Deck 2: Theories

Question 1

__________ favor social and economic change to help the poor.

A)Conservatives
B)Leftists
C)Bourgeoisie
D)Zeitgeists

Answer 1

B

Question 2

What shape depicted in your text might best describe healthcare reform according to a liberal?

A)A diamond
B)An upside down triangle
C)A triangle
D)A vertical rectangle

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Aristotle argued that the best political communities would be __________.

A)dominated by wealthy citizens
B)oligarchies
C)formed by elites
D)formed by citizens of the middle class

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following would be consistent with Confucius's vision of government?

A)Immoral behavior by rulers
B)Participation of the masses
C)Moral behavior by rulers
D)Limits on family ties

Question 5

Which of the following was of greatest concern to John Locke?

A)Freedom of speech for all
B)Power resided with the proletariat
C)The right to property
D)Voting rights

Question 6

Aristotle and John Locke might agree on which point?

A)The importance of voting rights for all citizens
B)The importance of property rights
C)The importance of changing paradigms
D)The importance of the scientific method

Question 7

Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau would likely agree on which of the following?

A)Individuals join and stay in civil society
B)Life is nasty and brutish
C)Power resided with the proletariat
D)The importance of empirical research

Question 8

Which statement best reflects a normative description?

A)The United States has higher taxes than most European democracies.
B)The United States has lower taxes than most European democracies.
C)The United States has a federal income tax.
D)The United States has tax rates that are too low.

Question 9

Which of the following is most consistent with the idea of a social contract?

A)Government should be limited to ensure individual freedom.
B)Individuals join and stay in civil society.
C)Citizens prefer solitary lives to living in groups.
D)Citizens are more concerned with their own social situation than the community.

Question 10

Thomas Hobbes wrote that "the life of man [is] solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and __________."

A)endless
B)tiring
C)short
D)depressing

Question 11

Which of the following is most consistent with the concept of the "general will" according to Rousseau?

A)Creating a park for the citizens to enjoy
B)Using public dollars so that some citizens can attend private schools
C)Offering tax breaks to one auto manufacturing plant
D)Low turnout in elections

Question 12

Which statement best reflects a descriptive statement?

A)The United States has a higher infant mortality rate than Japan.
B)The United States should do more to help the poor.
C)The United States would benefit from lower taxes.
D)The United States would benefit from building more prisons.

Question 13

What theory best explains a scenario where India develops similar political views to France, despite the fact that France was unaware of Indian political philosophies until recently?

A)Modernization Theory
B)Classical Theory
C)Rational-Choice Theory
D)Marxist Theory

Question 14

Which of the following best characterizes Aristotle?

A)He only explained what is.
B)He only explained what ought to be.
C)He explained both what is and what ought to be.
D)He neither explained what is nor what ought to be.

Question 15

If __________ were alive, he might suggest that poor academic performance in schools could be attributed to a society that does not promote education and provides few resources devoted to schools.

A)John Locke
B)Jean-Jacques Rousseau
C)Thomas Hobbes
D)Machiavelli

Question 16

Plato and Aristotle were from __________.

A)Great Britain
B)Italy
C)Greece
D)Egypt

Question 17

Karl Marx used the term __________ to refer to everything built on top of the economy.

A)the social contract
B)institutions
C)behavioralism
D)superstructure

Question 18

Social contracts, the state of nature, and civil society are phrases that are best associated with __________.

A)the contractualists
B)Marxists
C)behavioralism
D)systems theory

Question 19

Which of the following pairs of terms are most incompatible with each other?

A)Descriptive, realism
B)Normative, realism
C)Descriptive, realism
D)Normative, zeitgeist

Question 20

__________ wrote Republic.

A)Aristotle
B)Plato
C)Hans J. Morgenthau
D)Niccolo Machiavelli

Question 21

Which of the following would most likely be supported by the bourgeoisie?

