Unit 1: Political Systems, Regimes, and Governments: practice

Question 1

Which of the following is an accurate comparison of the media in the United Kingdom and Russia?

Question 2

Which of the following accurately describes changes in the source of political authority in Iran and Nigeria?

Question 3

Which of the following describes a contrast between changes in the distribution of power in Russia and the United Kingdom since the late 1990s?

Question 4

Which of the following is an accurate comparison of sources of legitimacy in Mexico and China?

Question 5

Which of the following is an accurate comparison of methods used to fight corruption in China and Nigeria?

Question 6

Which of the following describes a similarity in the democratization of Mexico and Nigeria?

Question 7

Which of the following accurately compares regime change in Russia and Iran?

Question 8

Which of the following describes a similarity between Nigeria and the United Kingdom?

Question 9

Which of the following accurately compares the independence of branches of government in the United Kingdom and China?

Question 10

Which of the following is an accurate comparison of how the governments of the United Kingdom and Nigeria have responded to separatist movements?

Question 11

A political scientist compares Mexico and Nigeria, two federal states with directly elected presidents, to learn why one has had a different history of military rule. Why does she choose two countries that share these features?

Question 12

A researcher finds that countries with higher GDP per capita tend to have more competitive elections. Which of the following conclusions is justified by that finding alone?

Question 13

Which of the following is a change of government rather than a change of regime?

Question 14

Which of the following distinguishes a totalitarian regime from other authoritarian regimes?

Question 15

Iran's Guardian Council can disqualify people who want to run for president or for the Majles. Which feature of authoritarian rule does this illustrate?

Question 16

Political scientists say a democracy is consolidated when

Question 17

In 2004 Russia ended the direct election of regional governors, and a 2005 law raised the share of the vote a party needed to win party-list seats in the State Duma from 5 to 7 percent. These changes illustrate which of the following?

Question 18

In 1979 Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's authority in Iran rested heavily on his personal standing as a religious leader who had long opposed the shah. Political scientists would call this

Question 19

Why do governments usually change more often than regimes?

Question 20

Which of the following is a reason that a large and ethnically diverse country might adopt a federal system?

Question 21

Which of the following accurately describes devolution in the United Kingdom?

Question 22

Iran's constitution gives a senior Islamic jurist final authority over the state. Which source of legitimacy does this reflect?

Question 23

Which of the following would most likely weaken a regime's legitimacy?

Question 24

Beginning in 1999, twelve states in northern Nigeria extended Islamic law to criminal cases involving Muslims. This shows that federalism can

Question 25

In 2022, protests spread across Iran after a young woman, Mahsa Zhina Amini, died in the custody of the morality police. Which of the following describes the state's response?

Question 26

After mass protests in Hong Kong in 2019, China's national legislature imposed a national security law on the territory in 2020. This response illustrates

Two views of devolution (original)

View 1: Giving real power to regional governments makes a state stronger, not weaker. Regional governments are closer to the people they serve, so they can match schools, health care and transport to local needs. They let minority groups that are outnumbered nationally govern themselves where they are concentrated, which gives those groups a stake in the state as a whole. They also let regions try new policies that others can copy if they work.

View 2: Devolution buys short-term calm at a long-term price. Once a region has its own parliament, its leaders gain a platform from which to demand more powers, and each concession invites the next. Citizens in different regions end up with different rights to public services, which breeds resentment. Rival regions compete for national funds, and politicians win votes by blaming the center. A state that devolves too much may find that it has built the institutions of its own breakup.

Question 27

The two views disagree mainly about which of the following?

Question 28

Which of the following would the author of View 2 most likely cite as evidence?

Question 29

Which of the following developments in a course country would the author of View 1 most likely use to support that view?

Hypothetical development indicators for four countries

GDP per capita is total output divided by population. The Human Development Index (HDI) combines income, life expectancy and schooling, from 0 to 1. The Gini index measures income inequality, from 0 (equal) to 1.

A table of four countries showing GDP per capita in dollars, the GDP growth rate in percent, the Human Development Index and the Gini index.
Country	GDP per capita (dollars)	GDP growth rate (%)	HDI	Gini index
Country A	45,000	1.2	0.93	0.33
Country B	12,500	6.5	0.77	0.38
Country C	11,000	2.1	0.78	0.46
Country D	2,200	3	0.55	0.35

Question 30

Which of the following is supported by the table?

Question 31

Countries B and C have similar GDP per capita. Which difference between them does the table show?

Question 32

Which of the following explains why a political scientist might use the HDI rather than GDP per capita alone to compare these countries?

A political scientist's argument about coups and revolutions (original)

Coups and revolutions are often lumped together as violent seizures of power, but they differ in who acts and in what changes. A coup is carried out by a small group, usually officers of the armed forces, who remove the people at the top and take their place. Most of the state survives: the same ministries, courts and civil servants carry on, and the new rulers often promise a quick return to civilian government.

A revolution draws in a large part of the population and does not stop at replacing leaders. It overturns the regime itself: the basic rules about who may hold power, where authority comes from and how decisions are made. That is why revolutions are rarer than coups, and why their effects last longer. A coup can be reversed by the next coup; a revolution leaves a new set of institutions that later governments must work within.

Question 33

Which of the following best summarizes the author's argument?

Question 34

According to the author, why are the effects of revolutions more lasting than those of coups?

Question 35

Which event in a course country fits the author's definition of a revolution rather than a coup?

Hypothetical violence and foreign investment in Country X, 2016 to 2024

In 2021 the government of Country X expanded a security program in the regions most affected by organized crime. Violent incidents are shown as an index, with 2016 equal to 100.

Chart values
Category	Violent incidents (index, 2016 = 100)	Foreign direct investment (billion dollars)
2016	100	30
2018	140	24
2020	180	18
2022	120	22
2024	90	28

Question 36

Which of the following describes the pattern shown in the chart?

Question 37

The chart is consistent with which of the following claims about state authority and stability?