Authority - answer✔✔the acknowledged right to make a particular decision
bargaining - answer✔✔seeking an agreement to a conflict through direct negotiation between
parties
bicameralism - answer✔✔a legislature comprised of two chambers with each holding a veto over
the other
cabinet - answer✔✔a team of executives elected by the legislature
coalition - answer✔✔a group of individuals with a common interest on which every political
party depends
collective action - answer✔✔action that takes place in groups and diverges from the social
norms of the situation
collective goods - answer✔✔goods that are collectively produced and freely available for
anyone's consumption
compromise - answer✔✔Settlement in which each side concedes some of its preferences in order
to secure others.
conformity costs - answer✔✔the difference between what any one party prefers and what the
collective body requires
constitution - answer✔✔establishes its governing institutions and the set of rules and procedures
these institutions must (and must not) follow to reach and enforce collective agreements
coordination - answer✔✔ability to work together
direct democracy - answer✔✔a form of democracy in which the people vote firsthand
focal point - answer✔✔some prominent cue that helps individuals recognize the preferences of
others with whom they want to cooperate
free-rider problem - answer✔✔citizens can reap the benefits of something without actually
joining, participating in, or contributing money to such groups
government - answer✔✔the governing body of a nation, state, or community
initiative - answer✔✔process that permits voters to put legislative measures directly on the ballot
institution - answer✔✔consist of offices that confer on their occupants specific authority and
responsibilities
institutional design - answer✔✔the construction of political institutions and processes for
managing conflicts and reaching collective agreements between competing interests
office - answer✔✔a duty or function assigned to someone
parliamentary government - answer✔✔a form of government in which the executive branch is
made up of the prime minister, or premier, and that official's cabinet
politicians - answer✔✔a person who is professionally involved in politics, especially as a holder
of or a candidate for an elected office
politics - answer✔✔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
power - answer✔✔a politician's actual influence over others whose cooperation she needs in
order to achieve her political goals
preferences - answer✔✔the outcomes or experiences people want or believe they need
prisoner's dilemma - answer✔✔a variety of settings in which individuals find themselves
personally better off by pursuing their private interests and undermining the collective effort
event when they want to succeed
private goods - answer✔✔things people buy and consume themselves in a marketplace that
supplies these goods according to the demand for them
privatize - answer✔✔converting a good from a collective good to a private good
public goods - answer✔✔everyone participates in supplying them and anyone can freely
consume them
referendum - answer✔✔a legislative act is referred for final approval to a popular vote by the
electorate
regulation - answer✔✔setting up rules limiting access to the common resource and monitoring
and penalizing those who violate them
representative government - answer✔✔system of government in which public policies are made
by officials selected by the voters and held accountable in periodic elections
republic - answer✔✔a form of government in which citizens choose their leaders by voting
separation of powers - answer✔✔constitutional division of powers among the legislative,
executive, and judicial branches, with the legislative branch making law, the executive applying
and enforcing the law, and the judiciary interpreting the law
tragedy of the commons - answer✔✔individuals' costless consumption of a public good that
results in its ruination
transaction costs - answer✔✔time, effort, and resources required to make collective decisions
tyranny - answer✔✔cruel and oppressive government or rule
agency loss - answer✔✔The discrepancy between what citizens ideally would like their agents to
do and how the agents actually behave
agenda control - answer✔✔authority to place proposals before others for their decision, as well
as preventing proposals from being considered
agent - answer✔✔those who exercise authority of behalf of principals
antifederalists - answer✔✔Opponents of ratification of the Constitution and of a strong central
government, generally --> for states' rights
articles of confederation - answer✔✔1st Constitution of the U.S. 1781-1788 (weaknesses-no
executive, no judicial, no power to tax, no power to regulate trade)
bicameral legislature - answer✔✔a lawmaking body made up of two chambers or parts
bill of rights - answer✔✔The first ten amendments to the Constitution
checks and balances - answer✔✔A system that allows each branch of government to limit the
powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power
command - answer✔✔authority to dictate others' actions
commerce clause - answer✔✔The clause in the Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 1) that
gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more
than one state or other nations.
confederation - answer✔✔highly decentralized system in which the national government derives
limited authority from the states rather than directly from citizens
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