Advanced Placement – Introduction Cheat Sheet

The topics of the course are:

- The Comparative Method
- Sovereignty, Authority, and Power
- Political and Economic Change
- Citizens, Society, and State
- Political Institutions
- Public Policy

Comparative Politics:
- The study of HOW internal and external forces affect a country’s domestic politics
- These studies are done to: a) test hypotheses; b) understand political processes; c) explain those
political processes
- Comparative politics is good for: a) explaining complex correlations; b) qualitative and quantitative
analysis; c) interpreting policy making in a global context; d) assessing policy alternatives
- Case study is the most common type of study (the “BIG 6” – United Kingdom, Russia, China, Mexico,
Iran, Nigeria [and the EU])
- Case Studies are: a) specific examples of developments, issues, and institutions; b) bounded by
geographic spaces OR c) over certain periods of time
- Comparisons are often based on democracy vs. authoritarianism and communism vs. capitalism

Comparative Studies are done in many ways:

- Quantitative Design Strategy: Measuring and counting empirical discrete “elements” (actions,
statements, election results, political party sizes, etc.) to identify correlations
- Qualitative Design Strategy: Observing factors less amenable to numerical measurement (patriotism,
political integration, shared values, etc.) to identify correlations
- Most Similar System Design Strategy: Comparing significant differences between two or more very
similar systems to identify correlations
- Most Different Systems Design Strategy: Comparing significant similarities between very dissimilar
systems to identify correlations
- Mixed Design Strategy – MOST studies use multiple strategies to identify correlations

While case studies focus on empirical data, they are often done in efforts to answer normative
questions (ex. How can democracy best be poromoted? Does prosperity improve human rights?)

Classification:
- Classification systems are based on correlations, causations, and generalizations about groups of
countries organized around the “Three World Approach”
- Industrialized Democracies are established democracies, with the most resources for creating and
sustaining power. They are wealthy and have reasonably effective and popular political
institutions – usually have built in restraints of power (constitutions/legislation) – competitive
elections [United Kingdom]
- Communist and post-Communist States sought to create systems that limit individual freedom and
divide the wealth equally- Communist states were/are extremely strong and control/controlled
almost everything (schools, press, economy) – as Communism fell – countries began to
liberalize (individual and economic freedoms). China implemented liberal economic reform while
retaining tight control over political life. [Russia/China]
- Global South/Less Developed Countries generally fall into TWO categories: a) newly industrialized
experiencing rapid economic growth with a tendency toward democratization and political
stability; OR b) lack significant economic development and/or lean toward authoritarian state.
[a) Mexico and Iran – b) Nigeria]
Theoretical approaches:
- Theoretical approaches determine what similarities and differences are significant and what
strategies are appropriate
- Rational Choice Theory: People act rationally in their own self-interest. Understanding their
perceptions of their self-interest will explain their behavior. Therefore a comparative study should
focus on individual behavior and motivation.

- Structural Theory: Human actions are determined by underlying arrangements which guide
behavior. (ex. Marxism proposed economic relationships as such arguments.) Understanding the
structure will explain political behavior. Therefore a comparative study will focus on the
structures that determine relationships.
- Cultural Theory: Culture is a way of believing and acting shared by people with a common
identity. Culture varies and evolves over time. Understanding the culture will explain political
behavior. Therefore a comparative study will focus on context within which people act
politically.
- Systems Theory: Inputs to the state affect decision making which creates outputs of public policy.
The environments outside of the state and feedback from previous decisions influence policy
making. Therefore a comparative study will examine the system as a whole mechanism in
search of explanations for political behavior.

