Quiz #1 Vocab

Question 1

levels of govt.

Answer 1

Federalism and Unitary

Question 2

head of govt

Answer 2

the executive role that deals with the everyday tasks of running the state, such as formulating and executing policy

Question 3

the harm principle

Answer 3

the idea that people should be free to act as they wish as long as their actions do not cause harm to others

Question 4

religious fundamentalism

Answer 4

the approach of those religious groups that look for the literal interpretation of original religious texts or books believing that teachings obtained from this kind of reading must be used in all social, economic, and political aspects

Question 5

purchasing power parity

Answer 5

a popular macroeconomic analysiss metric used to compare economic productivity and standards of living between countries

Question 6

Gini Index

Answer 6

a statistical formula that measures the amount of inequality in a society; its scale ranges from 0-100 (0 being perfect quality and 100 being perfect inequality)

Question 7

inflation

Answer 7

an increase in the general price level of goods and services in the economy

Question 8

comparative & absolute advantage

Answer 8

Comparative Advantage: refers to a country’s ability to produce a particular good at a lower opportunity cost than its trading partners

Absolute Advantage: refers to a country’s ability to produce a good at a lower cost (output) or using fewer recourses (input) than its trading partners

Question 9

non-tariff barriers

Answer 9

policy measures, other than ordinary customs tariffs, that can potentially have an economic effect on international trade in goods, changing quantities traded, or prices or both

Question 10

intellectual property

Answer 10

a work or invention that is the result of creativity, such as a manuscript, or a design, to which one has rights and for which one may apply fora patent, copyright, trademark, etc.

Question 11

economy

Answer 11

the wealth and resources of a country or region, especially in terms of the production and consumption of goods and services

Question 12

republican/representative democracy

Answer 12

a government in which the people- directly or indirectly- are the ultimate source of authority, electing representatives to make laws that serve their interests and advance the common good

Question 13

head of state

Answer 13

the executive role that symbolizes and represents the people both nationally and internationally

Question 14

totalitarianism

Answer 14

a nondemocratic regime that is highly centralized, possessing some form of strong ideology that seeks to transform and absorb fundamental aspects of a state, society, and the economy, using a wide array of institutions

Question 15

post-materialist values

Answer 15

value orientation that emphasizes self-expression and quality of life over economic and physical security

Question 16

cross-cutting and reinforcing cleavages

Answer 16

divisions (race, ethnicity, etc) in a society that do not align perfectly; the problem is compounded when one group is dominant in government and other social institutions

Question 17

branches of govt

Answer 17

executive, judicial, legislative

Question 18

devolution

Answer 18

a process in which political power is “sent down” to lower levels of state and government

Question 19

failed states

Answer 19

a state that is unable to perform the two fundamental functions of the sovereign nation-state in the modern world system: it cannot project authority over its territory and peoples, and it cannot protect its national boundaries

Question 20

the Inquisition

Answer 20

a judicial procedure and later an institution that was established by the papacy and, sometimes, by secular governments to combat heresy

Question 21

Human Development Index

Answer 21

a statistical tool that attempts to evaluate the overall wealth, health, and knowledge of the country’s people

Question 22

capitalism

Answer 22

a system of production based on private property and free markets

Question 23

recession

Answer 23

a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in production, employment, real income, and other indicators

Question 24

mercantilism

Answer 24

a political-economic system in which national economic power is paramount and the domestic economy is viewed as an instrument that exists primarily to serve the needs of the state

Question 25

populism (of left & right)

Answer 25

While both left-wing and right-wing populists object to the perceived control of liberal democracies by elites, those on the left also have problems with large corporations and their allies while those on the right focus on external threats

Question 26

terrorism

Answer 26

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

Question 27

demagogue

Answer 27

a political leader who seeks support by appealing to the desires and prejudices of ordinary people rather than using rational argument (particularly appeal to more negative emotions)

