Final Exam Review — 5 Hour Cram

This is a condensed, exam-first review built from the official final review PDF and the course unit notes: Unit 1 - Studying Comparative Politics, Unit 5 - Political Economy and Development, Unit 6 - Constitutions, Unit 7 - Political Executives and Bureaucracies, and Unit 8 - Legislatures and Elections. Focus on distinctions, definitions, and likely fill-in-the-blank wording.

Key Concepts

• The exam covers Units 1, 5, 6, 7, and 8
• The highest-value strategy is to master comparisons: MSS vs MDS, federal vs unitary, rigid vs flexible, judicial review vs parliamentary sovereignty, presidential vs parliamentary, SMD vs PR
• For definitions, always give what it is + distinguishing feature + example
• For fill-in-the-blank, memorize the exact phrase, not just the idea
• Many questions test whether you can distinguish two similar concepts without mixing them up

Exam Snapshot

Date/Time: Thursday, April 9, 2026 · 7:00–8:40 PM

Location: Ctr For Engineering Innovation 1100

Coverage: Units 1, 5, 6, 7, 8 · Chapters 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10

Format: 10 multiple choice + 20 fill-in-the-blank + 15/20 definitions = 80 marks

Best 5-Hour Study Plan

Hour 1: Memorize all comparison tables in this note.

Hour 2: Drill the bolded key terms in Units 1 and 6.

Hour 3: Drill Units 7 and 8 with special attention to executive types, coalition types, and electoral systems.

Hour 4: Practice writing definitions from memory in 2–3 sentences each.

Hour 5: Self-quiz using the practice section at the end and review mistakes only.

AI Tutor Tracker

Quizzed and now mostly locked in

• MSS vs MDS
• Federalism vs Unitarism
• Judicial Review vs Parliamentary Sovereignty
• Presidentialism vs Parliamentarism
• SMD
• FPTP
• PR
• FPTP / SMD vs PR
• Correlation vs Causation
• Reverse Causation
• Endogeneity
• Spurious Correlation
• Intervening Variable
• Operationalization
• Falsifiability
• GDP, GNI, GDP per capita, PPP
• Gini Coefficient
• Shadow Economy
• Grey Market vs Black Market
• Welfare State
• Path Dependence
• Dependency Theory vs World-Systems Theory
• Constitution vs Constitutionalism
• Codified vs Uncodified Constitution
• Rigid vs Flexible Constitution
• Separation of Powers
• Formal vs Partisan vs Informal Powers
• Impeachment vs Vote of No Confidence
• Constructive Vote of No Confidence

Quizzed but still needs reinforcement

• Fiscal Policy vs Monetary Policy
• Tariffs / trade policy vs Monetary Policy
• De-commodification

Still needs to be quizzed

• Minimum Winning Coalition
• Minimum Connected Winning Coalition
• Minimum Size Coalition
• Grand Coalition / Minority Government
• Delegative Democracy
• Populism
• Patronage vs Clientelism
• Legislature: main functions
• Unicameral vs Bicameral
• Apportionment
• Gerrymandering vs Malapportionment
• Strategic Voting
• Overhang Seats
• Linz’s critique of presidentialism
• Mainwaring & Shugart critique of Linz

Unit 1 — Studying Comparative Politics

This unit is about how comparative politics works as a method of inquiry.

What Comparative Politics Is

Comparative politics is the subfield of political science that analyzes multiple cases using the comparative method. It asks not just what happened, but especially why and how things happen in the public realm.

Core Distinctions

Term	What to remember
Empirical	Based on facts and observations; what is
Normative	About what should be
Deductive reasoning	Start with theory, then test cases
Inductive reasoning	Start with observations, then build theory
Dependent variable (Y)	Outcome being explained
Independent variable (X)	Cause being tested
Hypothesis	Testable statement about relationship between variables
Falsifiability	Hypothesis must be capable of being proven false
Operationalization	Turn abstract concepts into measurable variables

The Comparative Method — 7 Steps

1. Develop a question
2. Determine level of analysis
3. Select case studies
4. Develop concepts
5. Operationalize variables
6. Develop a hypothesis
7. Test, conclude, and build theory

Exam Alert

If you see a fill-in-the-blank on research design, the exact phrase they love is Most Similar Cases.

