Untitled Quiz

State

• Max Weber defines a state as a monopoly of violence over a territory.
• States define who can and cannot utilize weaponry and force and specify rules for violence.
• States often maintain military institutions, such as armies and navies, which are authorized to utilize power and sometimes violence. However, citizens have restricted rights to use force.
• States include stable long-lasting institutions that convert political ideas into policy.

Nations and Regimes

• A nation is a group of people unified by a shared political identity.
• Nationalism is a sense of belonging and identity that distinguishes one nation from another.
• Patriotism can be considered a synonym for nationalism.

Sovereignty

• Sovereignty is the ability of a state to enact policies or actions within its borders independently.

Institutions

• Institutions are stable, long-lasting organizations that transform political ideas into policies.

Politics

• Politics refers to individuals or groups making collective decisions about shared resources, relationships with other groups, and future planning.
• Aristotle is known for studying comparative politics and is considered the first scholar in the field.

Ethnocentrism

• Ethnocentrism is the belief that one's own country is superior to others.

Political Culture

• Political culture represents a collection of political beliefs, values, practices, and institutional frameworks.
• It influences the structure and operation of a government.
• If a government does not reflect the fundamental political values of its people, it may struggle to sustain its legitimacy.

Social Capital

• Social capital refers to the level of reciprocity and trust among citizens and between citizens and the state.
• Societies with low social capital may be more prone to authoritarian and anti-individualistic governments.
• By contrast, societies with higher social capital may be more likely to embrace democratic governance.

Types of Political Cultures

• Consensual political culture: Citizens generally agree on decision-making processes, issues to be addressed, and methods for problem-solving, even if they have disagreements on some policies.
• Conflictual political culture: Citizens are sharply divided about the legitimacy of the regime and its approaches to major challenges.

Political Ideologies

• Political ideologies represent sets of political values individuals maintain about the fundamental goals of government and politics.
• They provide a framework for understanding political issues, setting goals, inspiring activism, shaping political systems, and fostering social cohesion.

Liberalism

• Emphasizes individual political and economic freedom.
• Seeks to maximize freedom for all people, including free speech, religion, and association.
• Believes citizens have the right to disagree with state decisions and take action to change them.

Communism

• Rejects the notion that individual freedom guarantees prosperity for the majority.
• Believes that competition for scarce resources inevitably leads to a small group dominating both government and the economy.
• Views liberal democracies as mechanisms established by the wealthy to protect their rights and property.
• Advocates for state ownership of all resources to ensure true economic equality for the community, leading to the abolition of private property.
• Individual liberties are subordinate to the needs of society as a whole, creating what they consider a true democracy.

Socialism

• Shares the value of equality with communism but is also influenced by the liberal value of freedom.
• Accepts and promotes private ownership and free-market principles.
• Believes that the state plays a significant role in regulating the economy, potentially owning key industries, and providing public benefits to ensure a degree of equality.

Comparing Political Ideologies

• Liberalism: Aims to improve capitalism through free-market principles.
• Socialism: Employs a mixed economy to regulate capitalism.
• Communism: Seeks to overthrow capitalism with state collectivization.
• Liberalism: Allows private property.
• Socialism: Uses government to partially control private property, aiming to generate wealth for the government.
• Communism: Eliminates all private property.
• Liberalism: Maintains class divisions.
• Socialism: Seeks to eliminate or ease class divisions.
• Communism: Eliminates class divisions.
• Liberalism: Views the state as a neutral arbiter.
• Socialism: Regards the state as a representation of the common good.
• Communism: Utilizes the state as a tool to alleviate class conflict.
• Liberalism: Assumes individuals are primarily focused on themselves.
• Socialism: Views individuals as social creatures.
• Communism: Regards individuals as social creatures.