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Ch. 1 Vocab, Gov.
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Politics | Deciding who gets what, when, and how |
Political Science | The study of politics: who governs, for what ends, and by what means |
Goverment | Organization that extends to the whole society that can legitimately use force to carry out its decisions |
Legitimacy | Widespread acceptance of something as necessary, rightful, and legally binding |
Democratic Principals | Individual dignity, equality before the law, widespread participation in public decisions, and public decisions by majority rule, with one person having one vote |
Paradox of Democracy | Potential for conflict between individual freedom and majority rule |
Limited Government | Principal that government power over the individuals is limited, that there are some personal liberties that even a majority cannot regulate, and that government itself is restrained by law |
Representative Democracy | Government system in which public decision making is delegated to representatives of the people chosen by popular vote in free, open, and periodical elections |
Direct Democracy | Governing system in which every person participates actively in every public decision, rather than delegating decision making to representatives |
Elitism | Political system in which power is concentrated in the hands of a relatively small group of individuals or institutions. |
Pluralism | Theory that democracy can be achieved through competition among multiple organized groups and that individuals can participate in politics through group memberships and elections |