Question 28

positive-, negative-, and zero-sum

Answer 28

positive: where the sum total of gains is positive negative: where the sum total of gains is negative zero: where the gains of one exactly match the losses of the other, so the sum total of gains is zero

Question 29

unicameral

Answer 29

1 chamber (ex. Israel)

Question 30

bicameral

Answer 30

2 chambers (ex. Senate and House of Reps)

Question 31

regime

Answer 31

a govt especially an authoritarian one

Question 32

ethno-nationalism

Answer 32

a form of nationalism that defines a nation by ethnicity

Question 33

heresy

Answer 33

an belief that goes against the official teachings of a religion or a generally accepted belief

Question 34

political economy

Answer 34

economics as a branch of knowledge or academic discipline

Question 35

central bank (e.g., the U.S. Fed)

Answer 35

helps stabilize the financial system and economy

Question 36

Smoot-Hawley (1930)

Answer 36

a big tariff adopted in the 1930s and signed into law by Pres. Hoover; this was during the second year of the Great Depression and made it hard for producers to sell in the American economy

Question 37

neo-mercantilism

Answer 37

a policy regime that encourages exports, discourages imports, controls capital movement, and centralizes currency decisions in the hands of a central govt

Question 38

succession

Answer 38

the order in which or the conditions under which one person after another succeeds to a property, dignity, position, title, or throne; sequence

Question 39

relative deprivation model

Answer 39

the belief that a person will feel deprived or entitled to something based on the comparison to someone else

Question 40

separation of powers

Answer 40

a constitutional principle that divides govt power into 3 branches

Question 41

autocracy

Answer 41

a system of government with one absolute power

Question 42

social capital

Answer 42

concept to define networks of relationships which are productive towards advancing the goals of individuals and groups; values derived from positive connections between people

Question 43

polity

Answer 43

a political organization

Question 44

nation

Answer 44

a territory where all its people are led by the same government

Question 45

nation-state

Answer 45

a state encompassing one dominant nation that it claims to embody and represent

Question 46

apostasy

Answer 46

the abandonment or renunciation of a religious or political belief

Question 47

reactionaries

Answer 47

a person who holds political views that favor a return to the status quo ante- the previous political state of a society- which the person believes possessed positive characteristics that are absent from contemporary society

Question 48

Transparency International

Answer 48

the global civil society organization leading the fight against corruption

Question 49

GDP

Answer 49

Gross Domestic Product; the total value of all goods and services produced in a country during a specific period of time

Question 50

fiscal policy

Answer 50

the use of govt spending and taxation to influence the economy

Question 51

monetary policy

Answer 51

a set of actions taken by a country's central bank to control the money supply and interest rates; the goal is to achieve economic stability

Question 52

tariffs

Answer 52

a tax on imported goods and services

Question 53

industrial policy

Answer 53

refers to govt assistance to businesses to boost or reshape specific economic activities

Question 54

secession

Answer 54

the action of withdrawing formally from membership of a federation or body, especially a political state

Question 55

command

Answer 55

a directive from an authority figure, or to a type of economic system

Question 56

direct democracy

Answer 56

the people themselves are directly making the decision

Question 57

habeas corpus

Answer 57

judicial order forcing law enforcement authorities to produce a prisoner they are holding, and to justify the prisoners continued confinement

Question 58

authoritarianism

Answer 58

the enforcement or advocacy of strict obedience to authority at the expense of personal freedom

Question 59

great replacement theory

Answer 59

a conspiracy rooted in the belief that the white race is under threat of extinction at the hands of Jews and other minorities

Question 60

advisory opinion

Answer 60

a court's nonbinding interpretation of a law

Question 61

gerrymandering

Answer 61

the process of apportioning electoral districts to favor one political party or to marginalize certain groups

Question 62

malapportionment

Answer 62

the creation of electoral districts with divergent ratios of voters to representatives (ex. if one single-member district has 10,000 voters and another has 100,000 voters, voters in the former district have 10x the influence per person over the governing body)