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WorksheetsPOLS 1101 Exam #1 Jeff Glas
Total questions: 119
Worksheet time: 1hrs 2mins
What is the acknowledged right to make a particular decision?
Authority
Responsibility
Liberty
Permission
What is a form of negotiation in which two or more parties who disagree propose exchanges and concessions to find a course of acceptable collective action?
Bargaining
Dictating
Ignoring
Compromising
What is the formal group of presidential advisors who head major departments and agencies of the federal government, chosen by the president and approved by the Senate?
Cabinet
Congress
Supreme Court
Joint Chiefs of Staff
What is an alliance of unlike-minded individuals or groups to achieve some common purpose such as lobbying, legislating, or campaigning for the election of public officials?
Coalition
Caucus
Monopoly
Bureaucracy
What is an action taken by a group of like-minded individuals to achieve a common goal?
Collective Action
Solo Effort
Random Chance
Individual Task
What are goods that are collectively produced and freely available for anyone's consumption?
Collective Goods
Private Goods
Merit Goods
Exclusive Goods
What is a settlement in which each side gives up some of its demands in order to reach an agreement?
Compromise
Dictatorship
Monopoly
Rebellion
What is the difference between what a person ideally would prefer and what the group with which that person makes collective decisions actually does, where individuals pay costs whenever collective decisions produce policy outcomes that do not best serve their interests?
Conformity costs
Transaction costs
Opportunity costs
Collective action problem
What is a document outlining the formal rules and institutions of government and the limits placed on its powers?
Constitution
Treaty
Manifesto
Ordinance
What is the act of organizing a group to achieve a common goal?
Coordination
Isolation
Negligence
Competition
What is the act of organizing a group to achieve a common goal?
Direct Democracy
Anarchy
Isolationism
Dictatorship
What is the term for the following definition? 'A form of government in which citizens rule directly and not through representatives.'
direct democracy
monarchy
oligarchy
representative democracy
What is the definition of 'free-rider problem'?
The situation in which people benefit from the activities of an organization (such as an interest group) but do not contribute to those activities.
A scenario where all members of a group contribute equally to a common goal.
A problem that arises when organizations charge excessive fees for membership.
The situation in which only the leaders of an organization benefit from its activities.
What is the term for the following definition? 'The institutions and procedures through which people are ruled.'
government
democracy
economy
constitution
What is the definition of 'initiative'?
An approach to a direct democracy in which a proposal is placed on an election ballot when the requisite number of registered voters have signed petitions.
A system where elected representatives make decisions on behalf of the people.
A process by which the government appoints officials to oversee elections.
A method of passing laws through the legislature without public input.
What is the term for the following definition? 'A form of government in which the chief executive is the leader of the majority party in the legislature.'
parliamentary government
presidential government
monarchy
dictatorship
What is the definition of 'politics'?
The process through which individuals and groups reach agreement on a course of common, or collective, action - even as they disagree on the intended goals of that action.
A system of government where power is inherited through family lines.
The study of ancient civilizations and their cultures.
The process of creating and enforcing laws without public input.
What is the term for the following definition? 'An officeholder's actual influence with other officeholders, and as a consequence, over the government's actions.'
power
authority
policy
tenure
What is the definition of 'preferences'?
Individuals' choices, reflecting economic situation, religious values, ethnic identity, or other valued interests.
A set of government policies regulating trade.
The process of making laws in a parliament.
A mathematical formula for calculating profit.
What is the term for the following definition? 'A situation in which two (or more) actors cannot agree to cooperate for fear that the other will find its interest best served by reneging on an agreement.'
prisoner's dilemma
zero-sum game
collective action problem
coordination game
What is the definition of 'private goods'?
Benefits and services over which the owner has full control over their use.
Goods that are available to everyone regardless of ownership.
Resources that cannot be depleted by individual consumption.
Services provided by the government for public use.
