State
territories of a government which together make up a federal nation
Nation
the territory or a country itself
Consensus
majority of agreement
Sovereignty
complete political authority; dictator
Government
the governing body of people in a state or community ; administration
Social Contract
a mutual agreement which benefits the community and government as a whole
Unitary System
complete power is with the national government and the states and localities are dependent on its will
Federal System
system where sovereignty is shared, so that the national government has a majority of power in some matters and the state has the majority of power in other matters
Confederate
an ally; one who assists in a plot
Constitution
the system of fundamental principals according to which a nation, state is governed
Constitutional Government
a government that follows a constitution
Preamble
the introductory paragraph in the Constitution of the USA
Constitutional Law
the body of rules and laws that govern a nation
Politics
the art of good sense applied to public affairs; the administrative control on a nation's external and internal affairs
Industrialized Nation
countries that have a high level of development according to some criteria such as GDP
Developing Nation
country with low level of material well-being
Autocracy
government with uncontrolled authority over others
Monarchy
supreme power or sovereignty held by a monarch
Oligarchy
government where the power is vested in a few dominant people
Democracy
governed by the people; supreme power is in the hands of the people
Republic
supreme power is vested in the people whose power is exercised by representatives chosen by the people
Political Party
an organization to gain political power
Free Enterprise
a doctrine that states that an economy can regulate itself in a freely competitive market without government interference
Economics
the study that deals with the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services
Capitalism
an economic system in which the means of production, distribution and exchange of wealth is maintained by individuals or corporations
Free Market
economic system in which the price and wages are determined by unrestricted competition between businesses with minimal governmental interference
Laissez- Faire
the belief that the government should be involved in the economic affairs as little as possible
Socialism
the theory that supports the idea of the ownership and control of production and distribution in the community
bourgeoisie
the class concerned with property value
Proletariat
the class who earn their living by manual labor; the working class
Communism
a system of organization in which all economic and social activity is controlled by a dominating political party
Command Economy
an economy that is planned and controlled by a central administration
Power
the ability of one person to get another person to act in accordance with the first person
Authority
the right to use power
Legitimacy
political authority conferred by law or by a state or national convention
Direct Democracy
most or all citizens participate directly in holding office or making policies
Representative Democracy
small number of elected councilors make decisions
Elite
people who posses a disproportionate share of some valued resource, like money or power
Marxist view
view that the government is dominated by capitalists
Power Elite View
view that the government is dominated by a few top leaders, most of whom are outside of government
Bureaucratic View
view that the government is dominated by appointed officials
Pluralist View
the belief that competition among all affected individuals shapes public policy