Chapter 1 Vocabulary (Textbook) Flashcards
area studies
a regional focus when studying political science, rather than studying parts of the world where similar variables are clustered
behavioral revolution
a movement within political science during the 1950s and 1960s to develop general theories about individual political behavior that could be applied across all countries
causal relationship
cause and effect; when a change in one variable causes a change in another variable
comparative method
the means by which social scientists make comparisons across cases
comparative politics
the study and comparison of domestic politics across countries
correlation
an apparrent relationship between two or more variables
deductive reasoning
research that works from a hypothesis that is then tested against data
dependent variable
a variable whose value changes based on that of another
endogeneity
the issue that cause and effect are not often clear, in that variable may be both cause and effect in relationship to one another
equality
a material standard of living shared by individuals within a community, society, or country
formal institutions
institutions usually based on officially sanctioned rules that are relatively clear
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
game theory
independent variable
inductive relationship
informal institution
institution
international relations
modernization theory
multicausality
politics
power
qualitiative method
quantitative method
rational choice
selection bias
theory