Goods, such as clean air and clean water, that everyone must share. What is the term for this definition?
public goods
private goods
club goods
common resources
An approach to direct democracy in which a state legislature proposes a change to the state's laws or constitution that all the voters subsequently vote on. What is the term for this definition?
Referendum
Filibuster
Gerrymander
Recall
Setting up rules limiting access to a common resource and monitoring and penalizing those who violate them. What is the term for this definition?
regulation
privatization
subsidization
deregulation
A political system in which citizens select government officials who, acting as their agents, deliberate and commit the citizenry to a course of collective action. What is the term for this definition?
representative government
direct democracy
authoritarian regime
absolute monarchy
A form of democracy in which power is vested in representatives. What is the term for this definition?
republic
monarchy
dictatorship
theocracy
The distribution of government powers among several political institutions. In the United States, at the national level power is divided between the three branches: Congress, the president, and the Supreme Court. What is the term for this definition?
separation of powers
judicial review
federalism
checks and balances
A situation in which group members overexploit a common resource, causing its destruction. What is the term for this definition?
Tragedy of the commons
Prisoner's dilemma
Zero-sum game
Law of diminishing returns
A form of government in which the ruling power exploits its authority and permits little popular control. What is the term for this definition?
tyranny
democracy
republic
monarchy
The discrepancy between what citizens ideally would like their agents to do and how the agents actually behave. What is the term for this definition?
agency loss
policy drift
mandate gap
representation error
The capacity of to set the choices available to others. What is the term for this definition?
Agency control
Autonomy
Delegation
Empowerment
What is the definition of 'agent'?
someone who makes and implements decisions on behalf of someone else
a person who only follows orders without question
an individual who works independently without representing others
someone who observes but does not participate in decision-making
What is the definition of 'Antifederalists'?
A loosely organized group (never a formal political party) that opposed ratification of the Constitution, which the group believed would jeopardize individual freedom and states' rights. After ratification, the efforts of the Antifederalists led to adoption of the first ten amendments, the Bill of Rights.
A group that strongly supported the ratification of the Constitution and favored a strong central government.
A political party that advocated for the abolition of the Bill of Rights after the Constitution was ratified.
A coalition that promoted the expansion of federal power at the expense of state governments.
What is the definition of 'Articles of Confederation'?
The compact among the thirteen original states that established the first government of the United States from 1777 to 1789, when it was supplanted by the Constitution.
A set of amendments added to the Constitution in 1791 to protect individual liberties.
The document that declared the American colonies' independence from Britain in 1776.
A treaty signed in 1783 that ended the Revolutionary War between the United States and Britain.
What is the definition of 'bicameral legislature'?
A legislature composed of two houses or chambers. The U.S. Congress (House and Senate) and every U.S. state legislature (with the exception of Nebraska's, which is unicameral) are bicameral legislatures.
A legislature composed of a single house or chamber.
A system where the executive and legislative branches are merged.
A form of government where all power is held by a single individual.
What is the definition of 'Bill of Rights'?
the first ten amendments to the U.S. constitution
a list of laws passed by Congress in 1800
the official name for the Declaration of Independence
a treaty signed between the U.S. and Britain
What is the definition of 'checks and balances'?
a constitutional mechanism giving each branch some oversight and control of the other branches
a system where only one branch has all the power
a process for amending the Constitution
a method for electing government officials
What is the definition of 'command'?
the authority of one actor to dictate the actions of another
a mutual agreement between two parties
the process of gathering information
the ability to influence without authority
What is the definition of 'commerce clause'?
the clause in article I, section 8, of the constitution that gives congress the authority to regulate commerce with other nations and among the states
the clause that allows the president to veto bills passed by congress
the amendment that guarantees freedom of speech
the section of the constitution that outlines the process for amending the constitution
What is the definition of 'confederation'?
A political system in which states or regional governments retain ultimate authority except for those powers they expressly delegate to a central government.
