Chapter 1 Flashcards
Area Studies
A regional focus when studying political science, rather than studying parts of the world where similar variables are clustered
Comparative Politics
The study and comparison of domestic politics across countries
International Relations
A field in political science that concentrates on relations between countries
Comparative Method
The means by which social scientists make comparison across cases
Causation
When one variable appears to directly influence another
Correlation
Shows that there is relationship between two variables but they don’t necessarily impact one another
Multicausality
When variables are interconnected and interact to produce particular outcomes
Deductive Reasoning
Research that works from a hypothesis and is then tested against data
Inductive Reasoning
Research that works from case studies in order to generate hypotheses
Qualitative Method
Emphasis on depth over breadth, study through an in-depth investigation of a limited number of cases
Quantitative Method
Emphasis on breadth over depth, study of many cases using statistical data
Dependent Variable
The effect, depends on other factors and is expected to change
Independent Variable
The cause, remains constant and isn’t changed by other variables
Equality
A material standard of living shared by individuals within a community, society, or country
Freedom
The ability of an individual to act independently, without fear of restriction or punishment by the state or other individuals or groups in society
Institutions
Organizations or activities that are self-perpetuating and valued for their own sake.
Formal Institutions
Based on officially sanctioned rules that are relatively clear
Informal Institutions
Institutions with unwritten and unofficial rules but just as influential/powerful as formal
Politics
The struggle in any group for power that will give one or more persons the ability to make decisions for the larger group
Power
The ability to influence others or impose one’s will on them
Theory
An integrated set of hypotheses, assumptions, and facts
Modernization Theory
A theory that believes that as societies developed they would take on a common set of characteristics including democracy and capitalism
Behavioral Revolution
A movement within political science during the 1950s and 60s to develop general theories about individual political behavior that could be applied across all countries
Rational Choice
Approach that assumes that individuals weigh the costs and benefits and make choices to maximize their benefits
Game Theory
An approach that emphasizes how actors or organizations behave in their goal to influence others
Endogeneity
The issue that cause and effect are often not clear, variables may be both cause and effect in relation to one another
Selection Bias
A focus on effects rather than causes, which can lead to inaccurate conclusions about correlation or causation
