Grigsby 3

Key Concepts in Political Science

Power

• Distinguishing feature of political science

• Ability of one person to get another to do something

Types of Power

• Force• Persuasion• Manipulation• Exchange

Force

• The exercise of power by physical means• Restraining• Assaulting• Assassinating• Impeding access• Other

Persuasion• Nonphysical power

in which the person using power makes its use of power clear and known to the person over whom power is exercised.

Manipulation

• Nonphysical power in which the person using power conceals the use of power.

Exchange

• The use of power through incentives.

Robert Dahl’s “Influence Terms”• Rational persuasion

• Tell the truth and explain why something should be done.

• Doctor tells you to quit smoking. • Manipulative persuasion

• Lying to get someone to do something• Politicians during elections

• Inducement• Rewards/Punishments to get someone to do

something. • Bribery

Robert Dahl’s “Influence Terms”• Power

• Threaten severe punishment. • Jail or loss of job

• Coercion• Power with no way out. • You have to do it.

• Physical Force• Backing up coercion with use or threat of bodily

harm. Best governments influence on

the higher end of scale.

Key Power Concepts

• Legitimacy

• Sovereignty

• Authority

Legitimacy

• The legal right to govern• The psychological right to

govern• An attitude in people’s mind• The government’s rule is rightful

• Legitimacy established by• Time• Governing well• The structure of government• National symbols

Sovereignty

• To rule over• The power to

provide security and rules

• Closely linked with legitimacy

Authority• The psychological ability of leaders to

get others to obey them.

Max Weber’s three types of authority:• Traditional Authority• Charismatic Authority• Legal-Rational Authority

Political Scientists• Skeptical of power• Seek accuracy• Abstract thinking• Reach tentative

conclusions• Offer many causes• See long-term

consequences• Plan for next publication• Seek good of whole• Seek professional

prestige

• Love power• Seek popularity• Practical thinking• Hold firm views

• Offer single causes• See short-term payoff

• Plan for next election• Respond to groups• Seek name recognition

Politicians

Centralization ofPolitical Power

Confederal System

• Highly decentralized

• League of mutual support or common action

Rivals to State Power

• Multinational Corporations (MNCs)• Have transactions in different states

• Wal-Mart, Sears

• Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs)• Nonstate, voluntary groups that pursue political

objectives• Red Cross, Doctors without Borders

• Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs)• Membership exclusively by states

• United Nations, NATO

Nation or State?

• A nation is a population with a certain sense of itself, a cohesiveness, a commonality of attitudes and ideals, and often a common language.

• A state is a government structure, usually sovereign and powerful enough to enforce its writ.

Who is a Nation?

• Gay nationalism• African-American nationalism• The Southern Nation• Should nation be applied only to groups

identifying with or striving for the creation of their own state?

• Multinational states

Territory is but the body of a nation. The people who inhabit its hills and valleys are its soul, its spirit, its life.

-- James A. Garfield

One Nation, Underprivileged

Rank 3: Poverty as a Structural Failing

“The trouble with the profit system has

always been that it was highly

unprofitable to most people.”

~ E. B. White

Author of “Charlotte’s Web”and “Stuart Little”

U.S. View

Poverty a consequence of individual failings and deficiencies.

Underlying Dynamic

• U.S. poverty is largely a result of structural failings at the economic, political, and social levels

• Lack of adequately paying jobs

Structural Vulnerability

• Ineffectiveness of the social safety net in preventing poverty• U.S. allocates smaller proportion of GDP to

social welfare programs than any other industrialized country except Japan

• Risk of impoverishment experienced by a majority of Americans

Impact of Social Class

• While some social mobility occurs, social class tends to reproduce itself

• Impacts children’s ability to acquire valuable skills and education• Differences in human capital

Poverty Correlated With:

• Lower levels of education

• Lack of marketable skills

• Physical disability

American Economy

• Larger numbers of • Low-paying jobs• Jobs that are part-

time• Jobs that lack

benefits

Musical Chairs

• There will never be enough quality “living-wage” jobs for all

• There will always be losers in the “game”

“It is a tragic mix-up when the United States spends $500,000 for every enemy soldier killed,

and only $53 annually on the victims of poverty.”

~ Martin Luther King, Jr.