Major Ideas/Concepts/Terms
- Empirical – Factual, numbers, stats, data, objective
- Normative – Value judgment, subjective, explained
- Qualitative Data – Deals with descriptions, data that can be observed but not measured
- Quantitative Data – Deals with numbers, data which can be measured
- Causation – One variable causes an influence on another variable
- Correlation – When change in one variable coincides with a change in another variable
- Independent Variable – Is a variable that stands alone and isn't changed by the other variables
you are trying to measure (IV)
- Dependent Variable – It is something that depends on other factors (independent variables).
Usually when looking for a relationship between two things you are trying to find out what
makes the dependent variable change the way it does. (DV) (ex. Poverty (DV) is caused by a
lack of education (IV))

The Language of Comparative Politics

- Politics – the process through which groups of people govern themselves or are governed; activities
associated with the exercise of authority.
- Informal Politics – The way politicians operate outside their formal powers as well as the impact of
beliefs, values, and actions of ordinary citizens on policymaking
- Formal Politics – The formal political structures, organizations, institutions, and policies that
make up the government (ex. UK / Prime Minister, House of Commons, House of Lourds)
- Power – the ability to direct the behavior of others through coercion, persuasion, or leadership
- Authority- the legal right to exercise power on behalf of the society and/or government
- Sovereignty – independent legal authority over a population in a particular place; the degree to which
a state controls its own territory and independently makes and carries out policy
- Nation – a group of people who identify themselves as belonging together because of cultural,
geographic, or linguistic ties.
- State – the key political institutions responsible for making, implementing, and adjudicating important
policies in a country; all institutions and individuals that exercise political authority and use
institutional resources to manage societies problems and affairs
- Nation-State – a territorial unit controlled by a single state and governed by a single government;
nation refers to socio-cultural aspect while state refers to political aspect
- Regime – The pattern or organization for a governmental system (often described in a constitution
or supreme law)
- Government – the part of the state with legitimate public authority; the group of people,
organizations, and institutions that hold political authority in a state at any one time
- Rule of Law – a governance system that operates predictably under a known and relatively
transparent set of procedural rules (laws); government in all its actions is bound by rules fixed
and announced before hand – rules which make it possible to foresee with certainty how the
authority will use its coercive powers in any given circumstance.
- Head of State – the chief public representative of a state (figurehead); a role that symbolizes and
represents the people both nationally and internationally
- Head of Government – the office and the person occupying the office charged with leading the
operation of a government; the country’s chief political officer responsible for presenting and
conducting its principle policies
- Civil Society – all organizations which provide avenues of public participation in society
- State Capacity – the ability of the government to implement its policies; to wield power to carry out
basic tasks such as defending territory, making and enforcing rules, collecting taxes, managing
the economy, and promote human welfare
- Legitimacy – the civil belief that a regime is a proper one and that the government has a right to
exercise authority; possible sources of legitimacy can be:
 Representative government
 Rule of law
 History of stable successful government
 Widely shared sense of national identity
 Protection of individual liberty
 Honest and transparent political system
 Successful political integration
 Protection from forces outside the nation-state
 Heroic/charismatic leadership
NOTE: COMPLIANCE – NOT legitimacy can be achieved through surveillance, threats, and use of force

- Permeability: the ability of one substance, idea, object etc. to allow another substance, idea, object etc.
to pass through it – THINK: What is the general political and economic permeability of
national borders? PAY ATTENTION TO: what gets through national borders:
 Refugees
 Pollution
 Drugs
 Invasive species
 Fundamentalism/extremism
 NGO’s
 Jobs
 Olympics/World Cup
 Political ideas (democratization

Mega- Concepts - Sovereignty, Power and Authority

If nations are primary actors on the world stage, they must be independent and autonomous

