Political Parties Key Terms Flashcards
What is Socialism?
A state of mind and a political movement that places values such as equality of opportunity, social justice and collectivism high on its scale of values. Either opposed to free market capitalism or proposes measures to moderate the undesirable effects of capitalism
What is Conservatism?
A state of mind and a political movement that is naturally adverse to excessive change and reform. Is sceptical about strongly held political views, prefers the known to the unknown and generally supports the retention of traditional institutions and values
What is Liberalism?
A state of mind and a political movement that places freedom, rights and tolerance high on its scale of values
What is Old Labour/Social Democracy?
A political, social and economic ideology that supports economic and social interventions to promote social justice within the framework of a capitalist economy, and a policy regime involving a commitment to representative democracy, measures for income redistribution and regulation of the economy in the general interest and welfare state provision
What is New Labour/a Third Way?
A movement to update Britain’s Labour Party by discarding the traditional Labour platform calling for state ownership of the means of production. Movement was led by Tony Blair, PM 1997-2010
What is One Nation Conservatism?
(Also known as one nationism)
Form of British political conservatism that views society as organic and values paternalism and pragmatism. The phrase comes from Benjamin Disraeli, Conservative PM 1874-80
What is the New Right?
Political movement that became popular in USA and Britain in late 1970s-80s. Largely a combination of very liberal attitudes towards the free market + capitalist economy and very conservative attitudes to society, morality and the maintenance of law and order. In UK- associated with Margret Thatcher
What is Classical Liberalism?
Political philosophy and ideology, belonging to liberalism in which primary emphasis is placed on securing freedom of the individual by limiting power of the government
What is Modern Liberalism?
Focuses around the use of the state for the benefit of society as a whole. Generally associated with social welfare programs and variety of other means that are used to support society
What are Party Systems?
Concepts in comparative political science concerning the system of government by political parties in a democratic country
What is Left Wing/Right Wing?
Commonly used way of describing political tendencies.
What is Left Wing?
Left wing related to ideas associated with socialism or social democracy
What is Right Wing?
Right wing normally refers to conservative ideas
What is Factionalism?
Tendency within parties to split into different internal groups who hold views that are at variance with main beliefs of the party. Such groups/factions may be formal groupings or merely informal tendencies.
What is Consensus politics?
A circumstance where 2 or more major political parties broadly agree on most basic policies. A period where there are few or no major political conflicts. It may refer to a single issue where different parties agree to support the same policies. This implies a lack of strong ideology in politics
What is Adversary politics?
Opposite of consensus. Circumstance where political parties are engaged in considerable conflict over political issues. Also implies there are strong ideological conflicts in politics
What is aggregation?
Policy formation function
- Identifying a wide range of demands made on the political system, and converting them into programmes of action
What is Traditional/Burkean Conservatism?
· Want to preserve what is of value, keep hold of what works in society, sceptical of change, won’t implement it too fast
What is One Nation Conservatism?
Paternalistic form of British Conservatism
- advocates preservation of established institutions and traditional principles within a political democracy, combined with social and economic programmes that benefit the ordinary person
- Society should be allowed to develop organically, rather than with state intervention
- Members of society have obligations towards one another-> the elite should work to reconcile interests of all social classes
- Government is a figure that has a duty to look after the people
What is The Organic Society?
- Stresses need to unite the nation to prevent social conflict by suggesting people are part of one single body (the nation) and are all interdependent
- Classes should work together and maintain their place in society to maintain nation’s welfare, rather than engage in conflict
What is Pragmatism?
- Flexible approach to politics, incorporating what is best for the people, what is acceptable to them, and what will preserve a stable society
What is Individualism?
- Suggests each individual and household should be presented with widest possible range of choices and opportunities + the state should restrict choice as little as possible.
What is a Faction?
smaller, organised, dissenting group within a party
What is the Hybrid Philosophy?
combination of neo conservatism and neo liberalism
- Popular in 1970s and 1980s in USA and Britain
What is a Monopoly?
when one company holds main market power
What is Neo-Conservatism?
Economic Patriotism, Social Conservatism, mono culturalism
What is Economic Patriotism?
stress on nationalism through its economic interests, leading British neo conservatives to oppose European integration (not in British best interest). Sceptical of international free trade, preferring protectionism
What is Social Conservatism?
Authoritarian stance on crime with severe punishment for criminals seen as best form of deterrence. Believe modern western society is in moral decline, proposing restoration of traditional moral values. Desire for traditional family unit
What is Monoculturalism?
all members of society adopt same culture and values of culture, can be intolerant to different cultures, suspicious of immigration and asylum seeking. See influx of migrants as threat to traditional British values
Where can Revolutionary Socialism/Marxism be found?
Soviet union/China
Where can Moderate socialism/ social democracy be found?
Britain
What is Common Ownership?
Clause IV of the 1918 Manifesto:
- Most equitable distribution of assets, goods and services through basic common ownership and exchange - Want to nationalise all industries - Got rid of by Tony Blair in 90s
What is New Labour/Third way?
- Leftist approach to social policy
- Thatcherite/Free Market views to economy
What is Liberty?
Freedom, privacy, individual rights
What is Social Justice?
New/modern Liberal idea
Removal of unjustifiable inequalities in incomes in society, equality of opportunity, removal of all artificial privileges which people might have been born into
What is Welfare?
New/modern Liberal idea
People cannot be genuinely free if they are enslaved by poverty, unemployment or sickness, or deprivations of old age-> state welfare sets them free
What is Constitutionalism?
Power of government should be firmly controlled, by limiting power of government via strong constitution
What are Social reformers?
people that believe in reform in Support rights of women, disabled, ethnic minorities, LGBT+ community, same sex marriage
What is Liberal Democracy (human rights and support for democracy)?
Support for constitutional reform
What is Multiculturalism?
Different cultures and lifestyle should be welcomes and granted special rights, links to liberal’s pluralist outlook on society
What is a Party System?
A party system refers to the way or manner in which the political parties in a political system are grouped and structured. There are several variants that could apply to the UK; these include one-party dominant, two-party, two-and-a-half-party and multi-party systems.
What is a One Party system?
Only one party is allowed to operate.
Normally associated with highly authoritarian regimes e.g., Russia, China
What is a dominant party system?
- Refers to democratic systems which allow parties to operate freely, but where only one party has a realistic chance of power
- Such systems are highly stable, although there is a lack of accountability and competition e.g., Scotland (previous, ie 90s SNP), Denmark
What is a two and a half party system?
- System where there are two main parties that contest elections but also a sizable third party.
- Usually, these third parties can be seen as holding the balance of power between the two main parties, much as the liberal democrats did in 2010 in the UK.
Canada and Australia appear to fit this model. While the UK could be seen as a two-and-a-half party system, it is rare the third party forms part of the government.
What is a 2 party system?
- Only two parties have a realistic chance of forming a government.
- Implication is that two parties win forms votes at elections and most of the seats available in relevant representative assemblies e.g., USA
What is a multi party system?
- System where there are two main parties that contest elections but also a sizable third party.
- Usually, these third parties can be seen as holding the balance of power between the two main parties, much as the liberal democrats did in 2010 in the UK.
Canada and Australia appear to fit this model. While the UK could be seen as a two-and-a-half party system, it is rare the third party forms part of the government.
