Some Final Review Questions

Here are some final "review questions" for the exam. These are by no means comprehensive (that is, you will need to know the lecture and readings concepts thoroughly in order to do well), but they will help you think about the larger themes for each week:

Week 1: How to Study Political Science

• What is "politics?"
  
• What is the appropriate unit of study for comparative politics? The state? Institutions? Cultural/social groups?

Week 2: Thinking Theoretically and Comparatively

• How do we understand what a state is?
• How has the field of comparative politics evolved over the past half-decade? What do we consider comparative politics to be today?
• How do we judge theories? What are the criteria of a "good" theory?
• How do we conceive of "legitimacy?" Why do we consider our modern state system to be premised on "rational-legal" legitimacy, in Weber's terms?
• What is the difference between "social categories" and "social groups?" Which sort of social category is most mutable?
  

Week 3: Ideology and Culture

• Do ideas matter? Why?
• Is ideology "epiphenomenal" to materialism and class relations or are the two mutually constitutive? How do Marx and Weber differ on this point?
• Do different cultures "do" politics differently? If so, does this necessarily lead to conflict?
  
• Under what conditions is "ideational" conflict (based on identity, ideology, and/or culture) likely to occur? How might Collier and Huntington concur or differ on this question?

Week 4: Interests, Institutions, and Mobilization

• What is "civil society," and how does it relate to the existence of interest groups and social capital?
  
• What are public and private goods? Which sorts of goods are most problematic, according to Hardin?
• What is the rationality assumption? How might it lead to collective action/free rider problems?
• What is Condorcet's paradox? When is a Condorcet Cycle most likely to occur?
• Why is there a trade off between rationality and concentration of power, according to Arrow?
• Are there "solutions" to the collective action/free rider problem? Do institutions constitute a compelling solution?
  

Week 5: Electoral Systems and Political Parties

• What are the different types of common electoral systems? What is the purpose of these systems?
• What exactly constitutes adequate "representation"? How do Burke and Mirabeau differ on this question?
• What is Duverger's Law? Why is it significant to the study (or creation) of electoral systems?
• What constitutes a "good" electoral system?