- Sovereign – the effective ruler of a geographic territory

- Sovereignty – independent legal authority over a population in a particular place; the degree to which
a state controls its own territory and independently makes and carries out policy
NOTE: In the real world of international relation, sovereignty is a variable, not a discrete characteristic of
nation-states. Some nation-states have greater capacity than others and therefore greater sovereignty.
Some nation-states are parts of supranational organizations that assume some of the member states
sovereignty.
- Capacity – the degree to which a state or government is able to implement its policies (the level to
which it maintains/controls its sovereignty
NOTE: Economically and politically permeable borders limit sovereignty. Anything that crosses a
border without official sanction demonstrates a limit to the governments capacity and sovereignty.
OTHER ELEMENTS THAT CHALLENGE SOVEREIGNTY:
 Supranational organizations (with powers greater than the nation-state) – European Union
 Transnational organizations (operating beyond a nation-states borders) – NATO
 International organizations (nation-states are members) – United Nations
 Multi-national corporations (exercise both political AND economic powers that challenge
sovereignty) - Exxon
NOTE: NO state has total sovereignty
- Political Culture – the collection of history, values, beliefs, assumptions, attitudes, traditions and
symbols that define and influence political behavior within a state.
- Political Socialization – the process through which people become part of their political culture:
families are the earliest agents of political socialization, so are schools, respected adults, peers,
interactions with social and government agents and media
- Ideology – a set of basic beliefs about political, economic, social, and cultural affairs that its
advocates believe is comprehensive and coherent; because ideologies are not always coherent,
people with political authority who follow ideologies, often try to modify reality to fit their set of
basic beliefs or resort to pragmatism
Pragmatism – the practice of taking action or making policy dictated by consideration of the
immediate practical consequences rather than by theory or dogma
NOTE: Ideologies often involve describing preferred relationships between government and economies
 Marxism – social and economic relationships that assume the expectation of exploitation by the
wealthy elites over the workers and the need for government intervention to ensure the
exploitation does not happen
 Socialism – a political/economic system in which the government plays a major role (usually
ownership) in determining the use of productive resources and the allocation of goods and
services. (May be democratic or authoritarian)
 Liberalism – a set of beliefs that favors a limited role of government in the economy and
people’s lives: emphasizes individual freedoms
 Capitalism – an economic system that emphasizes private property rights and market
mechanisms

Political Institutions
Most political systems create and describe their regimes in a constitution (or some semblance of a
constitution). In the 21st century nearly every regime invokes a constitution as evidence of legitimacy
and rule of law. (Some constitutions are simply more powerful or more followed than others)
- Constitution – a supreme law that defines the structure of a nation-state’s regime and the legal
processes that the government must follow. (A constitution helps create: 1) Government
structure; 2) Citizenship aspects; 3) the electoral process)

Governmental Structure
The structure of a regime defined in a constitution is the general outline of the executive, legislative,
and judicial institutions and their powers.
- Executive Institutions – the people and agencies, which implement and execute public policy;
people or groups in charge of the executive institution (branch) are the government
- Legislative Institutions – the public body (or bodies) with the authority to make, amend, and repeal
statutory laws as well as impose taxes and authorize public spending for a political
unit/bureaucracy
- Judicial Institutions – the collection of courts in a regime with the authority to interpret laws (statute
and common)
- Judicial Review – in common law systems, courts have the authority to modify or nullify the
actions of legislatures, executives, and lower courts; these decisions create precedents that
are preserved through stare decisis
- Stare Decisis – the legal principal that judges should respect and follow precedents whenever possible.
- In code law (civil or statutory law systems), laws are enacted by legislative or regulatory bodies
 and higher courts can reverse or modify lower court decisions without creating precedents for
future cases
CITIZENSHIP
Constitutions and basic laws create things other than structures of a regime. They can also:
 Define citizenship
 Outline the limits of government authority
 Identify the obligations of government to the citizens
 Describe the rights and obligations of citizens
- Citizen – a member of a nation-state who is legally entitled to full civil rights and is legally obliged
to perform defined public duties
- Civil Rights AND Civil Liberties – freedoms protected by the state from unwarranted infringement
by governments and private organizations; they ensure (in liberal states) citizens ability to
participate in the civil and political life of the society and the state.

Electoral Process
The third aspect created by constitutions are electoral systems; the institutions and procedures within
the nation-state which votes are cast and counted in a representative regime.
- Universal Suffrage – the right to vote of every adult citizen except those who are individually
excluded from voting (ex. dependents and incarcerated criminals)
- Limited Suffrage – A system in which only a subset of citizens is granted the right to vote
- Plurality Elections – an electoral system that declares a candidate receiving the most votes as the
winner (also known as First-Past-The Post/FPTP)
- Majority Elections – an electoral system that requires winners to receive the majority of the votes
cast (sometimes a majority of eligible voters) NOTE: This often requires a secondary voting
between the top candidates who did not receive a majority
- Proportional Elections – an electoral system in which a party’s candidates win office in proportion
to the percentages of votes won by the party (there is usually a minimum percentage a
party is required to receive before any of it candidates are elected)
- Ranked Choice Voting – voters rank all candidates by their preferences; NOTE: If a voter’s first choice
is not elected, his or her second choice gets the vote, etc.

