comparative politics, O'Neil terms/definitions

Conservatives

A question whether a significant or profound change in existing institutions is necessary. Skeptical that change is good in itself and instead view it as disruptive and leading to unforeseen outcomes. Existing order is key to providing basic order and continuity. Too much change can undermine the legitimacy of the current system.

totalitarianism

A highly centralized state whose regime has a well-defined ideology and seeks to transform and fuse the institutions of the state, society, and the economy. Objective=use power to transform the total instutuional fabric of a country to meet an ideological goal.

Liberal democracy

A system of political, social, and economic liberites, suported by competition, participation, and contestation (voting). A higher degree of freedom (rather than equality) will produce the greatest amount of prosperity, despite the economic inequality that will inevitably take place.

fundamentalism

An ideology that seeks to unite religion with the state or make faith the sovereign authority. To create a theocracy.

Liberals

Believe that the current system can be improved in the current social, political, and economic institutions but have a more evolutionary approach to widespread change. Progressive change can happen within the current system and does not require an overthrow of the system.

dialectical materialism

Dialectic- term marx used to describe history as a struggle between the existing order (thesis) and the challenge to that order (anti-thesis) resulting in historical change (synthesis). Materialism- refers to the tension is over material matters (usually economic). together, dialectical materialism is the process in which those in power will be overthrown.

Power

Difficult to separate from politics. The ability to influence others or impose one's will on them.

Radicals

Dramatic, often revolutionary change of the existing political, social, or economic order. Believe that system is currently broken and cannot be repaired and must be replaced by a new order.

What is the connection between freedom and equality?

Freedom and equality are intertwined and one may come as an expense to the other. Ex. greater personal freedom may imply a smaller role for the state and limits its powers to redistribute income through welfare and taxes. This could result inequality may increase as individual freedom trumps the desire for a greater collective equality. But, a focus on equality can erode freedom. Greater material equality could lead the government to take control of private property and personal wealth in the name of redistribution for the "greater good". this being said, material security could also help secure certain political rights and vice versa.

Fascism

Hostile to the idea of individual freedom but also rejects the notion of equality. The idea that people and groups can be classified in terms of inferiority and superiority, justifying a hierarchy among them.

political science theory

Integrated set of hypotheses, assumptions, and facts. Difficult to generate.

selection bias

Randomization is not possible in poly sci so case studies may be influenced by the fact that comparativist for personal reasons. Often they will start with a hypothesis and seek out cases that prove their hypothesis, and ignore ones that don't.

Political Culture

Refers to a society's norms for political activity.

Anarchism

Rejects the notion of a state altogether. Share the communist belief that private property=inequality but are opposed to the idea that the state can solve this problem. Seeks complete elimination of principles of authority and governmental guardianship. View state as a threat to both freedom and equality and freedom/equality can only be achieved by eliminating the state.

Reactionary

Similar to conservatives in that they oppose further evolution of the system. BUT, like radicals, they view the current system as unacceptable. Rather than transforming the system to something new, they seek to restore traditional political, social, and economic tradition.

Deductive reasoning

Starting with a puzzle and from there generating some hypothesis about cause and effect to test against a number of cases. starts with a hypothesis and then seeks out evidence. Ex: start with a hypothesis about nationalism and then test the hypothesis in a number of countries.

Inductive reasoning

The means by which we go from studying a case to generating a hypothesis. Ex: study north korea and conclude that to use of nationalism by those in power has been central to, or cause/kept, nondemocratic rule

endogeneity

The problem of distinguishing cause and effect. Ex: female literacy and democracy. If fewer females are literate in nondemocracies, then is it because low rates of female literacy limit public participation and empower nondemocratic leaders or do nondemocratic leaders (usual men) take little interest in women?

comparative politics

The study and comparison of domestic politics across countries. (ex: elections, political parties, revolutions, judicial systems)

Parliamentary systems

Two elements: 1. Prime ministers and their cabinets come out of the legislature 2. the legislature is also the instrument that elects and removes the prime minister from office. -Political power and roles are divided between a head of government and a head of state. The overwhelming majority of power resides with the head of state (prime minister usually). BUT the head of state may be a president who is either directly elected by the public or indirectly elected by the public. In this case the head's power is rarely used.

ethnic conflict

a conflict between ethnic groups that struggle to achieve certain political or economic goals at each other's expense

nation

a group that desires self-government through an independent state

equality

a material standard of living shared by individuals within a community, society, or country.

Gini index

a mathematical formula that measures the amount of economic inequality in a society

corporatism

a method by which nondemocratic regimes attempted to solidify their control over the public by creating or sanctioning a limited number of organizations to represent the interests of the public and restricting those not set up or approved by the state.

