Politics and Economy Flashcards
Politics
Social relations involving authority or power, the regulation of political units, and the methods used to formulate and apply social policy
Power
The capacity to influence lead, dominate, or otherwise have an impact on the life and actions of others in society
Authority
A concept of a legal right of a person or group to govern the actions of their subordinates and make decisions for the organization
Coercion
The use of force or threats to make someone comply with certain actions or behaviors against their will
State
A form of human association distinguished from other social groups by its purpose, the establishment of order and security
Traditional Authority
Power that is rooted in traditional, or long-standing, beliefs and practices of a society
Rational-legal authority
Indicates that authority is invested in a set of rules and rule-bound institutions and that the creating and changing the rules are outside of the control of those who administer them
Charismatic authority
A concept of organizational leadership wherein the authority of the leader derives from the personal charisma of the leader
Routinization of charisma
The inevitable transformation of charismatic leadership into institutional authority
City-state
A political system consisting of an independent city having sovereignty over contiguous territory and serving as a centre and leader of political, economic, and cultural life
Monarchy
A political system in which supreme authority is vested in the monarch, an individual ruler who functions as head of state
Democracy
A system of government in which laws, polices, leadership, and major undertakings of a state or other polity are directly or indirectly by the people
Direct Democracy
The people decide on policies without any intermediary or representative
Representative democracy
People vote for representative who then enact policy initiatives
Citizenship
Membership in a polity
Universal citizenship
Citizenship for everyone
Dictatorship
A country governed by a dictator
Oligarchy
A small group of people having control of a country, organization, or institution
Totalitarianism
a system of government that is centralized and dictorial and requires complete subservience to the state
Voter Apathy
The disinterest of indifference of eligible voters toward participating in electoral processes
Special interest groups
A group of people or an organization seeking or reviving special advantages, typically through political lobbying
Lobbyists
Any attempt to influence the action of any legislative body or any federal, state, or local government agency, or to affect the opinions of the general public
Political action committees
A political committee that is directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained or controlled by a candidate or an individual holding federal office
Anarchy
There is no central ruler or governing body
Pluralism
A situation in which people of different social classes, religions, races are together in a society but continues to have their differences traditions and interests
Checks and balances
The separation of power to avoid one entity or body wielding too much power
Power elite
The people in society who make all the decisions that matter
Ruling class
The social class who set and decide the political and economic agenda of society
Terrorism
The use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims
Economy
A social system that produces, distributes, and consumes goods and services in society
Subsistence economy
An economy directed to one’s subsistence rather that to the market
Conspicuous consumption
The purchase of goods or services for the specific purpose of displaying one;s wealth
Capitalism
An economic system characterized by private ownership of the means of production, with labor solely paid wages
Laissez-faire capitalism
An economic philosophy of free-market capitalism that opposes government intervention
Socialism
A political and economic system in which property and the means of production are owned in common, typically controlled by the state or government
Market forces
Supply and demand, which determine the allocation of scarce resources and the relative prices of goods, services, and assets in a market economy
Democratic socialism
A left-wing set of political philosophies that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy
Convergence theory
As a country’s economy grows, its societal organization changes to become more like that of an industrialized society
Global superclass
The power of the elite world
