Deck 5: Structures and Institutions

Question 1

Organizational structures through which political power is exercised are ______.

A)political institutions
B)political structures
C)political associations
D)political organizations

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Institutions are created or designed ______.

A)from existing frameworks
B)from a blank slate
C)by a hierarchical process
D)by the citizen they govern

Answer 2

A

Question 3

U.S.Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis referred to local governments in the U.S.federal system as ______.

A)laboratories for social experimentation
B)non-sovereign states
C)the locus of governmental power
D)the last bastion of governmental power

Answer 3

A

Question 4

According to Aristotle,which of the following is the perverted form of an aristocratic government?

A)a monarchy
B)an oligarchy
C)a dictatorship
D)a polity

Question 5

Who said,"But what is government itself,but the greatest of all reflections on human nature?"

A)Bob Vila
B)George Washington
C)James Madison
D)Andrew Jackson

Question 6

Political scientist Sidney Verba uses the term ______ to describe "the system of empirical beliefs,expressive symbols,and values,which defines the situation in which political action takes place."

A)political culture
B)political capital
C)class consciousness
D)form

Question 7

Which of the following is a political institution?

A)the U.S.Supreme Court
B)the legislature
C)the executive
D)the judiciary

Question 8

In which of the following systems do local government units have the real power?

A)federal
B)unitary
C)confederal
D)democratic

Question 9

The interdependent essential elements of governing that determine,enable,and limit the form and function of a government are known as ______.

A)government intrusions
B)government infusions
C)government structures
D)government delusions

Question 10

Which of the following forms of government did Aristotle consider to be a "good" form?

A)democracy
B)aristocracy
C)dictatorship
D)oligarchy

Question 11

Which of the following countries does not use a federal system?

A)France
B)United States
C)Germany
D)Canada

Question 12

In designing the American Constitution,Madison and his fellow architects built a system based on ______.

A)a basic mistrust of human nature
B)a basic belief in the goodness of humankind
C)a basic belief in the adage "Live and let live"
D)a basic belief in Americans' short attention spans

Question 13

The text highlights which of the following two of our Founding Fathers and the authors of sections of The Federalist Papers who have contributed to our understanding of governmental institutions,with a particular emphasis on separation of power?

A)James Madison
B)Benjamin Franklin
C)Alexander Hamilton
D)Both A and C

Question 14

The U.S.system,because of its separation of powers,is specifically designed to make it ______.

A)difficult for the government to infringe on the rights of its citizens
B)as simple as possible for one party to control the government
C)easy for new laws to be passed
D)a unitary system

Question 15

A country that does not have a monarch is,according to one simple definition,which of the following?

A)a republic
B)a democracy
C)a theocracy
D)an oligarchy

Question 16

Which of the following systems of government is not currently used by any of the world's countries,although it is used by the United Nations and the European Union?

A)a federal system
B)a unitary system
C)a confederal system
D)a federal,unitary,or confederal system

Question 17

What is the difference between political structures and political institutions?

A)Political institutions are generic,while structures are specific.
B)Structures pertain to the executive branch of government,while institutions pertain to the legislative branch.
C)There is no difference;they both refer to the generic branches of government.
D)Political structures are generic,while institutions are specific.

Question 18

Which of the following does not happen when the Queen of England opens Parliament by announcing what her Parliament will do?

A)She adds legitimacy to the institution.
B)She informs the public what is happening.
C)She draws attention to the Parliament.
D)She challenges Parliament's authority because she wields true political power.

Question 19

Which of the following is a political structure?

A)the British House of Commons
B)the U.S.Senate
C)a judicial system
D)the presidency

Question 20

According to Aristotle,which of the following is a government ruled by the many that works for the benefit of the ruling class?

A)democracy
B)aristocracy
C)dictatorship
D)polity

Question 21

The political system in the United States is founded on a separation of powers,which makes it difficult for any one faction to enact sweeping changes or infringe significantly on the rights of the citizens.However,there is at least one major disadvantage to this--what is it? How are European democracies different,and what are the advantages and disadvantages of their political systems?

Question 22

Monarchy is a multiple authority government.

Question 23

Aristotle recognized six basic types of government and categorized them as either a good form of government or a perverted form of government.Explain what Aristotle meant by a perverted form of government and why he classified democracy as a perverted form of government.

Question 24

The U.S.Supreme Court is an institution of the judicial structure in the United States.

Question 25

Political culture is the political aspect of the human nature of the local populace.

Question 26

A dictatorship is considered a perverted form of government.

Question 27

What are the benefits and pitfalls of the monarchy and aristocracy types of government?

Question 28

Benjamin Franklin was often called the father of the U.S.Constitution.

Question 29

Institutions are critical and relatively permanent parts of a government.

Question 30

Discuss how a federal governance system is the best system for a capitalist economic system.

Question 31

Federalism allows for differences among the local government units that reflect differing cultures or traditions.

Question 32

Aristotle recognized six basic types of government: polity,oligarchy,aristocracy,democracy,dictatorship,and monarchy.Briefly explain who rules in each one (one person,a few people,many people).For each type,also explain whether Aristotle believed it to be a good or bad form of government.

Question 33

As categorized by Aristotle,Democracy is a good form of government.

Question 34

Foundations do not have to share characteristics.

Question 35

The least commonly used form is the unitary system.

Question 36

Political institutions always function properly.

Question 37

Discuss the differences between political structures and political institutions and provide examples of each.

Question 38

In a unitary system,the national parliament,dictator,dancing llama,or whoever makes all the decisions for the entire nation.

Question 39

Why is it the case that nations rarely have an opportunity to install their ideal institutions from scratch?

Question 40

What is political culture and how does it set the boundaries for the type of government that will work in a given area?