Case Study Designs

Design	Logic
Single case study	Deep study of one case
Within-case comparison	Compare parts of one case
Two or more country comparison	Direct cross-national comparison
Most-Similar-Cases (MSS)	Cases alike in many ways, differ on one key variable
Most-Different-Cases (MDS)	Cases very different, share one key outcome or feature
Regional / area study	Focus on one geographic region

MSS

North Korea vs. South Korea: similar history, culture, and geography, but different institutions.

MDS

Brazil vs. South Africa: very different histories and contexts, yet very similar constitutional outcomes.

Correlation and Causation Problems

Problem	Meaning
Reverse causation	Y causes X, not X causes Y
Endogeneity	X and Y influence each other
Intervening variable	X affects Z, which affects Y
Spurious correlation / missing variable	Z causes both X and Y

Common Mistake

Correlation means variables move together. It does not prove causation.

Unit 1 Must-Memorize Phrases

• Comparative politics
• Comparative method
• Operationalization
• Hypothesis
• Falsifiability
• Most Similar Cases
• Most Different Cases
• Reverse causation
• Endogeneity
• Intervening variable
• Spurious correlation

Unit 5 — Political Economy and Development

This unit asks how politics shapes economic outcomes and how development should be explained.

Core Economic Measures

Measure	What it means
GDP	Value of goods and services produced within a country’s borders
GNI	Income earned by a country’s producers regardless of location
GDP per capita	Average output/income per person
PPP	Adjusts for cost-of-living differences
Gini coefficient	Measures inequality: 0 = equality, 1 = inequality
Inflation	General rise in prices
Deflation	General fall in prices
Hyperinflation	Extremely high inflation

Shadow Economy

Type	Meaning	Example
Grey market	Legal goods sold through unofficial/unregulated channels	Unlicensed street vending
Black market	Illegal goods or prohibited transactions	Drug trade

Exam Alert

The shadow economy matters because it causes GDP underestimation, reduces tax revenue, and signals weak state capacity.

Market vs State Debate

View	Main claim
Neoliberal / market-led	Markets drive growth; too much state intervention causes failure
Statist / state-led	Strong capable state intervention drives growth

Best exam point: the modern consensus is not pure market or pure state. Successful development usually requires markets plus capable state institutions.

Three Economic Functions of the State

1. Economic management
2. Human capital investment
3. Welfare state provision

Welfare State Theories

Theory	Main idea
Cultural change	Citizens increasingly expect the state to address social problems
Industrial capitalism	Capitalism disrupts traditional social supports, so the state steps in
Mobilization & political action	Labour and political organization produce welfare expansion
International learning	States copy social policy innovations from elsewhere

Esping-Andersen’s Three Welfare Regimes

Regime	Key feature
Liberal	Modest benefits, market-oriented
Corporatist	Employment/status-based benefits
Social democratic	Universal benefits, high de-commodification

Key Ideologies

Ideology	Core claim
Neoliberalism	Free markets, privatization, low taxes, minimal state
Conservatism	Order, tradition, gradual change
New Right	Neoliberal economics + social conservatism
Marxism	Capitalism exploits workers; class conflict drives politics

Important Historical Twist

Bismarck, a conservative, created the first welfare state to preserve order. That means conservatism and neoliberalism are not the same thing.

Four Theories of Development

1. Institutions — market vs state
2. Institutions — beyond market vs state (property rights, path dependence, colonialism)
3. Culture (trust, religion, social capital)
4. Systems / structures (dependency, world-systems, geography)

Famous Case

North Korea vs. South Korea

This is the classic MSS case for development. Shared culture and history make institutional differences the strongest explanation for their different outcomes.

Unit 5 Must-Memorize Phrases

• GDP
• PPP
• Gini coefficient
• Shadow economy
• Grey market
• Black market
• Fiscal policy
• Monetary policy
• Welfare state
• De-commodification
• Path dependence
• Dependency theory
• World-systems theory
• Social capital

Unit 6 — Constitutions

This unit is about the formal rules that structure political systems.

