Democracy

Question 1

what are the major contemporary political systems?

Answer 1

totalitarian, authoritarianism, monarchy, democracy

Question 2

what is legal-rationality authority?

Answer 2

authority bound to rules and to institutions and creating and changing these rules is outside control of those who administer it

Question 3

what are the problems of democracy?

Answer 3

o Extensive bureaucracy- unelected members, untransparent
o Economic power- influence by lobbying and international position
o Participation in system- “diploma democracy”, disconnected groups

Question 4

what is polarisation?

Answer 4

process whereby the normal multiplicity of differences in a society increasingly align along a single dimension and people
increasingly perceive and describe politics as “us” vs “them”

Question 5

what does agonistic pluralism refer to?

Answer 5

allows a possible consensus, the opponent is not considered an enemy to be destroyed, but an adversary whose existence is perceived as legitimate
It is aimed to reduce inequality and injustice

Question 6

what are the mechanisms of antagonism?

Answer 6

• the psychological and information effect
• the moral effect
• the public policy effect
• the patronage effect
• the delegitimization effect

Question 7

generations and democracy

Answer 7

OLDER people: Authoritarian reflex- strong leader, security and order, less support for democratic values
YOUNGER people: Democratic deconsolidation and revolt against democracy

Question 8

why is the younger generation against democracy?

Answer 8

the 4 Ds:
 Distrust (in the institutions)
 Dealignment (disconnect with mainstream parties)
 Destruction (globalisation and individualization)
 Deprivation (crisis in education, work, housing…)

Question 9

what is microeconomics?

Answer 9

studies individuals and business decisions with focus on supply and demand relations

Question 10

what is macroeconomics?

Answer 10

decisions made by countries and governments, looking at the economy as a whole

Question 11

what is political economy?

Answer 11

the study of how economic theories play out in the real world

Question 12

what is neoliberalism?

Answer 12

self-sufficiency and individualism, not supporting the weak, a culture based on dependency and entitlement

Question 13

what is managerialism?

Answer 13

competition will force each to become more efficient and reduce overall costs, a totalitarian ideology

Question 14

what is bureaucracy?

Answer 14

base decisions on rules but that disconnect the individual from reality

Question 15

what is Barbara Townley’s disembedded rationality?

Answer 15

idealization of rationality that enables us to ignore the social side of interactions