Power Flashcards
the political system that enables the people to periodically elect those who will govern them
Democracy
a democratic political system in which citizens participate directly in the decision making process eg by voting on proposals for policies (does not occur in britain)
direct democracy
a democratic political system in which citizens elect representatives such as MPs who make political decisions on their behalf. britain is run in this way
indirect democracy/representative democracy or parliamentary democracy
the person elected to represent a constituency in the House of Commons
member of parliament (MP)
the voting system in which the candidate who gains more votes than any of his or her rivals in a constituency is chosen to be the MP
‘first past the post’
the geographical area which elects a single MP to represent them in parliament
constituency
an organisation established to secure the election of its members or supporters into public office. a vote for a particular candidate is also a vote for the leader of that party to become PM
political parties
the head of the government in britain. he or she is the leader of the majority party in the house of commons
prime minister
the main party that is not in government. the party with the next largest number of MPs
opposition/official opposition
refers to either the political or legal status associated with membership of a particular state such as the uk OR to active involvement in public life and the political process
citizenship
members of a state who have full legal rights (eg to vote in elections) and responsibilities (eg to respect the law)
citizens
the political system that has a hereditary Head of State.
monarchy
a type of monarchy (occurs in britain) in which the monarch’s powers are exercised by the prime minister. the monarch reigns but does not rule
constitutional monarchy
a political system in which power is concentrated in the hands of an individual or small group who have not been freely and fairly elected
dictatorship
the process by which people learn political skills, beliefs and values
political socialisation
a group, usually concerned with a single issue, that applies pressure to try to bring about change. some protect sectional interests, others promote causes. they do not wish to form government
pressure group
the power of those entitled to use it
authority
suggests a connection between voters’ class positions and their voting preferences. mainly 50s and 60s
class alignment
suggests a weakening of the connection between class position and voting preference. last 35 years
class de-alignment
more people prepared to vote for whatever party appears to offer the best deal
‘floating voters’
the proportion of eligible voters who actually show up to vote in an election
turnout
those eligible to vote in elections. the vast majority of people aged 18 and over
electorate
after a general election, the winning party can claim that it has this (or the authority) to carry out its policies, based on the wishes of the electorate
mandate
a statement of policy proposals issued by a political party before an election
manifesto
less favourable or unfair treatment based, for example, on an individual’s age, gender, ethnicity.
discrimination
a list of female-only, selected candidates from which the final choice is made
all-women short list
a pressure group, such as a trade union, that seeks to protect or defend its members’ common interests
protective group
a pressure group, such as Amnesty International, that seeks to promote a particular cause or campaign on a specific issue
promotional group
pressure groups which operate inside government networks and are consulted by government departments, civil servants, ministers etc when policy proposals are being prepared. eg the automobile association (AA) and the confederation of british industry (CBI)
insider group
pressure groups that are not consulted automatically by the government. this may be because their aims are not recognised by the government
outsider group
people who wish to crate a society based on equality. they argue that governments should have a wider responsibility for their citizens’ quality of life
socialists
political. means that those involved in government, of whatever party, share similar ideas about what the government should do
consensus
politics. those who see radical change as dangerous and suggest that governments should reform institutions only when a clear need to do so has been established
conservatives
politics. see its main aim as protecting the interests of working people. Its approach to politics is based on working class values such as solidarity
‘old’ labour
a political approach based on the belief that governments should limit their activity to maintaining ‘law and order’. in particular, governments should not interfere with market forces in the economy
neo-liberalism
a system in which the state takes responsibility for protecting its citizens’ health and welfare by providing services eg the NHS and benefits eg income support
welfare state
benefits which require the claimant to have paid sufficiently into the next national insurance (NI) scheme in order to qualify for them
contributory benefits
benefits such as income support that are designed for people in financial need who have not paid enough NI contributions to qualify for NI benefits
non-contributory benefits
benefits, including national insurance (NI) benefits, which are the responsibility of central government
national benefits
benefits, such as housing benefit, which are the responsibility of individual councils
local benefits
a test to establish ned before financial help from public funds is given
means test
some people who rely on state benefits are seen as developing a way of life in which they become so dependent on benefits that they lose all motivation to work
dependency culture
the percentage of economically active people who are unemployed at a given time
unemployment rate
those aged 16 and over who are either in work or actively seeking work
economically active
people who are neither in work nor actively seeking it
economically inactive
an association of employees such as the national union of teachers, that protects its members’ rights in the workplace
trade union
income and savings assessed to find out if the total is less than a level set by the government
means tested
obedience based on the use of force. we obey a group or an individual because we feel we have no choice. this power includes the threat or use of physical violence or torture
coercion
the exercise of power based on consent or agreement when we willingly obey someone because we think that it’s the right thing to do
authority
a type of authority in which obedience is based on custom and tradition eg monarchy
traditional authority
a type of authority in which obedience is based on an individual or group’s position in an organisation
legal rational authority
a type of authority in which obedience is based on an individual’s charisma or extraordinary personal qualities
charismatic authority
in South Africa (1948-94) a government policy of segregation is known as this, and was used as the basis for stratification. Mandela led a large movement against it.
apartheid
groups established to protect a sectional interest and to influence the political decisions that may affect them
interest groups
political action. sometimes illegal, taken outside the normal political process eg eco warriors chaining themselves to bulldozers to delay building developments
direct action
an attitude based on the belief that people high on the social scale are superior and should be looked up to
deferential
an informal, loosely organised coalition of individuals or groups supporting an interest or cause
new social movement
a word occasionally used by feminists to mean mainstream, thereby drawing attention to the gender bias of much language
malestream
a process through which people, organisations and states become increasingly interdependent, both economically and culturally
globalisation
an independent state whose inhabitants form a single, national community
nation state
companies, businesses which operate on a global scale, in may countries. have no particular commitment to the welfare of workers, consumers/general public of britain
transnational companies
a set of individuals between whom there is a strong sense of identity. the individuals may or may not live in the same locality
community
expresses the idea of separation. a sense of powerlessness is part of this eg an employee may have no power to decide how a job will be done or how quickly to work. citizen may feel powerlessness to influence government
alienation