A system where a single central government holds all the power over its states or regions.
A form of government where the executive branch is separate from the legislature.
A political system in which all citizens participate directly in decision making.
What is the definition of 'delegation'?
the authority to assign responsibility to act on one's behalf
the process of making final decisions independently
the act of monitoring employee attendance
the ability to perform tasks without supervision
Fill in the blank: A body of electors in each state, chosen by voters, who formally elect the president and Vice President of the US. Each state's number of electoral votes equals its representation in Congress. An absolute majority of the total electoral vote is required to elect a president and vice president is called the ________.
Electoral College
Supreme Court
House of Representatives
Cabinet
Fill in the blank: A group of people sharing common interests who are opposed to other groups with competing interests is called a ________.
faction
committee
audience
coalition
Fill in the blank: Impermanent power granted by Congress to the president to negotiate international trade agreements is called ________.
fast-track authority
executive privilege
judicial review
veto power
Fill in the blank: The name given to two related, but not identical, groups in the late-eighteenth century US politics is ________.
federalists
republicans
whigs
democrats
Fill in the blank: The agreement reached at the Constitutional Convention that gave each state an equal number of senators regardless of its population, but linked representation in the House of Representatives to population is called the ________.
Great Compromise
Three-Fifths Compromise
New Jersey Plan
Virginia Plan
Fill in the blank: Power given by a state to a locality to enact legislation and manage its own affairs locally, also applies to Great Britain's administration on US colonies, is called ________.
home rule
federalism
judicial review
eminent domain
Fill in the blank: The authority of a court to declare legislative and executive acts unconstitutional and therefore invalid is called ________.
judicial review
judicial activism
executive privilege
statutory interpretation
Fill in the blank: The result of legislative vote trading, for example, legislators representing urban districts may vote for an agricultural bill provided that legislators from rural districts vote for a mass transit bill, is called ________.
logroll
filibuster
gerrymander
cloture
Fill in the blank: The principle that decisions should reflect the preferences of more than half of those voting is called ________.
majority rule
minority rights
plurality system
unanimous consent
What is the term for the following definition? Constitutional reformers led by James Madison and Alexander Hamilton who sought to replace the Articles of Confederation. Opposed at the Constitutional Convention (1787) by states' rights proponents, the nationalists favored a strong national legislature elected directly by the citizenry rather than the states and a national government that could veto any state laws it deemed unfit.
nationalists
federalists
anti-federalists
confederates
What is the term for the following definition? Clause of the Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 3) setting forth the implied powers of Congress. It states that Congress, in addition to its express powers, has the right to make all laws necessary and proper to carry out all powers the Constitution vests in the national government.
Necessary and Proper Clause
Supremacy Clause
Commerce Clause
Full Faith and Credit Clause
What is the term for the following definition? The New Jersey Plan (also widely known as the Small State Plan or the Paterson Plan) was a proposal for the structure of the United States Government presented by William Paterson at the Constitutional Convention on June 15, 1787.
New Jersey Plan
Virginia Plan
Connecticut Compromise
Great Compromise
What is the term for the following definition? A theory describing a political system in which all significant social interests freely compete with one another for influence over the government's policy decisions.
pluralism
elitism
authoritarianism
totalitarianism
What is the term for the following definition? Rule in electing members of congress by which the candidate who receives the most votes wins, regardless of whether the plurality reaches a majority.
plurality
majority rule
proportional representation
runoff voting
What is the term for the following definition? Citizens' delegation of authority to their agents in government, with the ability to rescind that authority.
Popular Sovereignty
Judicial Review
Federalism
Checks and Balances
What is the term for the following definition? Someone who possesses decision-making authority; may delegate their authority to agents, who then exercise it on behalf of the principals.
principal
agent
employee
consultant
What is Shay's Rebellion?
