AP COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT EXAM
REVIEW CARDS WITH ALL CORRECT &
VERIFIED ANSWERS (UPDATED TO PASS)
Authoritarian Correct answer-A system of government in which decisions are made by political
elites, without much input from citizens. They may be ruled by a single dictator, a hereditary
monarch, a small group of aristocrats, or a single political party.
EX: China
Bureaucracy Correct answer-Literally "rule by the desk," they consist of agencies that generally
implement government policy. They are usually part of the executive branch of government. They are
often majority merit based, with hierarchical structure, and have well established formal rules.
Charismatic Leader Correct answer-A person or group with a dynamic personality that inspires
followers to support him/her/them. Occasionally, followers with be devoted to the point that they
would die for their leader. Governments based on this principle rarely continue past their founder.
EX: Tony Blair, Mao Zedong, Ayatollah Khomeini
Civil Service Correct answer-The term for the portion of the government that is involved in
improving the quality of life of the citizens. They are appointed based on merit rather than political
affiliation.
Civil Society Correct answer-The term or organizations outside the state that aid citizens in
advancing their interests. They are very strong in liberal democracies, where citizens are more
encouraged to exercise their freedoms. Organizations may be based on class, religion, or ethnic ties,
or may go above these to create a more united society outside of governmental control.
Cleavages Correct answer-This is the term for divisions in society that should theoretically be
outside the bounds of political issues. They include class, religion, and ethnicity and have a large
impact of policy making. Can be either cross-cutting or cumulative.
EX: Religion in the UK is a societal cleavage, and it is often cumulative with the other cleavage of
ethnicity. Northern Irish Catholics vs. British Protestantism.
Cross-cutting cleavages Correct answer-Cross-cutting cleavages are many cleavages that divide the
population in different ways and along different lines, and prevent too much polarization.
Cumulative cleavages Correct answer-Cumulative cleavages are multiple divisions that fall almost
exactly along the same line in the population, and leader to a more divisive and polarized state.
Democratic Corporatism Correct answer-This arrangement is when government officials interact
with people or groups outside the government before they set policy. Often times these groups are
business or labor leaders, or members of a patron-client system.
EX: In some countries, such as Mexico, unions operate under corporatism, where the union
represents a large fraction of the workers and has a large influence in governmental policy.
, Coup d' etat Correct answer-Literally "blows to the state," they are a replacement of the leadership
of the country with new leaders. Coups are often carried out by the military and usually occur when
the new leader forcibly takes power when political institutions are weak.
EX: In Iran, in 1953 there was a coup d'état against the elected government to place the authoritarian
and pro-Western Shah back into power.
Command Economy Correct answer-Economies where centralized planning and state ownership
are the norm. Command economies have strong ties to socialist principles, and are mostly fading
from existence in favor or market or mixed economies.
EX: The Soviet Union and China both had command economies, where industries were state owned
and the government had massive oversight on the economy.
Constitution Correct answer-A constitution is a set of basic rules concerning decision making,
rights, and the distribution of authority in a political system. They can be fully written out o based on
tradition and precedent.
EX: The UK constitution does not exist as a single documents, but rather as all previous laws and
interpretations of the Law Lords, with a strong basis in tradition and legitimacy from the Monarchy
Decentralization Correct answer-Policies that aim to transfer some decision-making power from
higher to lower levels of government, where the lower level of the government cannot be dissolved
by the national power. The power is placed into a sovereign body that shares its power with the
national government.
EX: In the US, powers granted to the states are decentralized, where power cannot be removed from
the entirely, nor can states be dissolved.
Democracy Correct answer-A regime which bases its authority on the will of the people. They are
often indirect, with the people voting directly for a representative for the legislative branch, and
occasionally the executive branch (presidential system). Generally speaking businesses and
corporations are allowed to more independently of the government in the economy.
Devolution Correct answer-Policies that aim to send power down to lower levels of government,
but differing from decentralization in that the lower levels of government can be dissolved at the
national level. This is a form of making the decision-making process closer to the people, though it is
not federalism.
Elite Recruitment Correct answer-A process of identifying and selecting a person or group of
people for future leadership positions. This may be done based on merit and education.
EX: In the UK, much of the elite recruitment comes from traditional Oxbridge education system, with
high scoring students being courted for government work.
Ethnicity Correct answer-A group of people who identify with each other because of shared culture
and/or language.
Federalism Correct answer-Power is divided between the central government and other sub-units,
which cannot be dissolved by the central government. It has a middle position in the amount of
concentrated power that it holds; less than a unitary system and more than a confederal system.
