25. Colonial authorities in Nigeria used “divide and rule” tactics to:
a. pit racial groups against each other.
b. pit ethnic groups against each other.
c. pit social classes against each other.
d. prepare Nigerians for independence.
society, political culture, and political economy of Nigeria.
Topic: Nigeria: Historical Background
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
26. A 1999 expansion of the authority of _______________ courts in some of Nigeria’s
Northern provinces alarmed Christian and secular Nigerians.
a. shari’a law
b. fundamentalist Islamic
c. religious
d. family
society, political culture, and political economy of Nigeria.
Topic: Nigeria: The State
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
27. According to public opinion polling from 2012, a majority of Nigerians:
a. greatly trust their government, despite their lack of trust in other people.
b. support democracy, while believing that their democracy faces major problems.
c. fail to support democracy, given that their democracy faces major problems.
d. support democracy, while trusting their government and other people.
society, political culture, and political economy of Nigeria.
Topic: Nigeria: Political Culture
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
279
28. The term “rent” refers to:
a. extremely high profits earned by state-owned enterprises.
b. prices state-owned enterprises pay to lease buildings or to buy scarce natural
resources.
c. prices the owners of privatized companies must pay for scarce natural resources.
d. artificially high revenues derived from scarce natural resources or protection from
competition.
society, political culture, and political economy of Nigeria.
Topic: Nigeria: Political Economy
Difficulty Level: Difficult
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
29. Nations with electoral authoritarian rule include:
a. China, North Korea, and Iran.
b. Zimbabwe, Venezuela, and Iran.
c. Zimbabwe, Venezuela, and China.
d. China, Venezuela, and Iran.
Topic: Electoral Authoritarianism
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
30. One of the main differences between semi-democracy and electoral authoritarianism is
that in electoral authoritarian regimes:
a. only one opposition party is allowed to compete with the ruling party.
b. there are no regularly scheduled elections.
c. opposition parties can compete for only a small percentage of parliamentary seats.
d. incumbent rulers are rarely defeated by challengers.
Topic: Electoral Authoritarianism
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
280
31. Iran is ruled by clerics of the Shiite branch of Islam, who believe that they are legitimate
rulers of the nation until:
a. the Madhi, the 12th of the imams, the heirs of Muhammad, returns to rule the earth.
b. a just Shiite Islamic society is created, and citizens no longer need divine guidance.
c. Shiites are a majority of Muslims worldwide.
d. the Majles, the 12th of the imams, the heirs of Muhammad, returns to rule the earth.
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran: Historical Background
Difficulty Level: Difficult
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
32. Which of the following is elected by citizens’ votes in Iran?
a. Guardian Council, or Parliament
b. Majles, or Parliament
c. Expediency Council, of executive council
d. Madhi, or Parliament
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran: Historical Background
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
33. The leader of the Islamic Revolution was ___________________.
a. Ali Khamenei
b. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
c. Ruhollah Khomeini
d. Hashemi Rafsanjani
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran: Historical Background
Difficulty Level: Easy
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
281
34. The principle of velayat-e-faqih asserts that:
a. only the Madhi can be the ruler of Iran.
b. the Shiite branch of Islam is most faithful to the Prophet’s teachings.
c. a cleric should be the ruler of Iran.
d. there is a role for both elected and nonelected institutions in Iran.
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran: Historical Background
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
35. The Iranian political faction that promotes economic development through the more
reliance on market forces and foreign investment is the __________ faction.
a. pragmatist
b. reformist
c. conservative
d. principalist
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran: The State
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
36. A public opinion survey from 2005 showed that most Iranians interviewed suggested that
the responsibility to take care of the nation’s citizens economically fell to:
a. individuals and families.
b. private enterprise and foreign investment.
c. all of Iran, including its ruling clerics, the government and the nation’s people.
d. the government.
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran: Political Culture
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
282
37. Despite attempts at reform, Iran’s economic difficulties worsened in 2012 due to:
a. the fact the government’s privatization plan for state industries was really “pseudo-
privatization.”
b. a failed plan to convert basic necessity subsidies to the poor into transfer payments.
c. widespread corruption among the nation’s economic and political elites.
d. international economic sanctions imposed to deter Iran’s nuclear arms development.
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran: Political Economy
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
38. Which nation came out ahead, among Brazil, Nigeria, and Iran, in a comparison of
literacy rates?
a. Brazil, whose policy successes in recent times have included increasing school
attendance and child literacy.
b. Nigeria, whose government had focused heavily on promoting child literacy.
c. Iran, whose government successfully increased educational access for girls
d. Iran, whose government had successfully increased school attendance nationwide.