Uprising of 1786 led by Daniel Shays, a former captain in the Continental army and a bankrupt Massachusetts farmer, to protest the state's high taxes and aggressive debt collection policies. The rebellion demonstrated a fundamental weakness of the Articles of Confederation--its inability to keep the peace--and stimulated interest in strengthening the national government, leading to the Philadelphia convention that framed the Constitution.
A movement in 1794 led by farmers in Pennsylvania to protest a federal tax on whiskey, resulting in a show of force by the new national government.
A series of protests in 1773 against British taxation, most famously involving the dumping of tea into Boston Harbor.
A slave revolt in Virginia in 1831 led by Nat Turner, which resulted in stricter slave laws across the South.
What is a simple majority?
A majority of 50 percent plus one.
A majority of 75 percent.
A majority of 100 percent.
A majority of 25 percent.
What are states' rights?
Safeguards against a too powerful national government that were favored by one group of delegates at the 1787 Constitutional Convention.
The right of states to print their own currency.
The ability of states to form their own armies independent of the federal government.
The power of states to negotiate treaties with foreign countries.
What is the supremacy clause?
A clause in article IV of the constitution declaring that national laws are the 'supreme' law of the land and therefore take precedence over any laws adopted by states and localities.
A clause in the constitution that allows states to override federal laws if they conflict with state interests.
A section of the constitution that grants the president the power to veto state laws.
A provision in the constitution that gives local governments authority over national policies.
What is a supermajority?
A majority larger than a simple 51 percent majority...required for extraordinary legislative actions such as amending the constitution.
A decision made by a single individual in a group.
A tie between two opposing sides in a vote.
A unanimous agreement among all members of a group.
What is the 'take care' clause?
The provision in Article II, Section 3, of the Constitution instructing the president to 'take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.'
A clause in the Constitution that allows Congress to override presidential vetoes.
A section of the Bill of Rights guaranteeing freedom of speech.
A provision that grants the Supreme Court the power of judicial review.
What is a veto?
The formal power of the president to reject bills passed by both houses of congress. Can be overridden by a two-thirds vote in each house.
A special session of Congress called by the president to pass emergency legislation.
A law passed by Congress that cannot be changed or repealed.
A type of executive order that automatically becomes law after ten days.
What is the Virginia Plan?
Virginia delegate James Madison's plan of government, in which states got a number of representatives in Congress based on their population.
A plan proposed by New Jersey to give each state equal representation in Congress.
A plan to abolish the legislative branch of government.
A proposal to make the President the sole lawmaker in the country.
What is a voting rule?
Rules prescribing who votes and the minimum number of votes required to accept a proposal or elect a candidate.
A law that determines the age at which citizens can vote.
A guideline for how often elections should be held.
A rule that specifies the color of ballots used in elections.
Fill in the blank: ________ is a broad grant of money given by the federal government to a state government, which is given to a general areas (such as education) to be dispersed according to the state.
block grant
categorical grant
project grant
formula grant
Fill in the blank: ________ is a national set of education standards in mathematics and English language arts/literacy that outline what students should know and be able to do at the end of each grade (K-12).
Common Core
No Child Left Behind
Next Generation Science Standards
Montessori Method
Fill in the blank: ________ is competition among states that involves adopting policies that each state would prefer to avoid.
cutthroat competition
friendly rivalry
cooperative federalism
mutual agreement
Fill in the blank: ________ is a system of government in which the federal government and state governments each have mutually exclusive spheres of action.
dual federalism
unitary system
parliamentary system
confederation
Fill in the blank: The ________ allows Congress to "make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers."
elastic clause
supremacy clause
commerce clause
full faith and credit clause
Fill in the blank: ________ are the explicit powers given to Congress by the Constitution in Article I, Section 8.
enumerated powers
reserved powers
implied powers
concurrent powers
Fill in the blank: An ________ is a public good or bad generated as by-products of private activity, for example: air pollution.
externality
commodity
subsidy
monopoly
Fill in the blank: ________ is a system of government in which power is divided between a central government and several regional governments.