Separation/Fusion of Powers
John Locke and Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu both wrote that every political system must
legislate, administer, and adjudicate; and many (but not all) liberal, representative regimes create
separate institutions for each function.
- Separation of Powers – the system of governance in which government power is divided into
several bodies with the ability to check (minimize/stop) the power of the other
- Fusion of Powers – a system of governance in which the authority of government is concentrated
in one institutional body
- Division of Powers – the concept that branches of government (executive, legislative, judicial) have
different responsibilities and powers
- Checks and Balances – a system of governance in which divisions (branches) of government can
restrain the political power of other divisions (branches)

ILLIBERAL DEMOCRACIES
Illiberal states are those that have the trappings of a constitution, elections, and rule of law but in
fact have only a symbolic constitution, non-competitive elections, and a façade that appears to be
rule of law. The government regularly ignores human rights and treats citizens as subjects

Systems
- Parliamentary System – the head of government is chosen by a majority in the legislature and
holds BOTH legislative and executive power
- Presidential System – the head of government is chosen independently of the legislature (by direct
election) and holds executive power BUT NOT legislative power
NOTE: The head of government is usually the executive leading a cabinet of ministers each charged with
a specific area of responsibility (ex. Foreign affairs, military, justice, health, education etc.)
- Cabinet – the group of ministers who direct administrative bureaucracies, which are accountable to
the head of government; NOTE: In a parliamentary system, the head of government and the
cabinet are reffered to as the government.
- Bureaucracy – a hierarchal structured organization charged with carrying out the policies determined
by those with political authority.

Bureaucrats are civil servants who have been hired for their technical expertise, specialized knowledge,
and special skills and/or in some cases because they performed well on objectively fair assessments of
their abilities and knowledge (civil servant exams). They are often referred to as technocrats because
of their specialized NON-POLITICAL knowledge and skills; their jobs are to carry out or implement public
policy made by people with political authority. They are supposed to be separated from making policy by
their positions in an organization where policy and directions come from the top policy making leaders.
NOTE: Bureaucrats often weild great influence over policies adopted by governments and legislatures –
they ARE NOT ELCTED!

Judiciary – Courts/Judges
- judiciary – The set of institutions that are created to: (If it is functioning ideally, the judiciary plays a
large role in maintaining a rule of law).
 Interpret the application of public laws and ploicies
 Settle public disputes in the nation-state
 Enforce criminal law
A major responsibility of an effective judiciary is to interpret statute law (Code Law) or administrative
regulations as they are applied. In some legal systems the judiciary is to interpret the application of
common law and precedent.

Citizens, Society, and State

Political Systems
- Political Party – an organized group of people with the primary purpose of electing some of its
members to government office; also serve as a means to promote and implement ideologies
- Interest Aggregation – ways in which demands of citizens and groups are organized into proposed
policy packages by interest groups; political parties are a means to combine common interest
for political purposes
- Interest Groups – distinguished from political parties because their primary goal is to influence
policy making, NOT to elect people to public office; provide information and arguments to
support the policy outcomes which they prefer. This activity takes place in a variety of settings in
a political culture. They also offer money and benefits in systems where corruption is common
- One-party (single-party) political system – when a party has enough power, authority, and/or
legitimacy to have exclusive control of government and politics (ex. PRC)
- Dominate party political system – when there is more than one party, BUT one party is so dominate
that it is able to virtually monopolize political power (ex. Mexico before 2000/Russia after
2000)
- Two-party political system – two competitive parties are popular and powerful enough to leave
smaller parties without political power most of the time (ex. The UK)
- Multiple-party political system – a system in which competitive elections are held and more than two
parties have realistic chances of earing a share of political power.
- Political recruitment – the process by which people are encouraged and chosen to become
members of the political elite within a political system or state

