grigsby slides 3
TRANSCRIPT
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.