Government Terms
Citizen Participation & Power Distribution In social studies we divide the different types of government into systems of citizen participation & systems of power distribution. Citizen participation describes how much control citizens have over their government and the amount of individual freedoms in a country. Power distribution describes how power is shared (or not shared) by different levels in the government.
Systems of Citizen Participation Use the icons as visual references.
autocratic
Autocratic (autocracy) a country or nation where citizens have little or no say in the government because it is run by a single person with unlimited power
oligarchic
Oligarchic (oligarchy) government by the few, sometimes a government in which a small group exercises control especially for corrupt and selfish purposes. The citizen has a very limited role
democratic
Democratic (democracy) a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections
More systems of Citizen Participation Each of these is some form of Autocratic, Oligarchic, or Democratic system. The icons will help you figure them out.
republic
Republic a government in which the people elect representatives to make the laws
Republic notes “Representative Democracy” All modern democracies function as republics. Originally created in Rome.
dictatorship
Dictatorship a system of government in which the ruler has absolute power and is not restricted by laws or a constitution
Dictatorship notes Dictators usually take power by force. They maintain their power through violence and intimidation. Common examples of dictatorships include: Cuba Germany under Hitler (WWII) Iraq under Saddam Hussein
theocracy
Theocracy a government ruled by a religious leader or leaders
Theocracy notes Theocracies can be autocratic or oligarchic. Leader of country holds a religious title. Laws will be based on holy book. Example: Iran
absolute monarchy
absolute monarchy (or just monarchy) ruled by a monarch who usually inherits the authority
Absolute monarchy notes Title of the leader can be king, queen, prince, princess, emperor, duke, etc. Power comes from family. Very rare today. Most of them are in SW Asia, along Persian Gulf: Saudi Arabia
constitutional monarchy
Constitutional Monarchy a government ruled by a King or a Queen whose power is determined by the nation’s constitution and laws
Constitutional monarchy notes Monarch’s job is mainly ceremonial Greet visiting leaders, have their face on the money, etc. Traditions help hold society together. Important symbol of the country Ex: Great Britain, Canada, Australia
constitutional monarch as a national symbol Queen Elizabeth II on British currency
God save the Queen God save our gracious Queen Long live our noble Queen God save the Queen Send her victorious Happy and glorious Long to reign over us God save the Queen 2. O Lord our God arise Scatter her enemies And make them fall Confound their politics Frustrate their knavish tricks On Thee our hopes we fix God save us all
constitutional monarch as a protector of stability Thai King Rama IX intervenes to end violence in 1992
Two types of Democracy
presidential democracy Leader of Govt / President Legislature/ Congress presidential democracy
Presidential Democracy a system of government in which the president is constitutionally independent of the legislature
Presidential: short definition System where the president is chosen in a separate election from the legislature.
parliamentary democracy Leader of Govt / Prime Minister Legislature/ Parliament parliamentary democracy
Parliamentary Democracy a system of government having the real executive power vested in a cabinet composed of members of the legislature who are individually and collectively responsible to the legislature. May have a Prime Minister elected by the legislature.
Parliamentary: short definition System where the legislature has all the power and the leader of the legislature (parliament) is the leader of the country.
Systems of Power Distribution How the government is organized.
unitary
Unitary (alternate definition) government in which power is held by one central authority
Unitary notes / characteristics All authority is held at one level, the national government. All laws are national laws. Unitary is NOT the same as autocratic. This is about how the government is organized, not how citizens participate. Lots of democratic countries are unitary, like England. Unitary systems are easy to set up, because there is only the one level of government, but usually doesn’t work well with large countries. Most common type of power distribution.
confederation
Confederation voluntary associations of independent states that, to secure some common purpose, agree to certain limitations on their freedom of action and establish some joint machinery of consultation or deliberation
Confederation notes / characteristics Confederations are fairly uncommon. All the authority is held by regional / state governments. The connection between the different governments are fairly weak. The European Union (EU) would be considered a confederation Other groups that are like confederations include (though, none of these are actually considered governments) OPEC United Nations NATO – North Atlantic Treaty Organization The U.S. was a confederation during the Revolutionary War, but this system did not work well.
federal
Federal characterized by or constituting a form of government in which power is divided between one central and several regional authorities
Federal notes / characteristics The United States uses a federal system. There is usually a strong central (national) government that shares authority with state / regional governments Authority is shared or distributed In the U.S. most laws come from the state level. This can be good because different states often have different issues to deal with. Because the different levels in a federal system can get complicated, it usually doesn’t work well for a small country.