POSC 335 Midterm Study Guide
State- The state is the organization that maintains a monopoly of legitimate violence over a given
territory. This means that organizations such as the mob do not qualify as the state since their
power is illegitimate and limited to a specific area. Examples of states include Germany and
Britain since they have established themselves as the only organizations that are legitimately
allowed to use force or grant others the right to use force.
Nation- The nation is a group of people bound together by common political aspirations, most
importantly the desire for self-government and sovereignty. An example includes Kosovo as the
people that make up this nation created a state where they could use its sovereign nature to
determine their own fate rather than have it determined by Serbia.
Ethnic group- An ethnic group is a distinct group of people who are set apart by attributes such
as language, religion, or custom. An example includes Muslims, Serbs, and Croats in Bosnia.
These three ethnic groups are set apart from each other for each practicing a different religion.
Even though religion is what mostly separates these groups, religion is what these people have
come to associate with as making them different from other groups.
Regime- A regime embodies the long-term goals regarding individual freedom and collective
equality in addition to who gets to use power and how that power will be used. An example of
how rules and norms function in a regime is how democratic regimes in countries such as
Canada and Germany emphasize a large role for the public in government along with the
guarantee of certain individual rights and freedoms.
Government- The government is the leadership or elite in charge of running the state. An
example of a government is in the United Kingdom where David Cameroon and Nick Clegg lead
a coalition of conservatives and liberal democrats in determining the direction of the country.
Conservative- A conservative is one who supports the current order and sees change as not
necessary or even destructive. An example of a conservative political attitude in a communist
country such as China would be a person who does not support calls for democratic change, but
favors maintaining the current communist order.
Reactionary- A reactionary is one who seeks to restore the institutions of a real or imagined
earlier order. An example of a reactionary political attitude in a democratic country such as
Canada would involve rejecting the status quo for a restoration of a greater inequality or
hierarchy between people, with violence if deemed necessary.
Radical- A radical believes in drastic and revolutionary change in the existing order. An example
of a radical political attitude in an authoritarian country such as Saudi Arabia would involve
advocating the overthrow of authoritarian rule in place of a democratic system.
Liberalism- Liberalism favors a limited state role in society and the economy with an emphasis
upon individual political and economic freedom. An example of a country that follows liberalism
is the United Kingdom as this country emphasizes individual freedom and equality, although this
freedom and equality is associated with competition and contestation as part of liberal
democracy.
State- The state is the organization that maintains a monopoly of legitimate violence over a given
territory. This means that organizations such as the mob do not qualify as the state since their
power is illegitimate and limited to a specific area. Examples of states include Germany and
Britain since they have established themselves as the only organizations that are legitimately
allowed to use force or grant others the right to use force.
Nation- The nation is a group of people bound together by common political aspirations, most
importantly the desire for self-government and sovereignty. An example includes Kosovo as the
people that make up this nation created a state where they could use its sovereign nature to
determine their own fate rather than have it determined by Serbia.
Ethnic group- An ethnic group is a distinct group of people who are set apart by attributes such
as language, religion, or custom. An example includes Muslims, Serbs, and Croats in Bosnia.
These three ethnic groups are set apart from each other for each practicing a different religion.
Even though religion is what mostly separates these groups, religion is what these people have
come to associate with as making them different from other groups.
Regime- A regime embodies the long-term goals regarding individual freedom and collective
equality in addition to who gets to use power and how that power will be used. An example of
how rules and norms function in a regime is how democratic regimes in countries such as
Canada and Germany emphasize a large role for the public in government along with the
guarantee of certain individual rights and freedoms.
Government- The government is the leadership or elite in charge of running the state. An
example of a government is in the United Kingdom where David Cameroon and Nick Clegg lead
a coalition of conservatives and liberal democrats in determining the direction of the country.
Conservative- A conservative is one who supports the current order and sees change as not
necessary or even destructive. An example of a conservative political attitude in a communist
country such as China would be a person who does not support calls for democratic change, but
favors maintaining the current communist order.
Reactionary- A reactionary is one who seeks to restore the institutions of a real or imagined
earlier order. An example of a reactionary political attitude in a democratic country such as
Canada would involve rejecting the status quo for a restoration of a greater inequality or
hierarchy between people, with violence if deemed necessary.
Radical- A radical believes in drastic and revolutionary change in the existing order. An example
of a radical political attitude in an authoritarian country such as Saudi Arabia would involve
advocating the overthrow of authoritarian rule in place of a democratic system.
Liberalism- Liberalism favors a limited state role in society and the economy with an emphasis
upon individual political and economic freedom. An example of a country that follows liberalism
is the United Kingdom as this country emphasizes individual freedom and equality, although this
freedom and equality is associated with competition and contestation as part of liberal
democracy.