Topic: Comparing Capabilities Among Brazil, Nigeria, and Iran: Informed Decision-
Making
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
39. Which of the following nations was shown to have the highest homicide rate, in a
comparative study?
a. Nigeria, by far, given the actions of the radical Islamic group Boko Haram in the
nation’s northern section.
b. Iran, given the number of people deaths among people who have challenged its
regime.
c. Brazil, by far.
d. Nigeria, although far homicides are reported from Brazil’s urban slums than any other
places in the world.
Topic: Comparing Capabilities Among Brazil, Nigeria, and Iran: Informed Decision-
Making
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
283
40. How did the three nations examined—Brazil, Nigeria, and Iran—rank in a comparison of
their levels of democracy?
a. Brazil ranked at the top, followed by Nigeria, and then Iran.
b. Brazil ranked at the top, followed by Iran, and then Nigeria.
c. Brazil, which was followed by Nigeria, while Iran was ultimately left out the study,
given its lack of democracy.
d. Brazil, followed by Nigeria and Iran, which tied in regard to their democracy ratings.
Topic: Comparing Capabilities Among Brazil, Nigeria, and Iran: Democracy
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
Short Answer Questions
41. Summarize four ways in which British colonialism contributed to a weak state in Nigeria.
Learning Objective: LO 10.5: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Nigeria.
Topic: Historical Background
Difficulty Level: Easy
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
42. Explain what the Gini Index is and what Gini Index values of zero and 100 mean.
Learning Objective: LO 10.3: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Brazil.
Topic: Brazil/State and Society
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
43. Explain why patron-client relationships are obstacles to improving capabilities of poor
Brazilians.
Learning Objective: LO 10.4: Summarize the main features of semi-democracy.
Topic: Semi-Democracy
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
44. Discuss two methods leaders of nonelected political institutions in Iran use to control the
power of the Iranian parliament.
Learning Objective: LO 10.7: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran/The State
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
284
Essay Questions
45. Explain three differences between flawed democracies and semi-democracies and the
consequences of these differences for citizens’ capabilities.
Learning Objective: LO 10.4: Summarize the main features of semi-democracy.
Topic: Semi-Democracy
Difficulty Level: Easy
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
46. Explain why broad-based political parties like the Workers’ Party are very important for
improving the capabilities of poor Brazilians, but not so important for improving the
capabilities of wealthy Brazilians.
Learning Objective: LO 10.3: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Brazil.
Topic: Brazil/State and Society
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
47. Explain two reasons why Brazilian presidents usually have great difficulty in getting
legislation they support approved by the Brazilian legislature. Explain how the effects of
this hampered President Rousseff’s attempts at ending patterns of institutionalized-
corruption.
Learning Objective: LO 10.3: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Brazil.
Topic: Brazil/The State
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
48. Explain the economics, politics and the specific series of events behind mass protests that
took place in the summer of 2013 in Sao Paulo and other Brazilian cities. Examine
whether the protests had any impact in the short term, and the chances of them having an
impact in the long term.
Learning Objective: LO 10.3: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Brazil.
Topic: Political Economy
Difficulty Level: Difficult
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
49. Explain why the Nigerian state has had so little success in improving citizens’ capabilities
despite huge revenues from oil, using your knowledge about weak states, “big men,” and
patron-client politics.
Learning Objective: LO 10.5: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Nigeria.
Topic: Nigeria/State and Society
Difficulty Level: Difficult
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
285
50. Explain how a disputed national election eventually led to an opening for the violent,
Islamic extremist group Boko Haram in northern Nigeria. Analyze the problems that
fueled the group’s activism, and also examine its goals. Examine the means the group
was using, by mid-2014, to further its aims.
Learning Objective: LO 10.5: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Nigeria.
Topic: Nigeria/State and Society
Difficulty Level: Difficult
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
51. Analyze how the Supreme Leader of Iran uses two main nonelected political institutions
in Iran to determine who gets elected to the Iranian legislature and the kind of legislation
that becomes law in Iran.
Learning Objective: LO 10.7: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran/The State
Difficulty Level: Difficult
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
52. Analyze why electoral authoritarian regimes without a ruling party tend to be politically
unstable and tend to become either more democratic or more authoritarian using the case
of Iran.
Learning Objective: LO 10.7: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran/Political Culture
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
53. Explain how leaders of Iran’s four main factions use patronage and government subsidies
to maintain support from groups in society, and discuss which social classes and
organizations are the main beneficiaries of the patronage and subsidies.
Learning Objective: LO 10.7: Describe the history, state, relations between state and
society, political culture, and political economy of Iran.
Topic: Iran/The State
Difficulty Level: Difficult
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
54. The Islamic Republic of Iran has achieved infant mortality and literacy rates close to
those of Brazil and much lower homicide rates than Brazil with a lower GDP per capita
than Brazil. Evaluate whether Iran is a more successful society than Brazil, and if it is
not, which criterion or criteria would you use to tip the balance in favor of Brazil?
Learning Objective: LO 10.8: Compare capabilities in Brazil, Nigeria, and Iran.
Topic: Conclusion
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
286