AP Government Chapter One Key Terms

Question 1

Government

Answer 1

the institutions and processes through which public policies are made for a society

Question 2

Public Goods

Answer 2

goods such as clean air and clean water, that everyone must share

Question 3

Politics

Answer 3

the process by which we select our governmental leaders wand what policies these leader persue, politics produces authoritative decisions about public issues

Question 4

Political Participation

Answer 4

all the activities used by citizens to influence the selection of political leaders or the policies they pursue. Voting is the most common but not the only means of political participation in a democracy. other means include protest and civil disobedience

Question 5

Single Issue Groups

Answer 5

groups that have a narrow interest, tend to dislike compromise, and often draw membership from people new to politics. these features distinguish them from traditional interest groups

Question 6

Policy Making System

Answer 6

the process by which policy comes into being and evolves over time. People’s interests, problems, and concerns create political issues for government policy makers. these issues shape policy, which in turn, impacts people, generating more interests, problems, and concerns

Question 7

Linkage Institutions

Answer 7

the political channels through which people’s concerns become plotical issues on the policy agenda. in the United States, linkage institutions include elections, political parties, interest groups and the media

Question 8

Policy Agenda

Answer 8

the issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people actually involved in politics at an given point in time

Question 9

Political Issue

Answer 9

an issue that arises when people disagree about a problem

Question 10

Policy Making Institutions

Answer 10

the branches of government charged with taking action on political issues. The U.S. Constitution established three Policy Making Institutions- Congress, the presidency, and the courts. today, the power of the bureaucracy is so great that most political scientists consider it a fourth policy making institution

Question 11

Public Policy

Answer 11

a choice that government makes in response to a political issue. A policy is a course of action taken with regard to some problem

Question 12

Policy Impacts

Answer 12

the effects a policy has on the people and problems. Impacts are analyzed to see how well a policy has met its goal and at what cost

Question 13

Democracy

Answer 13

A system of selecting policy makers and of organizing government so that policy represents and responds to the public’s preferences

Question 14

Majority Rule

Answer 14

A fundamental principle of traditional democratic theory. in democracy, choosing among alternatives requires that the majorities desire to be respected. see also minority rights

Question 15

Minority Rights

Answer 15

A principle of traditional democratic theory that guarantees tights to those who do not belong to majorities and allows that they might join majorities through persuasion and reasoned argument. see also majority rule

Question 16

Representation

Answer 16

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

Question 17

Pluralist Theory

Answer 17

a theory of government and politics emphasizing that politics is mainly a competition among groups, each one pressing for its own preferred policies. Compare elite and class theory, hyper pluralism and traditional democratic theory

Question 18

Elite and Class Theory

Answer 18

a theory of government and politics contending that societies are divided along class lines and that an upper class elite will rule regardless of the formal niceties of governmental organization

Question 19

Hyper Pluralism

Answer 19

a theory of government and politics contending that groups are so strong that government is weakened. hyper pluralism is an extreme, exaggerated, or perverted form of pluralism

Question 20

Policy Gridlock

Answer 20

a condition that occurs when no coalition is strong enough to forma majority and establish policy. the result is that nothing may get done

Question 21

Political Culture

Answer 21

an overall set of values widely shared within a society

Question 22

Gross Domestic Product

Answer 22

the sim total of the value of all the goods and services produced in a nation