REVIEW CARDS WITH ALL CORRECT &
VERIFIED ANSWERS (UPDATED TO PASS)
Authoritarian Correct answer-A system of government in which decisions are made by political
elites, without much input from citizens. They may be ruled by a single dictator, a hereditary
monarch, a small group of aristocrats, or a single political party.
EX: China
Bureaucracy Correct answer-Literally "rule by the desk," they consist of agencies that generally
implement government policy. They are usually part of the executive branch of government. They are
often majority merit based, with hierarchical structure, and have well established formal rules.
Charismatic Leader Correct answer-A person or group with a dynamic personality that inspires
followers to support him/her/them. Occasionally, followers with be devoted to the point that they
would die for their leader. Governments based on this principle rarely continue past their founder.
EX: Tony Blair, Mao Zedong, Ayatollah Khomeini
Civil Service Correct answer-The term for the portion of the government that is involved in
improving the quality of life of the citizens. They are appointed based on merit rather than political
affiliation.
Civil Society Correct answer-The term or organizations outside the state that aid citizens in
advancing their interests. They are very strong in liberal democracies, where citizens are more
encouraged to exercise their freedoms. Organizations may be based on class, religion, or ethnic ties,
or may go above these to create a more united society outside of governmental control.
Cleavages Correct answer-This is the term for divisions in society that should theoretically be
outside the bounds of political issues. They include class, religion, and ethnicity and have a large
impact of policy making. Can be either cross-cutting or cumulative.
EX: Religion in the UK is a societal cleavage, and it is often cumulative with the other cleavage of
ethnicity. Northern Irish Catholics vs. British Protestantism.
Cross-cutting cleavages Correct answer-Cross-cutting cleavages are many cleavages that divide the
population in different ways and along different lines, and prevent too much polarization.
Cumulative cleavages Correct answer-Cumulative cleavages are multiple divisions that fall almost
exactly along the same line in the population, and leader to a more divisive and polarized state.
Democratic Corporatism Correct answer-This arrangement is when government officials interact
with people or groups outside the government before they set policy. Often times these groups are
business or labor leaders, or members of a patron-client system.
EX: In some countries, such as Mexico, unions operate under corporatism, where the union
represents a large fraction of the workers and has a large influence in governmental policy.
, Coup d' etat Correct answer-Literally "blows to the state," they are a replacement of the leadership
of the country with new leaders. Coups are often carried out by the military and usually occur when
the new leader forcibly takes power when political institutions are weak.
EX: In Iran, in 1953 there was a coup d'état against the elected government to place the authoritarian
and pro-Western Shah back into power.
Command Economy Correct answer-Economies where centralized planning and state ownership
are the norm. Command economies have strong ties to socialist principles, and are mostly fading
from existence in favor or market or mixed economies.
EX: The Soviet Union and China both had command economies, where industries were state owned
and the government had massive oversight on the economy.
Constitution Correct answer-A constitution is a set of basic rules concerning decision making,
rights, and the distribution of authority in a political system. They can be fully written out o based on
tradition and precedent.
EX: The UK constitution does not exist as a single documents, but rather as all previous laws and
interpretations of the Law Lords, with a strong basis in tradition and legitimacy from the Monarchy
Decentralization Correct answer-Policies that aim to transfer some decision-making power from
higher to lower levels of government, where the lower level of the government cannot be dissolved
by the national power. The power is placed into a sovereign body that shares its power with the
national government.
EX: In the US, powers granted to the states are decentralized, where power cannot be removed from
the entirely, nor can states be dissolved.
Democracy Correct answer-A regime which bases its authority on the will of the people. They are
often indirect, with the people voting directly for a representative for the legislative branch, and
occasionally the executive branch (presidential system). Generally speaking businesses and
corporations are allowed to more independently of the government in the economy.
Devolution Correct answer-Policies that aim to send power down to lower levels of government,
but differing from decentralization in that the lower levels of government can be dissolved at the
national level. This is a form of making the decision-making process closer to the people, though it is
not federalism.
Elite Recruitment Correct answer-A process of identifying and selecting a person or group of
people for future leadership positions. This may be done based on merit and education.
EX: In the UK, much of the elite recruitment comes from traditional Oxbridge education system, with
high scoring students being courted for government work.
Ethnicity Correct answer-A group of people who identify with each other because of shared culture
and/or language.
Federalism Correct answer-Power is divided between the central government and other sub-units,
which cannot be dissolved by the central government. It has a middle position in the amount of
concentrated power that it holds; less than a unitary system and more than a confederal system.
