Political Sociology II- The State and its Institutions Flashcards
Cybernetics
Study of society’s conscious mechanism of control
Talcott Parsons
Uses this to place state on his AGIL framwork
The State
the most prominent social body responsible for setting rules that govern us as a whole and the whole network of institutions it involves
Nation
idealised image of society as culturally, ethnically, or linguistically unified whole
Nation-State
a ruling state institutions that identifies itself as a state of a particular ethnic/Cultural group, not just as an impartial governing institution
Politics from a sociological perspective
a struggle for control of the state, so as to be able to make decisions that affect all of society
Power of the STATE
the overall centralized political and social apparatus of decision-making and administration
Power of the GOVERNMENT
the specific branch of state tasked with making decisions and setting policy
Power of the STATE INSTITUTION
Carry out policy, keep peace, maintain law and order .
Power of the CIVIL SOCIETY
The rest of society considered as a whole.
2b.
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Separation of powers
principle that different branches of government should be in hands of different people, to reduce the possibility of abuses of power
Executive power
power to carry out the law with force and conduct foreign relation
Legislative power
Power to make the law, and to decide broad policy directions
Judiciary Power
power to interpret and apply law to particular cases
Who developed separation of power?
John Locke
Totalitariianism
state controls EVERY aspect of social life; signs of political power are everywhere
Authoritarianism
strong central leader, little public opposition, may rely on force to ensure compliance
Liberal Democracy
open public sphere theoretically governed by citizens, with protection for rights of free speech
Pluralism
pluralist societies have no single or unified ruling ideas: they try to include many different voices
Direct Democracy
entire body of citizens make all decisions on state affairs. everyone is part of the government
Representative Democracy
citizens vote for representatives to make decisions for them in parliament
Proportional representation
MP’s chosen on party’s national share of vote
First-past-the-post System
MP’s chosen individually by local riding/constituency
public sphere
third space between private home life and political state in which free debate takes place to form the public voice and influence the power
Jurgen Habermas
Suggests society participates indirectly in shaping government by way of broader institution of civil society
economic CLASS
possession of material WEALTH
social STATUS GROUP
attribution of HONOUR, prestige or privilege
political PARTY
control of legal or political POWER
Polyarchy
decisions emerge from multiple different sources of power, not necessarily froma single state controlled by tight knit groups.
Power Elite
small group at the top, including wealthiest businessmen, political leaders, old ruling classes who have effective control over power
Vertical Mosaic (Porter)
porter’s term to describe power hierarchy in Canada: a vertical hierarchy of racial or ethnic groups
Closure (Weber)
Weber’s term for the way elites maintain position by monopolising
Ideological power
power over culture, values, beliefs
Economic power
power over the things people need to survive and prosper
Military power
power over weapons, soldiers, armies and territory
Political Power
power over state apparatuses, to set law that people must obey
Citizenship
political membership in a state, granting rights and liberties protected by the institution of government
Civil liberties
freedom of speech, assembly, movement, and press which protect us from the government
Civil rights
positive right guaranteed to every member of state
bureaucracy
trained professional officials, operating by set rules and procedures to administer organization
governmentality
Foucault’s term for the techniques of power by which state creates ‘good citizens’
Micheal Foucault
individual who believed that the modern state and it bureaucratic institution are everywhere, shaping everything we do
