Chapter One

Question 1

Authoritarianism

Answer 1

System of government in which the government holds strong powers but is checked by some forces.

Question 2

Capitalism

Answer 2

An economic system in which the means of producing wealth are privately owned and operated to produce profits.

Question 3

Citizens

Answer 3

Members of the polity who, through birth or naturalization, enjoy the rights, privileges, and responsibilities attached to membership in a given nation.

Question 4

Civic Engagement

Answer 4

Individual and collective actions designed to identify and address issues of public concern.

Question 5

Consent of the Governed

Answer 5

The idea that, in a democracy, the government’s power derives from the consent of the people.

Question 6

Conservatism

Answer 6

An ideology that emphasizes preserving tradition and relying on community and family as mechanisms of continuity in society.

Question 7

Constitutionalism

Answer 7

Government that is structured by law, and in which the power of government is limited.

Question 8

Democracy

Answer 8

Government in which supreme power of governance lies in the hands of its citizens.

Question 9

Demographics

Answer 9

Characteristics of the American people in terms of race, sex, educational attainment and other characteristics

Question 10

Direct Democracy

Answer 10

A structure of government in which citizens discuss and decide policy through majority rule.

Question 11

Divine Right of Kings

Answer 11

The assertion that monarchies, as a manifestation of God’s will, could rule absolutely without regard to the will or well-being of their subjects.

Question 12

Efficacy

Answer 12

Citizens’ belief that they have the ability to achieve something desirable and that the government listens to people like them.

Question 13

Government

Answer 13

The institution that creates and implements policy and laws that guide the conduct of the nation and its citizens.

Question 14

Indirect Democracy

Answer 14

Sometimes called a representative democracy, a system in which citizens elect representatives who decide policies on behalf of their constituents.

Question 15

Legitimacy

Answer 15

A quality conferred on government by citizens who believe that its exercise of power is right and proper.

Question 16

Liberalism

Answer 16

An ideology that advocates change in the social, political, and economic realms to better protect the well-being of individuals and to produce equality within society.

Question 17

Libertarianism

Answer 17

An ideology whose advocates believe that government should take a “hands off” approach in most matters.

Question 18

Liberty

Answer 18

The most essential quality of American democracy; it is both the freedom from governmental interference in citizens’ lives and the freedom to pursue happiness.

Question 19

Limited Government

Answer 19

Government that is restricted in what it can do so that the rights of the people are protected.

Question 20

Majority Rule

Answer 20

The idea that in a democracy, only policies with 50 percent plus one vote are enacted, and only candidates that win 50 percent plus one vote are elected.

Question 21

Monarchy

Answer 21

Government in which a member of a royal family, usually a king or queen, has absolute authority over a territory and its government.

Question 22

Natural Law

Answer 22

The assertion that standards that govern human behavior are derived from the nature of humans themselves and can be applied universally.

Question 23

Naturalization

Answer 23

The process of becoming a citizen by means other than birth, as in the case of immigrants.

Question 24

Oligarchy

Answer 24

Government in which an elite few hold power.

Question 25

Political Culture

Answer 25

The people’s collective beliefs and attitudes about government and political processes.

Question 26

Political Engagement

Answer 26

Citizen actions that are intended to solve public problems through political means.

Question 27

Political Ideology

Answer 27

An integrated system of ideas or beliefs about political values in general and the role of government in particular.

Question 28

Politics

Answer 28

The process of deciding who gets benefits in society and who does not.

Question 29

Popular Sovereignty

Answer 29

The theory that government is created by the people and depends on the people for the authority to rule.

Question 30

Property

Answer 30

Anything that can be owned.

Question 31

Progressives

Answer 31

A faction within the Democratic party who emphasize the need for societal reform that results in greater economic and social equality.

Question 32

Public Goods

Answer 32

Goods whose benefits cannot be limited and that are available to all.

Question 33

Social Contract

Answer 33

An agreement between people and their leaders in which the people agree to give up some liberties so that their other liberties are protected.

Question 34

Social Contract Theory

Answer 34

The idea that individuals possess free will, and every individual is equally endowed with the God-given right of self-determination and the ability to consent to be governed.

Question 35

Socialism

Answer 35

An ideology that advocates economic equality, theoretically achieved by having the government or workers own the means of production (businesses and industry).

Question 36

Totalitarianism

Answer 36

System of government in which the government essentially controls every aspect of people’s lives.