Deck 8: Comparative Politics

Question 1

Juxtaposing its economic policies, China is governed by a ______ political regime.

A) communist
B) democratic
C) liberal
D) socialist

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Which of the following best defines the subfield of Comparative Politics?

A) the study of the rules and norms that guide how individuals behave politically
B) the study of the actions and decisions of individuals within a political system
C) the study of countries and politics around the world
D) the study of interconnectedness of politics, economics and law on a global level

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following social scientists explained that the comparative method focuses on "the how but does NOT specify the what of the analysis"?

A) Arend Lijphart
B) John Stuart Mill
C) Peter Mair
D) Seymour Lipset

Answer 3

A

Question 4

A challenge that occurs in political science research in which chosen cases to be studied are systematically skewed is known as ______.

A) counterfactuals
B) explanatory bias
C) selection bias
D) selecting on the dependent variable

Question 5

The inductive approach developed by John Stuart Mill that compares cases that differ on the dependent variable is known as the ______.

A) Comparative Method
B) Method of Difference
C) System of Logic
D) Method of Agreement

Question 6

The inductive approach developed by John Stuart Mill that compares cases that are the same on the dependent variable is known as the ______.

A) Comparative Method
B) Method of Difference
C) System of Logic
D) Method of Agreement

Question 7

A group of people living under a single government is known as ______.

A) an administration
B) a regime
C) a society
D) a state

Question 8

Which social scientist defined the state as a "human community that (successfully) claims the monopoly of the legitimate use of violence within a given territory"?

A) Hobbes
B) Krasner
C) Mitchell
D) Weber

Question 9

Which social scientist argued that instead of trying to define the state, "we need to examine the detailed political processes through which the uncertain yet powerful distinction between state and society is produced"?

A) Hobbes
B) Krasner
C) Mitchell
D) Weber

Question 10

Which of Krasner's concepts of the state would describe the state as the tools and structures of government?

A) The state as government
B) The state as administration or bureaucracy
C) The state as the ruling class
D) The state as the normative order

Question 11

Which of Krasner's concepts of the state would describe the state as the individual or group of people who govern an organized community?

A) The state as government
B) The state as administration or bureaucracy
C) The state as the ruling class
D) The state as the normative order

Question 12

Which of Krasner's concepts of the state would describe the state as representing commonly held ideas and notions about what government should be?

A) The state as government
B) The state as administration or bureaucracy
C) The state as the ruling class
D) The state as the normative order

Question 13

The modern state system (as we know it today) emerged following which major conflict?

A) World War I
B) The Seven Years' War
C) World War II
D) the Thirty Years' War

Question 14

The modern state system is also known as the ______ system.

A) Bretton Woods
B) Glass-Steagall
C) Westphalian
D) Wilsonian

Question 15

States that "lack the capacity to discharge their normal functions and drive forward development" are called ______.

A) disorganized states
B) failed states
C) fragile states
D) states that don't exist

Question 16

State strength refers to the ______.

A) ability of states to control political outcomes
B) size and capability of states' militaries
C) growth and robustness of the economy within states
D) level of economic and social development of states

Question 17

A democratic state is one ______.

A) in which the authorities have total and complete control over society
B) that has free, fair, and frequent elections and in which civil liberties are recognised and protected
C) that allows for some political freedoms although there are no political protections or democratic procedures in place
D) in which political outcomes are controlled by a small (typically wealthy) groups of individuals

Question 18

The takeaway from many studies in how to measure democracy and democratization is that ______.

A) the need to raise taxes can force a state to democratize
B) a strong, past history or experience with some form of democratization will ensure it proceeds
C) a belief in gradual revolutionary reform contributes to democracy
D) ideas in civil society and beliefs about what the government should or should not do contribute to democratization

Question 19

Which of the following political scientists argued that social capital-connections we have with one another-contribute to a democratic life?

A) Almond and Verba
B) Dahl
C) Lijphart
D) Putnam

Question 20

The increasing economic and political inter-connectedness between states around the world is known as ______.

A) modernization
B) globalization
C) institutionalization
D) democratization

Question 21

Which of the following organizations is the best example of economic globalization?

A) Bretton Woods
B) World Trade Organization
C) European Union
D) United Nations

Question 22

Which of the following organizations is the best example of both economic and political globalization ?

A) Bretton Woods
B) World Trade Organization
C) European Union
D) United Nations

Question 23

The communist People's Republic of China was founded in______.

A) 1917
B) 1939
C) 1949
D) 1956

Question 24

The series of political reforms in the Soviet Union that were meant to foster transparency in government are referred to as ______.

A) democratization
B) glasnost
C) liberalization
D) perestroika

Question 25

A totalitarian state is one ______.

A) in which the authorities have total and complete control over society
B) that has free, fair, and frequent elections and in which civil liberties are recognised and protected
C) that allows for some political freedoms although there are no political protections or democratic procedures in place
D) in which political outcomes are controlled by a small (typically wealthy) groups of individuals

Question 26

States that allow for some political freedoms although they lack many political protections or democratic procedures are ______.

A) authoritarian
B) democratic
C) oligarchic
D) totalitarian

Question 27

Which of the following theories argues that states can developmentally advance if they adopt more Western political and economic practices?

A) democratization theory
B) development theory
C) modernization theory
D) globalization theory

Question 28

Attitudes in favor of protecting a country's economic independence and autonomy are known as ______.

A) civic nationalism
B) economic nationalism
C) ethnic nationalism
D) ideological nationalism

Question 29

"Comparative Politics" gets its name from the methodologies used in the subfield.

Question 30

Political scientists are unable to control most factors when trying to isolate the effect of a single variable.

Question 31

The challenge of defining the state in political science has been ongoing since the Hobbes and Locke.

Question 32

Theorization on the nature and definition of the state is on the rise in political science.

Question 33

States and the international system as we know them in the present day found their origins in the mid-seventeenth century.

Question 34

ISIS had its origins in the Syrian Civil War.

Question 35

Globalization is a modern phenomenon

Question 36

Early on, China and Russia adopted different paths and styles of communism.

Question 37

Early studies of communism focused on the regime type's relationships with religion.

Question 38

There is no one agreed-upon definition for what makes a country developed.

Question 39

What is a "state"? How do we know it when we see it? What differentiates one "state" from another, and why?

Question 40

What is democracy? What is required for a state to be democratic, and why?

Question 41

What is globalization, and what does that mean? What are the consequences of globalization? Is globalization a good thing? Why or why NOT?

Question 42

Democracy-what it is and what it isn't-has been a well-researched topic in political science, but what about authoritarian regimes? What makes a state authoritarian? Are all authoritarian states alike? Explain.

Question 43

Consider a relationship between modernization, development, and political regimes or types of states. What is meant by development? Should different levels of development be associated with different types of regimes like democracies or authoritarian states? Why or why NOT?