Comparative Method

a method that researchers rely on that compares cases and draws conclusions in regards to political questions that have no obvious answer.

neocorporatism

a system of policy making involving the state, labor, and businesses

modernization theory

a theory that as societies developed they would become capitalistic democracies converging around a set of shared values and characteristics. set of hypothesese on how countries develop.

superstructure

all noneconomic institutions in a society (religion, culture, national identity). These ideas/values come from the base and legitimize the system of exploitation

sovereignty

an element of a state that is the ability to carry out actions and polices within a territory independent of external actors and internal rivals.

ethnic identity/ethnicity

an emphasis on a person's relation to other members of society. A set of instatutions that bind people together through common culture.

national conflict

seek to gain (or prevent another group from gaining) sovereignty, clashing with one another over the quest to form a independent state.

liberalism

an ideology that places a higher priority on individual political and economic freedom. The belief that politics should seek to create the maximum degree of liberty for all people, including free speech, the right of association, and other basic political rights.

state

an organization that maintains a monopoly of violence over a territory. needs to act as the primary autority over its territory and the people who live there, passing laws, defining and protecting rights, resoving disputes, generating domestic security.

correlation

apparent association between certain factors or variables

strong states

are able to fulfill basic tasks such as defending their territory, making and enforcing laws and rights, collecting taxes, and managing the economy.

Formal institutions

base on officially sanctioned rules that are relitively clear

rational-legal legitimacy

based on a system of laws and procedures that are presumed to be neutral or rational. people abide by the decisions of leader because they are abiding by existing rules. Gain legitimacy through rules by which they came to office (ex. election)

Charismatic legitimacy

based on powers or ideas of belief. embodied by individuals who can persuade the public through ideas and the manner in which they present them. can become traditonal thought the creation of values and rituals that are meant to capture to spirit and intent of leaders power. Ex: Jesus, Hitler.

legislator

body in which national politics is considered and debated

society

broad term that refers to complex human organization, a collection of people bound by shared instatituions that define how human relations should be conducted.

weak states

cannot execute tasks very well. rules are haphazardly applied, tax evasion and other forms of public noncomplience are wide-spread.

mixed electoral systems

citizens get to vote for a candidate and a party

country

combined political entities- state, regime, government and people who live within the political system

international relations

concentrates on relations between countries (ex: foreign policy, war, trade, foreign aid)

culture

content of institutions that help define a society.

resource trap

countries with natural resources like oil, gas, minerals are a source of wealth but they are often undemocratic. The existence of resources is a barrier to democracy because those in power don't need to bother with taxation/representation trade-off. They have enough money to not tax people and can ignore their wishes. Wealth is concentrated to those with power so people in power stay in power

concrete review

courts can consider the constitutionality of legislation when a specific court case triggers the question. Ex. in the case of separate constutional court , a case before a court of appeal may be forwarded to the constitonal court if the appeal believes there is a constitutional issue at stake.

authoritarianism

covers many different forms of non-democratic rule. Denies citizens participation, competition, and liberty

nationalism

created by national identity, a pride in one's people and the belief in their own severeign political destiny taht is separate from those of others.

citizenship

defined as an individual's or group's relation to the state; those who are citizens swear allegiance to the state, and that the state in return is obligated to provide rights to the individuals or group.

Semi-presidential systems

distinction between reign and rule. presidents set forth a policy but expect the prime minister to translate those policy ideas into legislation.

Social Democracy (Socialism)

draws from ideas connected to both communism and liberalism. Accepts a strong role for private ownership and market forces while maintaining an emphasis on economic equality. A state with a strong capacity and autonomy is important to ensure greater economic equality through policies like job protection or social benefits like medical care, retirement, higher education, ect. Commitment to equality means they may limit freedom more than liberalism (through methods like taxation) but still recognizes the importance of individual liverty as complementary to freedom.

base

economic system of society, made up of techonogy (the means of production) and class relations between people (the relations of production)

Traditional legitimacy

embodies historical myths and legends as well as the continuity between past and present. valid because it "has always been that way."

republicanism

emphasizes the separation of powers within a state and the representation of the public through elected officials (as opposed to the unaccountable powers of a monarchy or the direct participation of people.)

constitutional court

ensures that legislation is compatible with the constitution

purchasing power parity (PPP)

estimate of the buying power of income in each country by comparing similar cost, like food and housing, by using prices in the US as a benchmark.

institutional explanation for political violence

existing institutions may encourage violence or constrain human action, creating a violent backlash

Quantitative methods

favor a wider use of cases unbound by area specialization, greater use of statistical analysis, and mathematical models often drawn from economics. Typically deductive, starting with a theory that they can test with an array of data

area studies

focus on areas of a single geographic reason rather than on simularities

mercantilism

focuses on needs of the state rather than emphasizing a mix of freedom and equality.

regime

fundamental rules and norms of politics. Embodies long-term goals that guide the state with regard to individual freedom and collective equality, where the power should reside, and how the power should reside.

constituencies

geographic area that an elected official represents

public goods

goods provided and secured by the state that are available to everyone in the state (streets, national defense, education, sometimes healthcare, oil in some countries)

vote of no confidence

how prime ministers can be removed from office

ideational explanation for political violence

ideas that justify the use of violence. Ex. religious fundementalism, nationalism

freedom

individual's ability to act independently without fear of restriction or punishment by the state or other idividual groups in society

markets

interactions between the forces of supply and demand and they allocate resources through the process of those interactions

qualitative methods

interviews, observations, archival and other forms of documentary research. narrowly focused, deep investigations of cases drawing from scholarly research. Typically inductive, begining with case studies to generate theories.

