Chapter 1 Vocabulary Review

1. Chapter 1 Vocabulary Review AP Government

2. The process determining the leaders we select and the policies they pursue. This process produces authoritative decisions about public issues. Politics

3. All the activities by which citizens attempt to influence the selection of political leaders and the policies they pursue. Voting is the most common form of this activity in a democracy. Other means include contacting public officials, protest, and civil disobedience. Political Participation

4. This arises when people disagree about a problem and how to fix it. Political Issue

5. Collective goods. Goodsand services such as clean air and water, thatby their nature, cannot be denied to anyone.

6. Groupswho have a narrow interest on which their members tend to take an uncompromising stance. Single-issue-groups

7. The political channels through which people’s concerns become political issues on the policy agenda. In the U.S., these channels include elections, political parties, interest groups, and the media. Linkeage Institutions

8. The institutionsthrough which public policies are made for a society. Government

9. A choice that government makes in response to a political issue. It is a course of action in regard to some problem. Public Policy

10. The effects a policy has on people and problems. These effects are analyzed to see how well a policy has met its goal and at what cost. Policy Impacts

11. The branches of government tasked with taking action on political issues. The U.S. Constitution set up three branches to take these actions, Congress, the presidency, and the courts. Today, the bureaucracy is so powerful that most political scientists consider it a fourth branch in these matters. Policymaking Institutions

12. A system of selecting policymakers and organizing government so that policy represents and responds to the public’s preferences. Democracy

13. Writ of Habeas Corpus (literally to "produce the body") is a court order to a person (prison warden) or agency (institution) holding someone in custody to deliver the imprisoned individual to the court issuing the order. This prevents someone from being held in jail/prison indefinitely without being brought to trial.

14. A fundamental principle of traditional democratic theory. In a democracy choosing among alternatives requires that the majority’s desire be respected. Majority Rule

15. The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people involved in politics at a point in time. Policy Agenda

16. The process by which policy comes into being and evolves. People’s interests, problems, and concerns, create political issues for the government. These issues shape policy, which in turn impacts people, generating more interests, problems, and concerns. Policymaking System

17. A basic principle of traditional democratic theory thatdescribes the relationship between the few leaders and many followers. Representation

18. A theory of American democracy contending that an upper-class holds the power and makes policy, regardless of the formal governmental organization. Elite Theory

19. A principle of traditional democratic theory that guarantees rights to those who do not belong to the majority. Minority Rights

20. A theory of American Democracy emphasizing that the policymaking process is very open to the participation of all groups with shared interests, with no single group usually dominating. As such, these theorists believe that public interest generally prevails. Pluralism

21. Writ of Certiorari An order of a higher court to a lower court to send all the documents in a case to it so the higher court can review the lower court's decision. Usually issued by the Supreme Court.

22. A condition that occurs when interests conflict and no coalition is strong enough to form a majority and establish policy, so nothing gets done. Policy Gridlock

23. The sum total of all the goods and services produced in a year in a nation. Gross Domestic Product

24. An overall set of values widely shared within a society. Political Culture

25. A theory of American democracy contending that groups are so strong that government, which gives in to the many groups, is thereby weakened. Hyperpluralism