topics in comparative government
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Political Institutions. Topics in Comparative Government. So you know…. One of the most important parts of Comparative politics is studying the political institutions of a country. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
TOPICS IN COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT
Political Institutions
So you know… One of the most important parts of Comparative
politics is studying the political institutions of a country.Some are more elaborate, but all have some
similarities… but remember, just because they have the same type of institutions, don’t assume they serve the same functions.
Common structures that exist in most countries include levels of government executives, bureaucracies, legislatures, judicial systems, linkage institutions, and armies.
Levels of Government Every states has multiple levels of authority
—it is the distribution of power that varies. Unitary—concentrates all policymaking powers in
one place—central governmentConfederacy—spreads power among many sub-
units. Federal system divides power between central
government and the sub unites.
More Centralization Less Centralization
Unitary Systems Federal System Confederate System
Supranational Organizations and Globalization NOTE: All political systems are affected by
other governments—but more and more they are affected by supranational organizations (NATO, United Nations, NAFTA, OPEC, EU)
These organizations reflect the trend towards integration—states pooling their sovereignty to gain political, economic, and social power.
This is globalization. Changed the nature of comparative politics because
it breaks down the distinction between international and domestic politics.
Modern Challenges to the Nation-State Globalization
think EU. Is it really possible for a large supranational organization to replace smaller political states?
Centripetal v. Centrifugal ForcesCentripetal—bind people together (think nationalism).
Encourages allegiance to a single country. Hard to have globalization in this situation.
Centrifugal—oppose centripetal. Usually a destabilizing force. Example: the Russian Orthodox Church in U.S.S.R. ○ Separatist movements are also a type of centrifugal force. ○ One Reaction to stop this force is devolution.
Devolution (Ethnic/Economic/ Spatial) What is it?
The tendency to decentralize decision making to regional government as a way to keep power.
3 typesEthnic Forces
○ Remember an ethnic group shares a well-developed sense of belonging to the same culture. If a group has an identity that differs from the majority—ethnonationalism can occur. (When a ethnic group sees itself as a distinct nation with a right to autonomy or independence.
Economic Forces○ Economic inequalities can split countries in two… ex. Italy.
Spatial Forces○ Distance, remoteness, peripheral location can be devolutionary
—especially if physical features separate the area from the central power.
Executives/Cabinet Carries out the laws and policies of the state. Can be split into two distinct roles—Head of
state and head of government (a.k.a. chief executive).
Chief executive is most important person in policy making process in a presidental system
Cabinet is most important in a parlimentary system because it’s ministers head all the major departments.
Bureaucracies Made up of agencies that generally implement
government policy. According to Max Weber (father of the bureaucracy),
bureacracies are well organized complex machine that helps the organization of a business.
Has 4 characteristics:Hierarchical authority structureTask specializationExtensive rulesClear GoalsMerit principleImpersonality
Common Characteristics of a Bureaucracy All bureaucracies whether they are
democratic or authoritarian, tend to have these features in common:Non-elected positionsImpersonal, efficient structuresFormal qualifications for jobsRed tape/inefficiencyHierarchical organizations
Legislatures Branch of the government that makes laws
80% of all U.N. countries have a legislature Can be bicameral or unicameral
93% of those countries with a legislature are bicameral.
Function is to formulate, debate and vote on political policies.
Often control the countries budget (fund raising and spending)
Can have varying degrees of power within a nation state. Ex. U.S. vs. China
Judiciaries Role in political system varies
considerably from one country to another.
All have some form of legal structure.
Linkage Institutions What are they? Groups that connect the people to the
government.Political parties, elections, interest groups,
and media. Size and function depends on the
population and the scope of government.The larger the population and complex the
government’s policy making activities, the more developed are their linkage institutions.
Political Parties Party System—the array of parties
operating in a particular country and the nature of the relationship amount them.
NOTE: Political parties perform many functions in a democracy. Bring ideas/people together and establish
majority rule.Provide labels for candidates that help citizens
decide how to voteHold politicians accountable to the electorate
The Party System One-party system
Most communist countries have this systemSome theocracies and totalitarian states use this system
as well. Two-party system
Is a rarity.About 15 countries world wide (including the United
States) use this system. Multi-party system
Most European countries use a multi-party system. Are found in countries with a strong parliamentary
system and use proportional representation for elections.
Electoral Systems Electoral systems are the rules that decide how
votes are cast, counted, and translated into seats in a legislatures. All divide populations by electoral boundaries, but use
different arrangements.○ Ex. US/GB use single member districts (a.k.a. the
plurality system) where voters vote for individual.○ South Africa uses a multi-member district (a.k.a.
proportional representation) where people vote for party not individual.
○ Mixed system uses some form of both for the system. Ex. Lower house is elected plurality system, where upper house
is multi-member.
Types of Elections Elections of Public Officials
Number of elected officials varies… even in a unitary state, state and local officials are elected.
ReferendumA vote on particular policy issues. It allows the
public to make direct decision about policy itself. ○ In US—it is at local or state level only.○ Other countries use it a national level.
InitiativeVote on a particular policy issue that is initiated by
the people.
Interest Groups Like minded people whose goal is to influence and shape
public policy. Similarities and differences vs. political parties..
Both represent political points of view of people wanting to influence policy.
Political parties represent the electoral process where interest groups support the electoral process.
The strength of interest groups lies in they degree of autonomy they have from the government. In authoritarian states groups have almost no independence… for
example in China only state supported interest groups exist. Other extreme is in western industrial systems where they guard
their independence by selecting their own leaders and raising their own funds.