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1.9: Key Terms

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    198645
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    authority
    the entity (person or institution) holding legitimate power in a specific realm
    bargaining
    the process of negotiating with the goal of reaching agreement
    civil liberties
    human freedoms with which the government may not interfere
    civil rights
    opportunities to which all humans are entitled that governments must act to protect
    collective action problem
    a collective dilemma in which the group would benefit if its members cooperated, but they have incentives not to do so, and these incentives ultimately harm not only the group but the individuals themselves
    collective dilemmas
    problems that arise when multiple individuals interact with one another to make a group decision
    compromise
    in bargaining over a single issue, each participant agrees to move in the direction of those they are bargaining with (for example, the car seller lowers the price and the car buyer increases what they are willing to pay)
    conflict
    disagreements between individuals, groups, institutions, or states regarding the allocation of resources or the determination of values
    constitution
    a collection of the most basic principles of a country (or state)
    country
    a populated geographic area with a sovereign government
    courts
    an institution for resolving disputes
    democracy
    a system of government in which citizens elect their leaders
    empirical political science
    the systematic study of political behavior, generally based on developing hypotheses and testing whether these hypotheses are supported based on the evidence
    executives
    the persons responsible for leading an institution
    fact
    something that is true because it can be verified by evidence
    government
    the set of institutions that make and implement decisions for a political collective, most often for a specific geographic area
    human rights
    liberties and opportunities that humans have by virtue of their humanity
    hypothesis
    a tentative explanation for a reality that can be tested
    institutions
    organizations with a set of rules and practices that inform their members about their relationships with one another and how they should interact
    legislature
    an institution composed of individuals who have the power to propose, deliberate, adopt, and alter the laws of a state
    legitimate
    authority used in ways that are true to the rules
    nation
    a population connected by history, culture, and beliefs that generally lives in a specific area
    normative political science
    the systematic study of ideal goals, principles, and behaviors in politics; also called political philosophy
    political ideology
    a set of beliefs (or a systematic set of concepts) that helps individuals determine how they see the proper roles of citizens and their governments
    political science
    the systematic study of political phenomena using empirical or philosophical methods
    politics
    “who gets what, where, when, and how”—the process for resolving disputes and allocating scarce resources
    power
    the ability to compel someone to do something they would not otherwise choose to do
    public interest
    that which benefits a state and those who reside there
    public opinion
    in empirical political science, the sum of individual opinions on the question being asked
    public policy
    any decision by a government, such as a law, regulation, or ruling, that attempts to guide human behavior
    reality
    the world as it is, as verified by observations and measurements
    rules
    instructions regarding what behaviors are required, forbidden, or allowed
    scientific method
    the processes used to conduct empirical research
    sovereign
    the entity (person or institution) that holds supreme authority over a domain
    state
    a defined geographic area with unified political authority
    status quo
    the existing state of affairs

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

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