Skip to main content
Social Sci LibreTexts

1.5: Key Terms

  • Page ID
    153864
  • \( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \) \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)\(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)\(\newcommand{\AA}{\unicode[.8,0]{x212B}}\)

    common goods
    goods that all people may use but that are of limited supply
    democracy
    a form of government where political power rests in the hands of the people
    direct democracy
    a form of government where people participate directly in making government decisions instead of choosing representatives to do this for them
    government
    the means by which a society organizes itself and allocates authority in order to accomplish collective goals
    majority rule
    a fundamental principle of democracy; the majority should have the power to make decisions binding upon the whole
    minority rights
    protections for those who are not part of the majority
    monarchy
    a form of government where one ruler, usually a hereditary one, holds political power
    oligarchy
    a form of government where a handful of elite society members hold political power
    political power
    influence over a government’s institutions, leadership, or policies
    politics
    the process by which we decide how resources will be allocated and which policies government will pursue
    private goods
    goods provided by private businesses that can be used only by those who pay for them
    public goods
    goods provided by government that anyone can use and that are available to all without charge
    representative democracy
    a form of government where voters elect representatives to make decisions and pass laws on behalf of all the people instead of allowing people to vote directly on laws
    toll good
    a good that is available to many people but is used only by those who can pay the price to do so
    totalitarianism
    a form of government where government is all-powerful and citizens have no rights

    1.5: Key Terms is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

    • Was this article helpful?