- Electoral Systems
- Plurality elections – also known as “first-past-the post/FPTP” systems because the candidate with
the most votes (not always a majority) is elected from a member district; voters choose
ONE candidate from those offered; does not necessarily represent minority interest
- Single-member districts – voting constituencies from which only one candidate is selected in each
election
- multi-member districts – voting constituencies from which more than one candidate is selected in each
election
- majority elections – also known as “second ballot” systems because if no candidate wins a
majority in the original balloting, a second round of voting is required in which voters choose
from among the more successful candidates from the first round; (voters choose ONE candidate
from those offered in each round)
- Proportional elections – elections in which groups of voters are represented in the elected body in
proportion to the number of votes in a multi-member constituency
 Party list system – voters indicate party preference; parties then select ranked lists of
candidates
 Ranked choice system – also known as “single transferable vote” – voters indicate their 1st,
2nd, 3rd, etc. choices. If the voter’s first choice candidate is unsuccessful that vote is awarded to
the voter’s second choice etc.

Divisions within nation-states

- Cleavages – a factor that separates groups within a society; may be culture, historic, geographic,
economic, ethnic racial etc.
- Civil society – all the organizations outside of government and commercial arenas, which provide a
means of public participation in society; participation does not need to be explicitly political
(ex. Anything from religious congregations to football/soccer clubs – to spontaneous protests to
mutual aid societies to political parties)

Political Action
- Political Participation – the action taken by citizens that involve them in the process of selecting
leaders, making policies, or influencing public actions; in most political systems few people
do more to participate in government than vote
NOTE: Political parties are the most visible way for participation – advocacy for political preference is a
common incentive. Self-protection or the protection of the group also motivates political participation.
Coerced participation is not intended to influence policy BUT to support the government or regime.
- Media – the ways and means of communicating political information like books, newspapers,
magazines, radio, film television, and social media differ widely from one political culture to
another. Wealth, technology, censorship, language, and infrastructure are among the causes for
difference.

Political and Economic Change

- Political change – is most often the reaction to other changes; when things change – policies,
governments, or regimes – it’s easier to see how a political system works
- Economic change – booms, bust, recessions, growth, privatization, nationalization, can bring change
to even authoritarian regimes
- Demographic change – urbanization, population growth, aging populations, changes in population of
national groups (size, education, wealth) or even general increase of education level can create
conditions that require political change
- Political competition – changes in voter preference (realignments), new, charismatic leadership,
results of power struggles, increased connections with global partners can motivate changes in
governments and regimes
- Social change – wide spread changes in political values or public opinion, rising level of education, or
increasing mobility can bring about political change
- Technological change – new technologies offer new opportunities for interaction and interdependence
between organizations.

Types of Change
- Revolution – widespread and often rapid change of regime, government, leadership, politics,
institutions, social relations and economics
- Civil War – an armed uprising against a government or a regime by citizens of the state with the goal
of replacing the existing political system
- Coup d’etat – a rapid overthrow of a governing elite by another organized elite (often the military
elite)
- Reform – a usually gradual process of change to improve a regime or a society in ways generally
agreeable to most citizens and/or most people with political power
- Democratization – The spread of civil liberties, the rule of law, competitive elections, and independent
civil society to more nation-states; observers have attributed the rise in democratization to such
factors as growing wealth, a general rise in education levels, the spread of market economies,
growing social equality and the middle classes
- Illiberal democratization – an illiberal democracy is a regime in which elections are held, but citizens
are not a decisive factor in governing or policy making. Restrictions on civil society and civil
liberties exist, there is a lack of governmental transparency along-side the absence of
authentic rule of law

How and Why Authoritarian Regimes Fall

 Defeat in war
 Widening, deepening, or multiplying of cleavages
 Demographic changes
 Effective opposition (domestic, exile, external)
 Diminishing state capacity (large scale disaster, loss of legitimacy, reduction of wealth/income)
 External pressure (diplomatic, economic, NGO)

