Edexcel People and Politics Glossary

Adversarial Politics

opposite to consensus politics
fundamental or ideological disagreements on key political ideas
may expand to cover policy delivery - differences are over basic strategies rather than detail
no bi-partisan approach
e.g. policies and approaches of Labour and Conservatives in early 1980s

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Capitalism

economic system in which the distribution of finance, raw materials, incomes and goods is determined by free markets
private ownership of the 'means of production' e.g. farms, mines, factories

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Consensus Politics

opposite to adversarial
broad agreement between the main parties
small ideological differences
e.g. Conservatives and Labour took up a central position between 1945-1979

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Conservatism

desire to conserve, to resist or be suspicious of change
right-wing ideological belief
key beliefs:
tradition
human imperfection
organic society
hierarchy and authority
propert

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Corporatism

belief that the country should be governed in consultation with the representatives of both employers and trade unions
declined in 1970s

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Democratic Deficit

declining turnouts at all levels of elections
wider political apathy which renders questionably the democratic framework
deficit in political education as the wider public lack interest and knowledge in the political system
lack of widespread use or referendums
continuation of the Houses of Parliament - House of Lords has undemocratic credentials
unfair voting system creates an 'undemocratic' outcome for Westminster elections
pressure groups with 'elite' status may pursue narrow sectional interests which disadvantage the majority of the population
the EU is also said to have a democratic deficit - only one half of the legislature is elected and none of the executive is elected

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Democratic Socialism

left-of-centre ideological belief
proposes to retain a liberal democrat system of government
analysis of society in class terms
supports collectivism
aims to reduce inequalities of income and wealth

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Doctrine of Mandate

mandate - individual or group has permission or authority to act and their actions are legitimate
political mandates grant authority to winning party of an election to form a government
winning party has the mandate to implement policy options outlined in its previous election manifesto
concept of the mandate has been extended to cover the fact that a government can have a mandate to carry out whatever actions it sees to be in the best interest of the state - also known as the 'doctor's mandate'

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Dominant Party System

only one political party has a realistic chance of winning an election
opposition may be in disarray
dominant party may have taken up a central position with very broad support
e.g. Conservative domination between 1979-1997

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Electoral Volatility

significant changes in voting patterns from one election to another

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Elitism

belief/attitude that those considered members of the elite - intellect/wealth/specialised training/experience/distinctive attributes - are those whose views on a matter are to be taken the most seriously or carry the most weight
those whose views and/or actions are most likely to be constructive to society as a whole
those whose extraordinary skills/abilities/wisdom render them especially fit to govern

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Elitist Model of Political Parties

parliamentary candidates chosen by leadership
most parliamentary candidates have similar backgrounds and characteristics
party leader is chosen by a small, select group
party leader is powerful
party conference is no more than a rally to show support for the leadership
policy decided by leadership

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Factionalism

a group of people forming a cohesive, usually contentious minority within a larger group
conflict within an organisation/nation
internal dissension

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Functional Representation

idea that a pressure group might represent a group of people not on a geographical basis, but by function e.g. Trade unions for teachers

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Liberal Democracy

combines both liberal and democratic features
free and fair elections
wide suffrage
use of representatives to act on a citizens' behalf
constitutionalism
checks and balances
protection of individual freedom

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Liberalism

belief that humans are first and foremost, individuals endowed with reason and should enjoy the maximum possible degree of freedom
individuals are entitled to equal legal and political rights ensured by constitutionalism and consent
individual's are rewarded by merit and/or hard work
viewed as central political ideology

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Manifesto

coherent set of policies and a programme of political action
published shortly before a general election
electorate has opportunity to read the manifesto offered by each party and so be presented with clear alternatives

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Marxist Communism

far-left ideological belief
all property (apart from personal possessions) to be in common ownership
no socio-economic classes - no class conflict
common ownership of the 'means of production' e.g. farms, mines, factories
rewards to be distributed on the basis of need

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Minority Government

e.g. In the 1974 (February) election, Labour won 301 seats
at the time there were 635 seats in the House of Commons
Total - Labour = seats won by all the other parties
635-301 = 334 seats won by Conservatives, Liberal Democracts etc
Labour got less seats than the others put together - a (negative) minority of -33
this is a minority government
in another election in October, Labour won by +3 (majority)

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Multi-party Sytstem

if more than two political parties have a realistic chance of winning at least a share of power in an election
often occurs when the electoral system in PR, and often results in coalitions

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Partisan Dealignment

a decline in the strong attachments felt by voters to a particular political party

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Partisanship

strong party identification of voters and their feelings of attachment to a particular political party

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Pluralism

relates to the diversification and distribution of power within the political system
supposes a wide dispersal of power along various avenues and channels
no concentration of power in narrow sectional elites
encourages and welcomes open debate between competing groups in society
citizens can be represented via group membership/representatives
many pressure groups will have opposing and competing groups
pressure groups will have power and equal access to the political process
allows minorities to have political power - multicultural

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Pluralist Model of Political Parties

parliamentary candidates chosen by whole constituency membership
candidates reflect a wide range of backgrounds and characteristics
party leader is chosen by whole membership
party leader has limited powers
party conference is an open forum for debate
policy is decided by the whole membership or a large representative group

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Representative Democracy

form used by most Western, democratic states
free, fair, and regular elections at a range of levels
universal suffrage/wide franchise
assemblies or legislatures which pass laws e.g. Parliament
organised via representatives
decisions reached on basis of a majority
tolerance of differing viewpoints
widespread civil rights e.g. the right to free speech, to protest
a range of political parties which represent differing policies and ideas
pressure group activity

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Social Democracy

left-of-centre political ideology
less radical than democratic socialism
a more pluralistic approach to both social organisation and political ideas
more concerned with equality of opportunity
prepared to accept greater economic equality if it can be shown to benefit society
greater stress is laid on individualism
e.g. New Labour

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Socialism

opposed to capitalism
values cooperation and equality
believes that at least some state ownership of the 'means of production' produces a more cooperative and equal society than unrestrained society
left-wing political ideology

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Two-party System

if only two political parties have a realistic chance of winning an election
common when a non-proportional electoral system like First Past The Post is used
usually results in single-party majority governments
e.g. US Republicans and Democrats

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