A)Equality for all
B)A revolt by the proletariat
C)Minority rights
D)Conflict for economic gain

Question 22

Which best exemplifies systems theory?

A)A person voting for the candidate that will best benefit that voter
B)A school district adjusting a bilingual education program to accommodate a large influx of non-native Americans.
C)Two nations creating similar programs because of industrialization
D)Using scientific methods to study society.

Question 23

Hegel is most associated with which theory?

A)Marxism
B)Modernization
C)Positivism
D)Rational-Choice

Question 24

Which statement best supports Marxist Theories?

A)The United States provides ample opportunities for all that work hard.
B)Similarities exist between economies in both Europe and the United States.
C)Tax breaks will often create jobs, benefiting the working class.
D)Uneven benefits to corporations with few benefits for workers, led to the economic crises in the early 2000s.

Question 25

Which of the following most undermines the potential benefits of the behavioral approach?

A)Public opinion in Northern Canada
B)European democratic governments
C)Southwestern voting patterns in the United States
D)The current conflicts in the Sudan

Question 26

Which of the following applies to the concept of New Institutionalism?

A)A synthesis of traditional behavior and other techniques in the study of politics
B)Feedback to members of Congress from their constituents that changes how they will vote
C)The president is constrained because of limitation on powers granted in Article II of the Constitution
D)Incentives that alter which candidates citizens support

Question 27

Which of the following is a criticism of behavioralism?

A)Behavioralism is not value-free.
B)Behavioralism has never been used in the United States.
C)Natural science methods cannot be applied to the social sciences.
D)Behavioralism focuses too much on the big picture.

Question 28

Which is a potential problem with a model?

A)Oversimplification
B)Undersimplification
C)Irrationality
D)Rationality

Question 29

A feedback loop is most likely associated with __________.

A)Behavioralism
B)Modernization Theory
C)Rational-Choice Theory
D)Systems Theory

Question 30

Auguste Comte would most likely agree with which of the following statements?

A)The natural sciences and social sciences are nothing alike.
B)Social science methods can be applied to the natural sciences.
C)Natural science methods can be applied to the social sciences.
D)The proletariat will ultimately revolt.

Question 31

Assuming that we can study society scientifically is consistent with which of the following?

A)Marxism
B)Realism
C)Positivism
D)Systems theory

Question 32

The term __________ might best explain why different periods throughout history have distinctive characteristics.

A)bourgeoisie
B)zeitgeist
C)paradigm
D)general will

Question 33

According to Karl Marx, what would likely replace capitalism?

A)Communism
B)Socialism
C)Feudalism
D)Conservatism

Question 34

Which of the following is a key component to systems theory?

A)Feedback
B)Modernization
C)Positivism
D)The superstructure

Question 35

David Easton is most associated with which of the following?

A)Behavioralism
B)Marxism
C)Systems Theory
D)Modernization Theory

Question 36

Which statement best undermines systems theory?

A)The passage of healthcare reform despite opposition from the public.
B)The passage of healthcare reform because of support from the public.
C)The passage of healthcare reform because other democracies of a certain age have done such a thing.
D)A dislike of government guaranteed healthcare in the United States.

Question 37

Which of the following best undermines the Marxist argument?

A)Capitalist society's frequently collapse.
B)Socialism is the natural replacement of capitalism.
C)Capitalism has survived major stock market crashes.
D)India has a democratic government.

Question 38

A thesis is best described as __________.

A)a claim you are going to prove
B)a finding based on research
C)something that is not testable
D)a research design

Question 39

The formal structures of government like the U.S.Congress are referred to as __________.

A)institutions
B)systems
C)paradigms
D)superstructures

Question 40

The "spirit of the times" would do which of the following according to Hegel?

A)Move history along
B)Lead to disillusionment
C)Prevent tyranny
D)Provide a balance to politics

Question 41

Which of the following is a likely characteristic of a democratic nation?

A)Low levels of education
B)They are led by a dictator
C)Relatively high gross domestic product
D)Turmoil and instability

Question 42

Which of the following most weakens arguments from game theorists?

