest

Regime

Set of rules of state

Social class

Solidarities based on shared experience of econ position.

Empirical statements

Statements that are based on facts & scientific; "true or false"

Normative statements

Statements that are based on values & perspective; "right or wrong"

Unitary system

Structure of govt in which all decisions made at national level. Most common. ex: France

Confederation

Structure of govt in which national & local decisions same level; rarely survive bc contradictions. ex: UN

Federal system

Structure of govt in which there are multiple levels of powers - federal, state, local. ex: US

Political economy

Study of how gov't affect econ performance & how econ performance affects a country's political processes.

Democratic

Supporting democracy

Political efficacy

The belief that one's political participation really matters - that one's vote can actually make a difference.

Social cleavages

The boundaries between citizens of different religions, ethnic groups, race, and social and economic classes. Can be crosscutting/coinciding.

Bicameralism

The principle of a two-house legislature.

Devolution

The process of taking power from the national government and giving it to local government.

Comparative politics

The study and comparison of domestic politics across countries; sub-field w/in political science.

Rational choice theory

Theory that individuals act strategically to achieve goals that max interests. Ex: voting for a candidate

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

Treaty among US, Mexico, Canada eliminate trade barriers.

Communist party-state

Type of nation-state in which the communist party has complete political control. Ex: East Central Europe & Soviet Union

Corporatism

When special interest groups form, govt chooses which groups to cater to. Decreases democracy.