relative deprivation model

revolutions are less a function of specific conditions, than of the gap between actual conditions and public expectations

government

leadership that runs the state. made up of legislators, presidents, or prime ministers.

bicameral systems

legislatures that contain two houses

unicameral systems

legislatures with one house

Human Development Index (HDI)

looks no only at the total amount of wealth in a society and its distribution, but also gives equal weight to income, health, and eductation

multicausality

many variables are tied together to produce outcomes. there are many causes for a given effect.

institutions

organizations or activities that are self-perpetuating and valued for their own sake. Play a role in defining and shaping what is possible/probable in political life by laying out rules, norms, and structues in which we live.

civil society

organized life outside the state

Democracy

political power exercised either directly or indirectly through participation, competition, and liberty.

unitary states

political power is concentrated at the national level and local authority is limited. Central government is responsible for most areas of policy.

asymmetric federalism

power is divided unevenly by regional bodies

federalism

powers like taxation, lawmaking, and securtity are devolved to regional bodies and local legislatures that control specific territories within the country

presidential systems

president and legislature serve for fixed terms- usually 4-6 years.

patriotism

pride in one's state. pride in a political system and seek to defend and support it.

devolution

process in which states have a greater tendency toward decentralization. A way to incresae state legitimacy by moving political power closer to the people.

civil rights

promotion of equality

civil liberties

promotion of freedom

individual explanation for political violence

psychological or strategic factors may lead people to carry out violence. Ex. humiliation, desire for social liberation/equality

Revolution

public seizure or the state in order to overturn existing government and regime.

property

refers to the ownership of goods and services exchanged through markets

bureaucratic authoritarianism

regime in which the state bureaucracy and the military share a belief that a technocratic leadership, focused on rational, objective, and technical expertise can solve party politics. reject emotional or irrational party politics.

Communism

rejects the idea that personal freedom will ensure prosperity for the majority. Instead, it believes that a small group will come to dominate wealth/market and use its wealth to exploit the poor. Advocates, instead, that the state control all economic resources and thus produce true economic equality for the community capacity. The state must be powerful in terms of autonomy and capacity to restrict individual rights (ex. owning property, opposing regime) that would hinder the prusuit of economic equality.

communism

set of ideas that view political, social, and economic institutions in a manner fundamentally different from most political thought. an ideology that seeks to create human equality by eliminating private property and market forces.

Political ideologies

sets of political values held by individuals regarding the fundamental goals of politics. Concerned with the ideal relatioin between freedom and equality.

rule of law

sovereignty of law over the people and elected officials

clientelism

state co-opts members of the public by providing specific benefits to a person in return for public support. Relies on individual patronism rather than oranizations that serve large groups of people

Failed state

stuctures of the state are so weak that they break down

liberal democracy

term political scientists use to indicate theyre refering to a political system that promotes participation, competition, and liberty.

autonomy

the ability of the state to wield its power independently of public or international actors

capacity

the ability of the state to wield power in order to carry out the basic tasks of providing security and reconciling freedom and equality.

patrimonialism

the benefits are not distributed in an ad hoc way among individuals in society but are instead limited to a small group of regime supporters inside the state itself

Causal relationship

the cause and effect between political outcomes

abstract review

the constitutional court may rule of legislation without a specific court case. Rulings are typically initiated upon request by one or more elected officials.

national identity

the instatution that binds people together through common political aspirations.

political violence

the larger category of "contentious politics" or collective political struggle. (ex. revolutions, civil war, riots, strikes, and some peaceful movements).

social expenditures

the state's provision of public benefits like education. Also called welfare or the welfare state. In US, too much welfare is contraversial

Politics

the struggle in any group for power that will give one or more persons the ability to make decisions for a larger group. Ranges from a small organization to the entire world. The competition to extend public power.

political economy

the study of how politics and economics are related and how their relatioinship shapes the balence between freedom and equality

behavioral revolution

the subject of investigation shifted away from political institutions (ex. constitutions, legislators) and towards individual political behavior. set of methods with which to approach politics.

Gross domestic product (GDP)

the total market value of goods and services produced by one country in a year. Higher social expendatures= higher GDP= more taxes

kleptocracy

those are in power seek only to drain the state of assets and resources

non democratic regimes

those in which a political regime is controlled by a small group of individuals who exercise power over the state without being constitutionally responsible to the public.

informal institutions

unwritten and unofficial rules, but no less powerful than formal institutions

Terrorism

use of violence by nonstate actors against civilians to achieve a political goal

single member district (SMD)

usually, creates two parties- vote for one of two candidates

populism

view that elites and established institutions do not fully represent the will of the people and that a new movement, free from ideology, can usher a new order

political Attitudes

views regarding the necessary pace and scope of change in the balence of freedom and equality.

proportional representation (PR)

votes for a party rather than a candidate

legitimacy

when people recognize and accept something or someone as right and proper. Widely recognized by the public.

State-sponsored terrorism

when states sponsor non-state terrorist groupsas a means to extend their power by proxy, using terrorism as an instrament of foriegn polacy