federalism
monarchy
unitary system
dictatorship
Fill in the blank: ________ are funds given by Congress to state or local governments for a specific purpose.
grants-in-aid
block grants
revenue sharing
federal loans
Fill in the blank: A ________ is a grant of money given by the federal government to a state government for which the federal government provides matching funds.
matching grant
block grant
categorical grant
revenue sharing
What is the term for shifting to the national government responsibilities traditionally exercised by the states?
nationalization
federalism
devolution
privatization
What is the term for laws passed by Congress that override or preempt state or local policies, with the power of preemption deriving from the supremacy clause (Article VI) of the Constitution?
preemption legislation
federal mandates
judicial review
executive orders
What is the term used when states 'race' or compete to provide a minimum level of services or regulation?
race to the bottom
race to the top
regulatory harmony
service escalation
What is the term for a system in which the national and state governments share in providing citizens with a set of goods?
shared federalism
unitary system
confederation
dual federalism
Which amendment offers the most explicit endorsement of federalism to be found in the Constitution, stating: 'The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.'?
Tenth Amendment
First Amendment
Fifth Amendment
Fourteenth Amendment
What is the term for a centralized government in which all government powers belong to a single, central agency?
Unitary Government
Federal Government
Confederate Government
Parliamentary Government
What is the term for policies or programs designed to expand opportunities for minorities and women and usually requiring that an organization take measures to increase the number or proportion of minorities and women in its membership or employment?
Affirmative Action
Equal Pay Act
Glass Ceiling
Reverse Discrimination
What is the term for laws enacted by southern legislatures after the Civil War that prevented former slaves from voting and holding certain jobs, among other prohibitions?
black codes
Jim Crow laws
Reconstruction Acts
Emancipation Proclamation
What is the term for constitutional and legal protections from government interference with personal rights and freedoms such as freedom of assembly, speech and religion?
Civil Liberties
Judicial Review
Due Process
Federalism
What is the term for the following definition? Powers or privileges guaranteed to individuals and protected from arbitrary removal at the hands of government or individuals.
Civil Rights
Judicial Review
Federalism
Executive Order
What is the term for the following definition? Segregation that results from practice rather than from law.
de facto segregation
de jure segregation
institutional racism
affirmative action
What is the term for the following definition? Segregation enacted into law and imposed by the government.
de jure segregation
de facto segregation
social segregation
economic segregation
What is the term for the following definition? The 1850 law compelling northerners to honor southerners' property claims to slaves, passed in return for the South's agreeing to admit California as a free state.
Fugitive Slave Law
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Missouri Compromise
Compromise of 1877
What is the term for the following definition? Statues stating that only those people whose grandfather had voted before reconstruction could vote, unless they passed a literacy or wealth test. Used against African Americans after the civil war.
grandfather clauses
Jim Crow laws
poll taxes
black codes
What is the term for the following definition? A violent crime directed against individuals, property or organizations solely because of the victims' race, gender, national origin, or sexual orientation.
hate crime
white-collar crime
organized crime
petty theft
What is the term for the following definition? A series of laws enacted in the late nineteenth century by southern states to institute segregation.
Jim Crow Laws
Emancipation Proclamation
Civil Rights Act
Reconstruction Amendments
What is the term for the following definition? A legal barrier used to exclude African Americans from voting.
literacy test
poll tax
grandfather clause
white primary
What is the term for the following definition? A political convention used to select a candidate to run in an upcoming election.
nominating convention
general election
caucus
primary debate
What is the term for the following definition? A tax imposed on people when they register to vote.
poll tax
income tax
property tax
sales tax
What is the term for the following definition? Established limits by governments on the number of immigrants who can enter a country each year.
quotas
refugees
asylum
deportation
What is the term for the following definition?
