Key concepts in politics / Andrew Heywood.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Heywood, Andrew.

Series:

Study guides

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Political science.

Physical Description:

xi, 281 pages ; 22 cm.

Place of Publication:

New York : St. Martin's Press, [2000]

Summary:

Concepts are the "tools" with which we think, criticize, argue, explain, and analyze. Political concepts are nothing less than building-blocks of political understanding: the political world means what our concepts tell us it means. But political concepts are notoriously slippery and subject to controversy. Indeed, political debate is often a debate about the correct use of political terms. This book provides an accessible and comprehensive guide to the major concepts encountered in political analysis. Each is defined clearly and fully, and its significance for political argument and practice is explored. The introduction explains how political concepts are used and why they are so often abused. The book is arranged thematically, in an easy to use way, to be a vital companion for students throughout their course of study, and especially useful as a revision aid.

Contents:

1 Uses and Abuses of Political Concepts 1

What is a concept? 4

Normative and descriptive concepts 5

Contested concepts 6

Authority 15

Civil society 17

Consensus 18

Government/Governance 19

Human nature 21

Ideology 22

Law 24

Left/Right 27

Legitimacy 29

Order 30

Policy 31

Politics 33

Power 35

Sovereignty 37

State 39

3 Ideologies 43

Anarchism 45

Christian democracy 47

Communism 48

Communitarianism 51

Conservatism 52

Ecologism 55

Fascism 56

Feminism 58

Liberalism 60

Libertarianism 62

Marxism 63

Nazism 65

New Left 67

New Right 68

Racialism/Racism 70

Religious fundamentalism 71

Social democracy 73

Socialism 75

Third way 78

Toryism 79

4 Approaches 83

Behaviouralism 85

Dialectic 86

Discourse 87

Empiricism 88

Functionalism 89

Historical materialism 90

Idealism 91

Institutionalism 93

Political philosophy 94

Political science 96

Political theory 98

Positivism 100

Postmodernism 101

Rational choice 102

Rationalism 104

Realism 105

Systems theory 107

Utilitarianism 109

Utopianism 110

5 Values 115

Accountability 117

Autonomy 118

Citizenship 119

Civil liberty 120

Collectivism 121

Community 122

Consent 123

Constitutionalism 124

Democracy 125

Equality 128

Freedom 129

Human rights 131

Individualism 133

Justice 134

Leadership 136

Meritocracy 138

Neutrality 139

Obligation 140

Property 141

Representation 143

Responsibility 145

Rights 147

Toleration 149

Tradition 150

Welfare 151

6 Systems 155

Absolutism 157

Authoritarianism 158

Capitalism 159

Collectivisation 162

Consociationalism 162

Corporatism 164

Dictatorship 166

Elitism 167

Liberal democracy 169

Militarism 170

Parliamentary government 172

Patriarchy 174

Pluralism 175

Populism 178

Presidential government 179

Republicanism 181

Revolution 182

Totalitarianism 184

7 Structures 187

Bicameralism 189

Bill of rights 190

Bureaucracy 191

Cabinet 193

Coalition 194

Committee 195

Constitution 196

Election 199

Executive 201

Gender 204

Hegemony 205

Judiciary 206

Mandate 208

Market 209

Mass media 210

Monarchy 211

Opposition 213

Parliament 214

Political culture 216

Political party 218

President 220

Pressure group 222

Prime minister 224

Race/Ethnicity 226

Referendum 227

Separation of powers 229

Social class 230

Social movement 232

8 Levels 235

Centralisation/Decentralisation 237

Devolution 238

Federalism 240

Globalisation 243

Imperialism 245

Intergovernmentalism 246

Internationalism 248

Local government 249

Nation 251

Nation-state 252

Nationalism 254

Patriotism 256

Regionalism 257

Subsidiarity 258

Supranationalism 259.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 269-275) and index.

ISBN:

0312233817

OCLC:

43385393