What a Constitution Is

A constitution is the foundational or supreme law of a political system. It organizes government, allocates power, and often expresses founding principles and rights.

Exam Alert

Having a constitution does not mean rights are respected in practice. Even authoritarian regimes have constitutions.

Three Key Elements of Constitutional Design

1. Federalism vs unitarism
2. Separation of powers
3. Judicial review

Core Constitutional Distinctions

Distinction	Meaning
Codified constitution	Core constitutional rules in one supreme document
Uncodified constitution	Rules spread across statutes, precedents, conventions
Rigid constitution	Difficult to amend; requires supermajority or subnational approval
Flexible constitution	Can be changed by ordinary legislative majority

Common Mistake

Codified vs uncodified is not the same thing as rigid vs flexible.

Key Country Examples

Concept	Main example
Codified	United States, Brazil, South Africa
Uncodified	United Kingdom
Rigid	United States
Flexible	United Kingdom
Judicial review	United States
Parliamentary sovereignty	United Kingdom

Judicial Review vs Parliamentary Sovereignty

Concept	What it means
Judicial review	Courts can assess constitutionality and strike down laws
Parliamentary sovereignty	Legislature is supreme; courts cannot strike down laws

Federalism vs Unitarism

Concept	What to remember
Federalism	Multiple levels of government have constitutionally protected autonomy
Unitarism	Central government is dominant; lower levels only have delegated powers

Exam Alert

Federalism is not automatically more democratic than unitarism.

Key Arguments About Federalism

Possible benefit	Possible problem
Accommodates diversity	Can intensify regional divisions
Better local knowledge	Can produce soft budget constraints
Encourages policy competition	Can undermine equality or universal rights

Brazil and South Africa

MDS Case in Unit 6

Brazil and South Africa are very different countries that produced strikingly similar constitutions. This is the course’s main Most-Different-Systems example.

Unit 6 Must-Memorize Phrases

• Constitution
• Constitutionalism
• Codified constitution
• Uncodified constitution
• Rigid constitution
• Flexible constitution
• Federalism
• Unitarism
• Judicial review
• Parliamentary sovereignty
• Judicial activism
• Juristocracy
• Soft budget constraint
• Constituent assembly

Unit 7 — Political Executives and Bureaucracies

This unit explains who governs, how executives are structured, and how much power they have.

Core Roles

Role	Meaning
Head of state	Symbolic national representative
Head of government	Political leader responsible for policy and governing
Bureaucracy	Permanent civil service that implements laws and policies

Three Executive Structures

Type	Selection	Relationship to legislature
Presidential	President directly elected	Separate from legislature
Parliamentary	Executive chosen by legislature	Depends on confidence of legislature
Semi-presidential	President directly elected + PM responsible to legislature	Mixed system

Three Sources of Executive Power

Type of power	Meaning
Formal powers	Constitutional/legal powers like veto, decree, emergency powers
Partisan powers	Power from controlling party and candidate lists
Informal powers	Persuasion, patronage, clientelism, bully pulpit

Key Removal Mechanisms

System	Removal mechanism
Presidential	Impeachment
Parliamentary	Vote of no confidence
Germany’s variation	Constructive vote of no confidence

Coalition Types

Coalition type	Logic
Minimum winning	No unnecessary surplus parties
Minimum connected winning	Minimum winning + ideologically adjacent parties
Minimum size	Closest possible to 50% + 1
Minimum number of parties	Fewest parties needed for majority
Grand coalition	Major parties join in broad alliance
Minority government	Governs without majority

Exam Alert

If you confuse coalition types, remember:

• Minimum winning = no extra parties
• Minimum connected winning = no extra parties and ideological adjacency
• Minimum size = smallest possible seat total above the majority threshold

Linz vs Mainwaring & Shugart

Juan Linz argues presidentialism is more dangerous for democracy because it has:

1. Competing legitimacy
2. Fixed terms
3. Winner-take-all logic
4. More authoritarian leadership tendencies
5. Greater likelihood of outsiders