Political Economics
Political stability is inherently linked to economic stability
- Fiscal Policy – governmental decisions about total public spending and revenue that result in
budgetary deficits or surpluses
- Monetary Policy – policies that affect interest rates and supply of money available within an
economy
Government spending includes:
 Cost of government
 National defense
 Social welfare programs
Government revenues include
 Taxes and license fees
 Income from public enterprise
 Aid from other countries or international organizations (IMF/World Bank_
- Public spending contributes (and in some countries dominates) the economy
- Public saving – government revenues are more than government spending (slows the economy =
reduce inflation and increase stability over a fast growing economy/reduce national debt)
- Deficit spending occurs when the government spends more than incoming revenue (pro = can
stabilize economy/promote growth if in a recession/con = can increase inflation if economy
growing too fast)

Measuring Economies
- GDP (Gross Domestic Product) – the market value of goods and services produced IN a nation-state
in a specific time period
- HDI (Human Development Index) – a statistic based on the life expectancy, education, and income
data from most of the world’s countries; argued that combining social welfare AND economic
data makes for more meaningful comparisons the GDP does
- GDP per capita – takes into account the population of the countries being compared – suggests that
it better measures the social value of a countries production
- Gini coefficient – accounts for income distribution (higher numbers indicate greater economic
inequality)
Types of Economies
Basic economic questions:
 What to produce?
 How to produce?
 For whom to produce?
 How to distribute production?
- Market economy – an economic system in which supply, demand, investment, production, distribution,
and prices of goods and services are primarily determined by voluntary exchanges in
transparent markets
- Command economy – an economic system in which public and private policy decisions
substantially substitute for markets in determining prices, production, and distribution of economic
goods and services
- Mixed economy – an economic system in which markets, public policy, and powerful forces all play
important roles in answering the basic economic questions
- Agricultural economy – a system in which the agricultural sector employs the most people and
produces most of the economic goods
- Industrial economy – a system in which the manufacturing of material goods employs the most people
and produces most of the systems profits

Sectors of Economies
% of total GDP
(CIA World Factbook 2012 estimates)
A: Agriculture; M: Manufacturing; S: Services
A M S
UK .07 21 78
Russia 4 36 60
China 10 45 45
Mexico 4 34 62
Iran 11 38 51
Nigeria 31 43 26

Political and Economic Development

Political leaders want and need their economies and wealth to grow. Moving from an agricultural
economy to an industrial economy is usually seen as the first step – there are many tools used to pursue
these goals.
- Nationalization – the government appropriates (takes) the means of production from private
owners or colonizers, often after revolution, independence, or a major crisis
- Import substitution – governments discourage the importation of goods and encourage the domestic
production of those goods to grow the economy
- Rentier states – when a country’s government relies on the sale/rent of natural resources for most
revenue (ex. Nigeria)
- Parastatals – state owned enterprises, usually created to serve a public purpose like transportation,
communication, or natural resources (ex. Nigeria – used because they have difficulty
attracting investment from outside the country)

Challenges to Political and Economic Change

- Globalization – the growing adoption of common values, procedures, and popular culture around the
world
- Corruption – the illegitimate use of political or economic power for personal or illegal purposes
- Transparency – the ability for outsiders to see and understand the negotiations, planning and actions of
the political and economic actors; necessary for functions of free markets and accountable
governments
Public Policy
Decisions made by a government that define its goals and actions; some policy decisions are made in the
executive branch while others are made through the bureaucracy or the legislative and judicial branches –
this depends on the nature of the regime

Influences on Public Policy:

 Politics within the government and the regime
 Public opinion
 Perceived needs of the society
 Results of previous policy
 International/supranational agreements
 Economic forces
 Environmental factors
 Political parties/Interest groups

What public policies are most common?

 Economic policy – fiscal/monetary matters
 National defense/foreign policy
 Education
 Employment
 Social welfare (health care, unemployment, pensions)
 Agriculture
 Natural resources
 Environment
 Infrastructure
 Civil rights and liberties
 Cleavages

Influences on Public Policy Decisions that Threaten Sovereignty

 World Trade Organization
 The European Union (EU)
 World Bank
 International Monetary Fund (IMF)
 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
 Global scale environmental issues
 Globalization – income distribution and taxation issues
 The Global Culture