Sample midterm exam questions PDF

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Introduction to Comparative Government

Sample Midterm Exam Questions

Please note that these are sample questions. On exam day, you will receive 20 multiple choice questions, five questions from Section II, and three questions from Section III. The total allocated time for the exam is 130 minutes, which is double the amount of time you would generally require to answer all the questions. The exam should be done individually. SECTION I Twenty multiple choice questions (40 points, 40 minutes) SECTION II Define the following five concepts. Write a few lines for each using precise terms. (30 points, 30 minutes) (a) Institution

(b) Modernization theory

(c) The state

(d) Rational-legal legitimacy

(e) republicanism

(f) Liberal democracy

(g) Intervening variable

(h) Resource trap

(i) Civil society

SECTION II Answer each of the three questions on this section in a paragraph. Give examples. (30 points, 60 minutes) 1. Why is it difficult to create a science of comparative politics? Is it because this area of study is relatively new, or are there fundamental obstacles that will always limit what we can know based on the comparative method?

[A good answer will discuss control variables, multicausality, limited information, difficulty of fieldwork, geographic limitations, selection bias, and endogeneity.] 2. What is the difference between deductive and inductive reasoning? Why are both forms of reasoning important in determining correlations and/or causal relationships in comparative politics?

[A good answer will define inductive as starting with evidence and proceeding to hypotheses; deductive as starting with theories/hypotheses and seeking evidence by which to test them. Both forms are important for comparative politics—deductive without inductive is too abstract and not evidence based; inductive without deductive is atheoretical and not generalizable.] 3. What is the two-state solution for Israel and Palestine? Based on the definition of the state, what are the challenges of implementing it?

[A good answer will include Weber’s definition of the state as a “monopoly of force over a given territory” as well as a discussion of sovereignty, legitimacy, and the state’s institutional role in policy making.] 4. Why has it been difficult for less-developed countries to build effective states? What particular roles do ethnic and national identities contribute to this difficulty?

[A good answer should note that scholars seem to agree that building effective states in lessdeveloped countries entails three difficulties—ethnic divisions and borders, presence or absence of

natural resources, and the quality of governance (rule of law, sovereignty, resisting corruption). A good answer will also provide more detail about the first of these—deep ethnic divisions correlate with greater political instability; forging a sense of national identity and national welfare when the state is viewed as a tool whereby one ethnic group dominates the other hampers the development of a state that is supposed to fairly allocate power and wealth.] 5. Describe the role of economic modernization and political elites in theorizing about the emergence of democracy. Why are overall levels of wealth not enough to predict whether a country will opt for democratic reforms? [A good answer will note that modernization theory argues that a country’s level of economic development determines whether it will eventually democratize, positing a correlative relationship between wealth and democratization. Furthermore, a good answer will note that who owns this wealth (political elites or the middle class) and the nature of the wealth (natural resources, e.g.) are crucial variables when considering whether a country’s political elites will enact democratizing reforms.] 6. What is the role of civil society and political engagement in developing a more effective state? [A good answer should clearly outline what civil society is—organized life in a society outside of the state—and what it accomplishes. It binds people together, creating a web of interests that cut across class, religion, ethnicity, and other divisions. Through activism and organization, it can hold political elites accountable and forms a bulwark against the abuse of state power. It also inculcates a sense of democratic politics based on interaction, negotiation, consensus, and compromise.] 7. Describe the motivating factors that began the process of European imperialism in the 1500s. Why were European states so proficient at expanding colonial structures in the less-developed world? [A good answer should note a variety of factors that propelled European states to engage in imperialism. It may argue that technological and military development allowed states to project their strength outward toward less-developed areas—perceived as backward both culturally and technologically—to extract resources and impose imperial political institutions, all informed by the belief that imperial control over these territories was necessary, just, and willed by God.]...