Lecture 2

Question 1

Power (to)

Answer 1

the capacity to bring about intended effects;

ability to achieve goals

Question 2

Power (over)

Answer 2

forceful mode of influence; focuses on
relationships
“the ability to influence or force others to do something that
would not otherwise have done”

Question 3

Three dimensions of power

Answer 3

• Power as decision-making: who prevails when
preferences conflict? (Dahl, 1961)
• Power as agenda setting: who controls whether
preferences are expressed? (Bachrach & Baratz, 1962)
• Power as thought control: who shapes preferences?
(Lukes, 1974)

Question 4

political power

Answer 4

the ability held by individuals and groups in a society that
allows them to create and enforce laws and policies for the
community

Question 5

authority

Answer 5

the right to exercise power and influence of a particular position that
comes with that position

Question 6

Legitimacy

Answer 6

• citizens’ belief that the power-holders have the right to exercise
power and authority
• Different from Legality (being lawful)

Question 7

Jurisdiction

Answer 7

the territory or sphere of activity over which the legal authority of
(political) power extends

Question 8

Legislative

Answer 8

the power to make laws and policies

Question 9

Executive

Answer 9

the power to put plans, policies, or laws into

effect and enforce them

Question 10

Judiciary

Answer 10

he power to interpret laws and punish who

break them

Question 11

Heredity

Answer 11

power and authority is passed on to one who is a 
member of (royal) family

Question 12

Affiliation

Answer 12

power and authority is passed among members

of a group/party

Question 13

Election

Answer 13

power-holders are chosen by an electoral process

Question 14

State

Answer 14

a territory containing a population and marked by borders,
having the legal and political authority known as government, that is
regarded as both sovereign by the citizens of the state and the
governments of other states.

Question 15

people/Citizen

Answer 15

mass of population living within the state

Question 16

Territory

Answer 16

fixed portion of the surface of the earth inhabited by

the people of the state

Question 17

Government

Answer 17

managing authority through which the will of the
state is formulated, expressed and carried out

consists of institutions responsible for making
collective decisions for society

Question 18

Sovereignty

Answer 18

he supreme source of authority of the state to
command and enforce obedience (internal sovereignty); which is
recognized by other states (external sovereignty)

Question 19

Citizen

Answer 19

A full member of a state, entitled to the rights and subject to
duties associated with that state

Question 20

Nation-State (Sovereign-State)

Answer 20

Autonomous political community whose citizens share a common national identity

Question 21

Multinational State

Answer 21

a range of national identities under a single government e.g. United Kingdom, Canada, Belgium

Question 22

Two conceptions of the state

Answer 22

Natural rights (by John Locke)
• Citizens posses natural right to life, liberty and property, given by
God or by nature
• Must be protected by law and limit the authority of government;
state as problem
• Underpinning the American revolution and constitution

General will (by Jean-Jacques Rousseau)
• Citizens make decisions for the good of society as a whole
• Empowered government; state as solution
• Underpinning the French revolution and constitution

Question 23

Westphalian system

Answer 23

the modern state system emerged after 1648 Peace of

Westphalia, based on sovereignty of states and political self-determination

Question 24

Criticism of the State

Answer 24

• Imposing unnecessary divisions on human society.
• Having a history of going to war with each other.
• Limiting the free movement of people and capital.
• Pursuing state interests at the expense of human interests.
• Allowing exclusion to dominate over inclusion.
• Promoting narrow identities at the expense of broader identities.
• Poor record of working with other states to address shared problems
such as terrorism, trans-boundary pollution, illegal immigration, and
the spread of disease.

Question 25

Globalization

Answer 25

Process by which links between people, corporations, and
governments in different states become integrated through
trade, investment, and technology

Question 26

Intergovernmental Organizations

Answer 26

bodies whose

members are multiple states

Question 27

Political System/ Regime

Answer 27

Interactions and organizations,
including but not restricted to government, through which
collective decisions are made and enforced

Question 28

(Liberal) Democracy

Answer 28

• Representative and limited government based on formal
laws and rules
• Guarantee of civil liberties and individual rights (freedom of
expression, association)
• Free and fair elections based on universal suffrage, party
competition and political pluralism
• Systems of checks and balances
• Independent media and public access to information for
‘enlightened understanding’

Question 29

Authoritarian regime

Answer 29

• Rulers above the law and not accountable
• Political and individual rights (freedom of expression,
association) are violated
• No elections or show/sham elections
• Political participation is limited and discouraged
• Independent parties are banned
• The media are controlled

Question 30

Hybrid regime (anocracy or competitive 
authoritarianism)

Answer 30

• Combination of democratic and authoritarian elements
• Rulers are elected in a competitive (but not fee) elections
• Rulers exploit their position and interfere media to keep their
opponents off-balance
• Rule of law and checks and balances (e.g. Judiciary) are
weak
• Individual rights are poorly established

Question 31

Indexes for classifying political systems

Answer 31

• Freedom in the World index
• Democracy index
• V-dem project