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Political Science Final Exam Study Guide

Total questions: 40

Worksheet time: 20mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

The total market value of all goods and products produced in a year is known as

a)

the Human Development Index.

b)

the gross domestic product.

c)

purchasing power parity.

d)

the national comparative income.

2.

The Gini index is one way that social scientists measure

a)

the amount of economic inequality in a society.

b)

total national wealth.

c)

the distribution of public goods.

d)

the environmental impact of development.

3.

Which of the following statements is consistent with the “resource trap” theory?

a)

Abundant natural resources often free those in power from the need to tax the people.

b)

Heavy taxation in resource-rich countries inspires resentment by the people, leading to authoritarian crackdowns.

c)

The portability of natural resources contributes to the desire of elites to hang on to power.

d)

Abundant natural resources in a country are typically tied to religious rule, which encourages undemocratic governing structures.

4.

Which of the following statements best characterizes the “Asian values” argument?

a)

Asian values tend to discourage the formation of a middle class, which limits democratic institutions.

b)

Asia has cultural and religious traditions that encourage conformity and obedience, making it less receptive to democracy.

c)

Asian cultural and religious traditions lead to authoritarian regimes that are typically less violent.

d)

Asia has cultural and religious traditions that encourage individualism and free expression, making it more receptive to democracy.

5.

Countries that appear to have many of the trappings of democracy but restrict the democratic process to a great degree are known as

a)

subdemocracies.

b)

illiberal regimes.

c)

crypto-democracies.

d)

democratic tyrannies.

6.

Which term refers to a military seizure of the government?

a)

military usurpation

b)

coup d’état

c)

coup de grâce

d)

armed politics

7.

The borders of most current African states were drawn by colonial powers according to

a)

population groups.

b)

ethnic divisions.

c)

the locations of natural resources.

d)

longitude and latitude.

8.

Countries that are experiencing rapid economic growth and democratization are generally known as ___________ countries.

a)

newly developing

b)

peripheral

c)

less-developed

d)

middle income

9.

The term for the physical occupation of a foreign territory through military force, businesses, or settlers is

a)

colonialism.

b)

federalism.

c)

democracy.

d)

autonomy.

10.

Some observers of less-developed countries use the term ___________ to describe the unequal economic relationship between those countries and advanced democracies in the modern postcolonial era.

a)

proto liberalism

b)

quasi-socialism

c)

neocolonialism

d)

pseudo capitalism

11.

Nigeria’s current legislative-executive system may be classified as

a)

semi-presidential.

b)

prime ministerial.

c)

presidential.

d)

parliamentary.

12.

Personal rule by an authoritarian leader bestowing privileges upon loyal followers is called

a)

patrimonialism.

b)

atriarchy.

c)

personalism.

d)

clientelism.

13.

Nigeria’s Fourth Republic has been characterized by

a)

the establishment of a parliamentary legislative system.

b)

devolution of authority to regional legislatures.

c)

successive relatively peaceful democratic elections.

d)

successive military coups.

14.

Nigeria’s president from 2015 to 2023 was

a)

Muhammadu Buhari.

b)

Umaru Yar’Adua.

c)

Goodluck Jonathan.

d)

Olusegun Obasanjo.

15.

Boko Haram is

a)

a radical Islamist sect.

b)

a nongovernmental organization promoting environmental awareness.

c)

Nigeria’s largest trade union.

d)

an environmentally sensitive savanna region.

16.

Iranians differ from much of the Middle East in that

a)

they are majority Sufi.

b)

Iran is a monarchy.

c)

they are majority Sunni.

d)

they are not Arabs and do not speak Arabic.

17.

The perpetrators of the 1979 Iranian Revolution sought to create what kind of regime?

a)

monarchy

b)

theocracy

c)

illiberal democracy

d)

secular republic

18.

Which individual largely articulated the ideas behind the Islamic Revolution of 1979?

a)

Ayatollah Khomeini

b)

Reza Khan

c)

Mohammad Mosaddeq

d)

Ayatollah Khatami

19.

Executive power in Iran lies primarily with the

a)

president’s Assembly of Experts.

b)

supreme leader and president.

c)

supreme leader and Majlis.

d)

president and the Guardian Council.

20.

The velayat-e faqih refers to

a)

the belief in economic redistribution as consistent with the Koran’s emphasis on social justice.

b)

those fundamentalist Shia who reject the Koran over the worship of the hidden imam.

c)

the belief in clerical rule that gives political power to religious leaders.

d)

the core belief of quietist Shia that politics and faith must not be mixed.

21.

