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American Government 2e

Review Questions

American Government 2eReview Questions
1.

What goods are available to all without direct payment?

  1. private goods
  2. public goods
  3. common goods
  4. toll goods
2.

In which form of government does a small group of elite people hold political power?

  1. direct democracy
  2. monarchy
  3. oligarchy
  4. totalitarian
3.

What is the difference between a representative democracy and a direct democracy?

4.

What does government do for people?

5.

The elite theory of government maintains that ________.

  1. special interest groups make government policy
  2. politicians who have held office for a long time are favored by voters
  3. poor people and people of color should not be allowed to vote
  4. wealthy, politically powerful people control government, and government has no interest in meeting the needs of ordinary people
6.

According to the pluralist theory of government, ________.

  1. government does what the majority of voters want it to do
  2. government policy is formed as a result of the competition between groups with different goals and interests
  3. ordinary people acting on their own have a significant influence on government
  4. wealthy people decide what government policy will be, and politicians have no interest in pleasing anyone else
7.

Which of the following is a good example of a tradeoff?

  1. The government pleases environmental activists by preserving public lands but also pleases ranchers by allowing them to rent public lands for grazing purposes.
  2. The government pleases environmental activists by reintroducing wolves to Yellowstone National Park but angers ranchers by placing their cattle in danger.
  3. The government pleases oil companies by allowing them to drill on lands set aside for conservation but allows environmental activist groups to protest the drilling operations.
  4. Groups that represent a variety of conflicting interests are all allowed to protest outside Congress and the White House.
8.

Supporting the actions of the Democratic Party simply because one identifies oneself as a member of that party is an example of ________.

  1. partisanship
  2. ideology
  3. latent preference
  4. social capital
9.

When a person is asked a question about a political issue that he or she has little interest in and has not thought much about, that person’s answer will likely reflect ________.

  1. ideology
  2. partisanship
  3. intense preferences
  4. latent preferences
10.

What kinds of people are most likely to become active in politics or community service?

11.

What political activities can people engage in other than running for office?

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