Mainwaring & Shugart respond that:

• the relationship may be due to wealth, not regime type
• parliamentary systems can also be winner-take-all
• the comparison suffers from selection bias

O’Donnell, Roberts, Lijphart

Scholar	Key concept
O’Donnell	Delegative democracy
Roberts	Populism as personalistic linkage to the people
Lijphart	Consociational arrangements / power-sharing

Unit 7 Must-Memorize Phrases

• Executive
• Bureaucracy
• Head of state
• Head of government
• Presidentialism
• Parliamentarism
• Semi-presidentialism
• Formal powers
• Partisan powers
• Informal powers
• Decree
• Impeachment
• Vote of no confidence
• Constructive vote of no confidence
• Minimum winning coalition
• Minimum connected winning coalition
• Grand coalition
• Delegative democracy
• Populism
• Clientelism
• Patronage
• Consociational arrangements

Unit 8 — Legislatures and Elections

This unit explains how representation is organized and how votes translate into seats and governments.

What Legislatures Do

1. Legislate
2. Exercise the power of the purse
3. Conduct oversight
4. Focus national debate

Unicameral vs Bicameral

Type	Meaning
Unicameral	One chamber
Bicameral	Two chambers

Common pattern: unicameral systems are more common in smaller or unitary states; bicameral systems are more common in larger or federal states.

Congress vs Parliament

Institution	Key feature
Congress	Legislature in a presidential system with separation of powers
Parliament	Legislature in a parliamentary system where executive depends on legislative confidence

Electoral Systems

System	How it works	Main effect
SMD / first-past-the-post	One district, one winner, most votes wins	Favours big parties, candidate-centred
PR	Seats allocated by vote share	Favours multiparty representation, party-centred
Open-list PR	Vote for candidate, seats allocated by party totals	More candidate competition within parties
Mixed / hybrid (MMP)	Two votes: candidate + party	Combines local representation and proportionality
AV / Instant-runoff	Rank candidates, redistribute votes	Produces majority winner
STV	Rank candidates in multi-member districts	Transfers surplus votes

Exam Alert

The biggest Unit 8 comparison is SMD vs PR.

SMD vs PR

Dimension	SMD	PR
Focus	Candidate-centred	Party-centred
Effect on parties	Helps larger parties	Helps smaller parties
Geographic representation	Strong	Weaker/direct local link less central
Proportionality	Often low	Higher
Government outcome	More single-party majorities	More coalitions

Representation Problems

Term	Meaning
Apportionment	Distributing seats across constituencies
Districting	Drawing district boundaries
Gerrymandering	Drawing districts for political advantage
Malapportionment	Unequal representation across districts/regions
Strategic voting	Voting tactically rather than sincerely
Overhang seats	Extra seats kept by a party in mixed systems when it wins more district seats than its party vote share would normally allow

Executive–Legislative Relations

System	Key removal mechanism
Parliamentary	Vote of no confidence
Presidential	Impeachment

Mezey’s Typology

Legislature type	Meaning
Active	Strong policymaking + high support
Reactive	Modest policymaking + high support
Minimal	Weak or rubber-stamp legislature

Unit 8 Must-Memorize Phrases

• Legislature
• Unicameral
• Bicameral
• Single-member district
• First-past-the-post
• Proportional representation
• Open-list PR
• Alternative vote
• Single transferable vote
• Strategic voting
• Apportionment
• Gerrymandering
• Malapportionment
• Overhang seats
• Representation
• Constituency

Highest-Yield Comparison Table

If the exam asks…	Correct distinction
Similar cases with one key difference	Most-Similar-Cases
Very different cases with similar outcome	Most-Different-Cases
Central government dominates	Unitarism
Regions/states have constitutionally protected autonomy	Federalism
Hard to amend	Rigid constitution
Easy to amend	Flexible constitution
Court can strike down laws	Judicial review
Legislature is supreme	Parliamentary sovereignty
Directly elected chief executive independent of legislature	Presidentialism
Executive chosen by and dependent on legislature	Parliamentarism
One district, one winner	SMD / FPTP
Seats allocated proportionally by party vote	PR
Executive removal by legislature	Vote of no confidence
Presidential removal process	Impeachment