The dominant political party in twentieth-century Mexico was the

a)

Partido de la Revolucíon Democrática (PRD).

b)

Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI).

c)

Partido Acción Nacional (PAN).

d)

Mexican Green Party (PVEM).

22.

Which of the following statements about Mexico under the PRI is true?

a)

The PRI engaged in regular and public human rights abuses that are still being brought before independent judiciaries.

b)

The PRI never resorted to electoral fraud, but it funneled enough state money to its chosen candidates to guarantee a smooth succession of power.

c)

The PRI dominated political power in part by expert co-optation of sources of opposition, like the press.

d)

The PRI frequently instituted censorship of the press in the name of public security to protect their political operatives.

23.

Mexican presidents are elected for

a)

a single six-year term.

b)

up to 3 six-year terms.

c)

up to 2 four-year terms.

d)

up to 2 six-year terms.

24.

The Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN)

a)

is an indigenous rebel group in Mexico’s south.

b)

is Mexico’s second largest political party.

c)

was an uprising of an indigenous group during the Mexican Revolution.

d)

was a U.S. expeditionary force during the Mexican-American War.

25.

What are maquiladoras?

a)

factories that import materials to make goods for export

b)

large state-backed agriculture corporations

c)

corrupt politicians

d)

indigenous communities in southern Mexico

26.

Which of the following is true of the power of presidents in Mexico?

a)

Constitutional checks on presidential power have become more effective in recent years.

b)

Mexican presidents currently have extensive power to appoint and remove judges.

c)

Current presidential candidates are most often selected through a handpicking process by their predecessor.

d)

Their control over the economy has increased during the last decade.

27.

Emiliano Zapata and Pancho Villa were

a)

Texans who sought independence from Mexico.

b)

peasant leaders of the Mexican Revolution.

c)

indigenous independence leaders.

d)

Spanish conquistadores of Mexico.

28.

Which of the following resulted from passage of the constitution adopted after the 1917 Mexican Revolution?

a)

nationalization of indigenous land for redistribution to the middle class

b)

imposition of term limits for higher executive officers

c)

prohibition of foreign ownership of Mexican land

d)

establishment of Catholicism as a state religion

29.

A major tool used by the PRI to maintain its decades-long hold on power was

a)

suspending elections.

b)

imprisoning the political opposition.

c)

patron-client relationships.

d)

banning opposition parties.

30.

Mexican elections for the lower house of the legislature use which electoral system?

a)

proportional representation

b)

single-member district with plurality

c)

single transferable vote

d)

mixed proportional representation and single-member district

31.

Mao and the Chinese Communist Party’s circuitous 1930s retreat westward into China’s hinterland was known as the

a)

Prelude to Victory.

b)

Long March.

c)

Ten Thousand Li Struggle.

d)

Heroic Retreat.

32.

Mao’s late-1960s political campaign in which student radicals attacked authority figures such as party-state officials and intellectuals was the

a)

Cultural Revolution.

b)

Red Revolt.

c)

Hundred Flowers Campaign.

d)

Great Leap Forward.

33.

The Chinese leader responsible for initiating China’s post-Mao program of reform and opening was

a)

Xi Jinping.

b)

Hu Jintao.

c)

Deng Xiaoping.

d)

Wen Jiabao.

34.

China’s legislature is known as the

a)

Plenary Hall.

b)

House of the People.

c)

National People’s Congress.

d)

Socialist People’s Parliament.

35.

The iron rice bowl refers to

a)

China’s continuing reliance on heavy industry over consumer goods.

b)

China’s welfare system, which includes lifetime health care, work, and retirement security.

c)

the strong role of the army in Chinese politics.

d)

China’s restrictions against private agriculture.

36.

For Marx, which of the following was most important for explaining all human action?

a)

religion

b)

geography

c)

culture

d)

economics

37.

The ___________ is the name Marx chose for the system of economic production, including the level of technology (the “means of production”).

a)

superstructure

b)

surplus value of labor

c)

base

d)

dialectical materialism

38.

Marx’s name for all human institutions, including religion, the state, politics, and gender, is the

a)

base.

b)

dialectical materialism

c)

surplus value.

d)

superstructure.

39.

For most of his career, Marx generally argued that communist revolution was most likely in

a)

countries where capitalism was most advanced.

b)

poor countries.

c)

countries with an underdeveloped bourgeoisie.

d)

Europe.

40.

Marx argued that once socialism had triumphed, the state would eventually

a)

grow despotic and have to be overthrown again.

b)

wither away.

c)

become highly centralized.

d)

grow in power.