Foundations of Comparative Politics
This approach in comparative politics is used to analyze and contrast political systems across different countries in order to identify patterns and explanations
What is the comparative method?
This concept refers to the basic political unit that claims sovereignty and holds a monopoly on the legitimate use of force within a territory.
What is a state?
What do political attitudes describe?
views regarding the necessary pace and scope of change in the balance between freedom and equality.
The study of how states and markets interact
What is political economy?
What is a coup d’état?
A military seizure of political power
What is the difference between comparative politics and international relations?
Comparative = domestic politics; IR = relations between countries
This concept means a state can act independently without interference
What is sovereignty?
This ideology values individual freedom above all else
What is liberalism?
It measures Income, education, and life expectancy
What does the Human Development Index measure?
A system where one political party monopolizes power and bans others.
What is a one-party rule?
This is the variable we try to explain in a political study (the outcome)
What is the dependent variable?
What’s the main difference between a state and a government?
State = permanent institutions; Government = temporary leadership
What is the main goal of communism?
Achieving economic equality
A political-economic system prioritizing free markets and limited state intervention
What is liberalism?
What is co-optation?
Bringing individuals or groups into the regime in exchange for loyalty
What is the “most similar systems” design used for?
Comparing similar countries with different results
A group bound by shared political aspirations for self-rule.
What is a nation?
These two political attitudes favor dramatic change, sometimes through violence.
What are radicals and reactionaries?
What are the three core elements of democracy?
Participation, competition, liberty
The explanation of political violence that focuses on personal grievances or emotions.
What is the individual explanation?
This process involves evaluating whether a proposed relationship between variables holds true across cases in comparative research
What is hypothesis testing?
In the Yugoslavia case study, which two identities clashed most?
Ethnic and national identities
What ideology calls for the elimination of the state altogether?
Anarchism
A system that holds elections but manipulates them to favor those in power
What is an illiberal or hybrid regime?
What does democratic backsliding mean?
A gradual erosion of democratic rights and institutions