Lecture 2

• Politics: concept and conception, politics as an arena & as a process, six approaches to study politics.
• Power: the capacity to bring about intended effects; ability to achieve goals, power over: forceful mode of influence; focuses on relationships.
• Politics as Power: the study of shaping and sharing power.
• Three dimensions of power: decision-making, agenda setting, preference formation.
• Political Power: the ability held by individuals and groups in a society that allows them to create and enforce laws and policies for the community.
• Four interconnected concepts of political power: power, authority, legitimacy, jurisdiction (sovereignty).
• Elements of political power: authority, legitimacy, jurisdiction (sovereignty).
• Chapters 5 & 6 from McCormick, Hague and Harrop (12 th ) are recommended readings for Session 30.
• Make summaries for yourself! is a recommendation for Session 30.
• Chapter 1 from Hendriks (on Canvas) is a recommended reading for Session 30.
• Read/Listen to the international news is a recommendation for Session 30.
• Lukes , S (2004) Power: A radical view, Palgrave Macmillan, is an extra reading for Session 30.
• An article by Maleki & Hendriks (2016) is a recommended reading for Session 30.
• Heywood, A (2013) Politics, Palgrave Macmillan, is an extra reading for Session 30.
• Compulsory reading for Session 30 includes McCormick, Hague & Harrop & (2022) Comparative Government and Politics, Bloomsbury.
• Diamond, L J (2002)Thinking about hybrid regimes, Journal of democracy, 13 (2), 21 - 35, is an extra reading for Session 30.
• Democracy and Autocracy are topics discussed in Session 30.
• State: a territory containing a population and marked by borders, having the legal and political authority known as government, that is regarded as both sovereign by the citizens of the state and the governments of other states.
• People: mass of population living within the state.
• Territory: fixed portion of the surface of the earth inhabited by the people of the state.
• Government: managing authority through which the will of the state is formulated, expressed and carried out.
• Democracy: A system of government in which the people have the power to elect their leaders and rule.
• Democracy index: An index by the Economist Intelligence unit that measures the state of democracy in countries around the world.
• Hybrid regime (anocracy or competitive authoritarianism): A regime with a combination of democratic and authoritarian elements, where rulers are elected in competitive (but not free) elections, and rulers exploit their position to keep their opponents off-balance.
• Freedom in the World index: An index by Freedom House that measures the degree of freedom in countries around the world.
• Governance: The activity of ruling, making collective decisions, or governing, focusing on the government policies and the process rather than institutions.
• Authoritarian regime: A regime where the rulers are above the law and not accountable, with violations of political and individual rights (freedom of expression, association), no elections or show/sham elections, limited political participation, and banned independent parties.
• Government: The specific administration within a political system.
• Political system: The interactions and institutions that make up a regime.
• V-dem project (Varieties of Democracy Project): A project that aims to understand the different forms of democracy around the world.
• Sovereignty: the supreme source of authority of the state to command and enforce obedience.
• Legitimacy: recognized by both their residents and by other states as having sovereignty.
• Nation: A cultural and historical concept describing a group of people who identify with one another on the basis of a shared history, culture, language or myths.
• De facto states are states that are not recognized under international law even though they control territory and provide governance, examples include Somaliland and Abkhazia.
• Intergovernmental Organizations are bodies whose members are multiple states, examples include the United Nations (UN) and the European Union (EU).
• Security states are states that make efforts to follow the activities of their citizens through means such as closed-circuit television and the monitoring of phone calls and internet use.
• Government is a territory containing a population and marked by borders, having the legal and political authority known as government, that is regarded as both sovereign by the citizens of the state and the governments of other states.
• The modern state system, known as the Westphalian system, emerged after the Peace of Westphalia in 1648.
• A citizen is a full member of a state, entitled to the rights and subject to duties associated with that state.
• Government consists of institutions responsible for making collective decisions for society.