A)Political actors are usually predictable.
B)President Obama could not estimate the effect of pulling troops out of Iraq.
C)Political scientists have been very accurate in collecting data.
D)Like Europe, the United States will become more socialistic over the next 100 years.

Question 43

If we try to predict how South Korea will react to threats from North Korea, considering both the costs and benefits of a particular action, __________ will be most useful.

A)modernization theory
B)classical theory
C)rational-choice theory
D)Marxist theory

Question 44

Karl Marx called the ruling class the proletariat.

Question 45

Thomas Hobbes's work might be useful in examining Rwandan genocides.

Question 46

Realists focus on the world as it should be.

Question 47

Congress is a political institution.

Question 48

Game theory is most associated with __________.

A)modernization theory
B)behavioralism
C)systems theory
D)rational-choice theory

Question 49

Seymour Martin Lipset would most likely agree with which statement?

A)China will become more socialistic as it industrializes.
B)China instigates conflicts because wars benefit the ruling class.
C)As China becomes more democratic, its politics and economic situation will remain stable.
D)As China becomes more democratic, it will undergo many economic and political changes.

Question 50

Rational-choice theorists argue that behavior cannot be predicted.

Question 51

The statement, "Germany is relatively wealthy and its citizens are well-educated, so it must be a democracy," is consistent with __________.

A)modernization theory
B)classical theory
C)rational-choice theory
D)Marxist theory

Question 52

Seymour Martin Lipset wrote __________.

A)The Prince
B)Arthashastra
C)Social Contract
D)Political Man

Question 53

The idea that prior to reauthorization, adjustments might be made to an educational program based on demands from parents, teachers, and students is consistent with systems theory.

Question 54

Rational-Choice Theory is most related to which of the following?

A)Behavioralism
B)Modernization Theory
C)Game Theory
D)Contractualism

Question 55

Gross Domestic Product is frequently used to assess __________.

A)wealth
B)health care
C)education
D)systems

Question 56

Rational-Choice theory became popular among political scientists during what time period?

A)Prior to World War I
B)Prior to World War II
C)The 1950s
D)The 1970s

Question 57

Political theory was limited to Europe until the 20ᵗʰ Century.

Question 58

John Locke's theories were more pessimistic than Thomas Hobbes.

Question 59

India's democracy appears to defy expectations based on Modernization theory.

Question 60

The "political systems" model was devised by David Easton.

Question 61

How are the terms "descriptive" and "normative" different from each other?

Question 62

The concept of the __________ suggests that society's interests might trump individual, selfish concerns.

Question 63

Why are capitalists doomed, according to Marx?

Question 64

Formal structures of government, like the presidency or the courts, are referred to as __________.

Question 65

A feedback loop is associated with __________ theory.

Question 66

What did Hobbes mean when he stated a "war of each against all?"

Question 67

Why is rational-choice theory often referred to as game theory?

Question 68

Rational-Choice theorists might employ __________ theory to study how political actors might behave.

Question 69

__________ theory would likely predict that democracy might follow a nation once it becomes wealthy.

Question 70

What were the advantages and disadvantages of the behavioral approach to studying politics? Evaluate some problems with this approach.

Question 71

Evaluate the biological analogy at the heart of systems theory.Analyze the utility of this analogy.

Question 72

Hobbes imagined a __________ society.

Question 73

A __________ is a model or way of doing research which is accepted by the discipline.

Question 74

Explain Confucius' vision for a good, stable government.Could this apply to the United States?

Question 75

Niccolo Machiavelli's __________ was about getting and using political __________.

Question 76

Karl Marx argued that if a country went to war, it was likely to benefit the __________.

Question 77

What often happens to poor nations trying to become democratic? Why?

Question 78

Contrast the Contractualists' state of nature and the consequences of each vision.

Question 79

The German term __________ refers to the spirit of the times.