Practice Fill-in-the-Blank

1. A study comparing cases that are alike in many ways but differ on one key variable is a ________ ________ ________ design.
2. A constitution that can be amended by a simple legislative majority is a ________ constitution.
3. A system in which subnational governments have constitutionally protected autonomy is called ________.
4. The power of courts to rule on the constitutionality of laws is ________ ________.
5. In a parliamentary system, the government can be removed through a vote of ________ ________.
6. In an electoral system where voters choose a party and seats are allocated according to vote share, the system is ________ ________.
7. An apparent correlation caused by a third variable is a ________ correlation.
8. Trade in legal goods through unofficial channels is the ________ market.
9. A coalition with no surplus parties is a ________ ________ coalition.
10. An executive order with force of law that does not pass through the legislature is a ________.

Practice Definitions

Try answering each in 2–3 sentences with a definition, distinguishing feature, and one example.

1. Comparative politics
2. Operationalization
3. Most-Similar-Cases design
4. GDP
5. Gini coefficient
6. Welfare state
7. Rigid constitution
8. Federalism
9. Judicial review
10. Parliamentary sovereignty
11. Presidentialism
12. Partisan powers
13. Vote of no confidence
14. Populism
15. Proportional representation
16. Gerrymandering
17. Malapportionment
18. Overhang seats

Definitions

Comparative Politics The subfield of political science that analyzes multiple cases using the comparative method in order to explain why and how political outcomes occur.

Operationalization The process of turning abstract concepts into measurable variables.

Most-Similar-Cases Design A research design comparing cases that are alike in many ways but differ on one key variable, allowing the researcher to isolate what that difference might cause.

Most-Different-Cases Design A research design comparing cases that are very different but share an important outcome or institutional feature, helping identify what common factor may explain that similarity.

GDP The total market value of all goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a given year.

PPP Purchasing Power Parity, an adjustment that accounts for cost-of-living differences across countries.

Gini Coefficient A measure of income inequality running from 0 (perfect equality) to 1 (maximum inequality).

Shadow Economy Economic activity outside official state regulation and therefore outside official GDP counts.

Welfare State Government provision of social protection such as health care, pensions, and unemployment insurance.

Constitution The supreme or foundational law that structures political authority and the institutions of government.

Rigid Constitution A constitution that is hard to amend because it requires special procedures such as supermajorities or subnational approval.

Federalism A system in which central and subnational governments both possess constitutionally protected powers.

Unitarism A system in which the central government is dominant and lower levels exercise only delegated authority.

Judicial Review The power of courts to determine whether laws are constitutional and, where applicable, strike them down.

Parliamentary Sovereignty A principle under which the legislature is the highest legal authority and courts cannot invalidate its laws.

Presidentialism A system in which a directly elected president serves as chief executive independent of the legislature.

Parliamentarism A system in which the executive is chosen by and remains accountable to the legislature.

Formal Powers The constitutional or legal powers attached to an office.

Partisan Powers The power executives gain from controlling parties and candidate selection.

Informal Powers Unofficial influence derived from persuasion, patronage, custom, or public standing.

Vote of No Confidence A legislative vote withdrawing support from a government in a parliamentary system.

Proportional Representation An electoral system in which parties receive seats in proportion to their vote share.

Gerrymandering The drawing of district boundaries to produce a desired political outcome.

Malapportionment Unequal representation caused by districts or regions having very different numbers of people per representative.

Overhang Seats Extra seats retained by a party in mixed-member systems when it wins more district seats than its party-vote share would normally entitle it to.

Final Reminders

Last-Minute Rules

• Definitions should be short, precise, and complete.
• When in doubt, define the term and then contrast it with the closest similar concept.
• Use country examples only if you remember them confidently.
• If you blank on a definition, write the broad category first, then the distinguishing feature.
• For fill-in-the-blank, think in exact textbook/course language, not just general meaning.