AP Gov Chapter 1: The Study of American Government – Flashcards
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Power (political power)
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the ability of one person to get another person to act in accordance with the first person's intentions (get someone to do something that influences policy)
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Authority
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the right to use power
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Legitimacy
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source of authority, political authority given by laws or by a state or national constitution
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Democracy
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the rule of the many
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Direct (participatory) democracy
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government in which all or most citizens participate directly
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Representative democracy
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government in which leaders make decisions by winning a competitive struggle for the popular vote People vote for leaders, not on individual issue
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Elite
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one group that holds a disproportionate amount of power
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Marxist view
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view that government is dominated by capitalists and government is created to manage the bourgeoisie (upper class) created by Karl Marx
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Power elite view
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view that government is dominated by a few top leaders, many are outside of the government military- corporations- political media- corporations- political, etc.
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Bureaucratic view
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view that the government is dominated by appointed officials created by Max Weber
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Pluralist view
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belief that competition among all affected interests shapes public policy no one has complete power and this struggle leads to balance created by James Madison in the U.S. Constitution with the idea of checks and balances
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Two major questions
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Who governs? To what ends?
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Ultimate source of legitimacy in U.S.
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The U.S. Constitution
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Democratic centralism
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Members take part in policy discussions and elections at all levels but must follow decisions made at higher levels Example: China
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Examples of struggles for legitimacy
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Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists Civil War
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Disadvantages of direct democracy
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creates mob-ocracy and didn't want people to just vote based on public opinion at the time most citizens don't have expertise to make decisions on every issue
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Examples of direct democracy
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Ancient Greece New England town meetings
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Referendum
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a general vote by the electorate on a single political question that has been referred to them for a direct decision
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Advantages of bureaucratic view
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doesn't follow the will of the majority so it prevents sweeping changes at the hands of the mob-rule that could be very harmful
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Disadvantages of bureaucratic view
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proceeds slowly
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Majoritarian Politics
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elected officials act exactly how the majority of the people would act if the matter were put to a direct vote. (officials do exactly what the majority wants)