Term
Definition
Explanation
Example
What is the term for the political and social practice of separating whites and blacks into dual and highly unequal schools, hospitals, housing and public transportation?
segregation
integration
federalism
industrialization
What is the doctrine that public accommodations could be segregated by race but still be considered equal?
separate but equal doctrine
affirmative action
civil disobedience
judicial review
What is the term for women who campaigned in the early twentieth century for the right of women to vote?
suffragists
abolitionists
industrialists
pacifists
a practice the permitted political parties to exclude African Americans from voting in the primary elections
(a)
a rule introduced by Chief Justice Fred Vinson for the courts to enlist in free expression cases
Clear and probable danger test
Clear and present danger test
community standards
cruel and unusual punishment
due process clause
a rule used by the Supreme Court to distinguish between speech protected and not protected by the first amendment
Clear and probable danger test
Clear and present danger test
community standards
cruel and unusual punishment
due process clause
The Supreme Court's 1973 ruling that a work is obscene if it is "utterly without redeeming social importance" and, "to the average person, applying contemporary 'community standards,' the dominant theme of the material, taken as a whole, appeals to prurient interests."
Clear and probable danger test
Clear and present danger test
community standards
cruel and unusual punishment
due process clause
14th amendment clause stating that no state may deprive a person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law
Clear and probable danger test
Clear and present danger test
community standards
cruel and unusual punishment
due process clause
Court sentences prohibited by the Eighth Amendment. Although the Supreme Court has ruled that mandatory death sentences for certain offenses are unconstitutional, it has not held that the death penalty itself constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.
Clear and probable danger test
Clear and present danger test
community standards
cruel and unusual punishment
due process clause
14th amendment clause that prohibits states from denying equal protection under the law, and has been used to combat discrimination
(a)
clause denying the government the power to establish any single religious practice as superior
(a)
A rule that provides that otherwise admissible evidence cannot be used in a criminal trial if it was the result of illegal police conduct
exclusionary rule
free exercise clause
incitement
incorporation
lemon test
The three-part test for Establishment Clause cases that a law must pass before it is declared constitutional: it must have a secular purpose; it must neither advance nor inhibit religion; and it must not cause excessive entanglement with religion.
exclusionary rule
free exercise clause
incitement
incorporation
lemon test
Supreme Court action making the protections of the Bill of Rights applicable to the states
exclusionary rule
free exercise clause
incitement
incorporation
lemon test
A First Amendment provision that prohibits government from interfering with the practice of religion
exclusionary rule
free exercise clause
incitement
incorporation
lemon test
the action of provoking unlawful behavior or urging someone to behave unlawfully
exclusionary rule
free exercise clause
incitement
incorporation
lemon test
Requirement that police inform suspects that they have a right to remain silent and a right to have counsel while being interrogated. Failure to inform suspects of their rights will result in any confession or evidence thus obtained being inadmissible against them at trial.
Miranda rule
neutrality test
obscenity
penumbras
privileges and immunities clause
Policy favored by justices in establishment of religion decisions. The justices used the neutrality test not so much to prevent favoritism among religious groups as to root out policies that preferred religious groups generally over nonreligious groups engaged in a similar activity
Miranda rule
neutrality test
obscenity
penumbras
privileges and immunities clause
defined as publicly offensive acts or language, usually of a sexual nature, with no redeeming social value
Miranda rule
neutrality test
obscenity
penumbras
privileges and immunities clause
Judicially created rights based on various guarantees of the Bill of Rights. The right to privacy is not explicitly stated in the Constitution, but the Supreme Court has argued that this right is implicit in various clauses found throughout the Bill of Rights.
Miranda rule
neutrality test
obscenity
penumbras
privileges and immunities clause
The clause in Section 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment stipulating that "no State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States."
Miranda rule
neutrality test
obscenity
penumbras
privileges and immunities clause
The Supreme Court's gradual process of assuming guardianship of civil liberties by applying piecemeal the various provisions of the Bill of Rights to state laws and practices.
(a)
