c. Gap in unemployment rates between immigrants and natives not as great
as in Sweden
3. Pragmatism
a. British value what is effective over what is ideological and principled
J. Political Economy
1. Legacy of Empire
a. British Empire was both a blessing and a curse.
b. Secured access to foreign markets and raw materials, but diverted
domestic investment.
c. Unemployment was higher, and growth slower, after World War II than in
other Western European nations.
2. Thatcher legacy
a. Strength of the leadership of Thatcher, after years of failed governments,
casts long shadow in current politics.
b. Policies transformed Britain, reducing state intervention.
c. She also cut the welfare state, as well as taxes on the wealthy.
d. Labor union power decreased in the Thatcher years.
e. Britain’s economic growth caught up with Europe’s.
3. Tony Blair era
a. Labor, led by Prime Minister Tony Blair, kept in place many of Thatcher’s
policies regarding less taxes and regulation.
b. However, the government also made tax and benefit changes that
increased disposable income for the nation’s poor.
c. Labor also increased spending on education and health care.
d. British economic growth was among the strongest in the world in the
1990s and well into the 2000s.
4. Recession and decline, again
a. Growth of the years before 2007 had been built atop consumer debt.
b. United States’ housing market collapse in 2007 greatly affected Britain.
c. Its financial sector was tightly integrated into the global economy.
d. UK deficit increased by 11 percent of GDP by 2010.
e. When a Conservative-Liberal coalition took power in 2010, it responded
by slashing spending across the board.
f. With no demand created by stimulus funds, however, investors stayed
away from the UK.
g. Despite budget cuts, the government’s debt remained high
VI. CHRISTIAN DEMOCRACY
A. Introduction
1. Economist magazine calls Christian Democracy “the most successful western
European political movement since 1945.”
2. Christian Democratic countries include Austria, Belgium, Netherlands, and
Germany.
B. Origins
1. Christian democratic parties arose in nineteenth century in reaction to
government efforts to take over activities churches thought belonged to them.
Copyright © 2016, 2012, 2008 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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2. Christian democratic parties today have very weak ties to church.
3. Present themselves as defenders of Christian values rather than defenders of
church
C. General principles of Christian democracy
1. A basic tenet is that state intervention should “repair society, not replace it.”
2. Safeguard moral authority of families and churches from threats from
encroaching states and markets.
3. Believe in capitalism but want to ease its inegalitarian effects.
4. Welfare efforts almost as large as those of social democracies.
5. Key difference is that they give generous transfer payments to insure income
security for families rather than making extensive use of state agencies to
provide collective services.
D. Institutional commonalities in state institutions but differences in details
1. Parliamentary democracy
2. Bicameral legislature
3. Differences
a. Different degrees of judicial review
b. Different degrees of federalism
E. Social institutions
1. Most important by far is a high degree of corporatism
2. Main features of corporatism
a. Groups organized into a limited number of hierarchical associations.
b. These organizations recognized by state and invited to participate in
policy-making process.
VII. GERMANY
A. Historical background
1. Introduction
a. Volatile history of victory and defeat in war.
b. State has taken variety of forms—fascism, communism, and parliamentary
democracy
c. Now the biggest country in Europe with the fourth-largest economy in
world.
2. State formed in 1871 when Bismarck united small independent principalities
to form modern state.
a. Bismarck led rapid industrialization.
b. German economic ambitions clashed with those of more established
powers and led to World War I and defeat.
3. Weimar Republic
a. Established after defeat in World War I
b. Weak legitimacy
i. Right-wing parties blamed defeat on German democrats.
ii. Left-wing parties saw Republic as attempt to restore capitalism.
iii. War reparations, hyperinflation, and unemployment further
weakened legitimacy.
4. Rise of Hitler
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a. Nazi Party led by Hitler emerged from crises.
b. Electoral power peaked in 1932 when won 37 percent of vote.
c. President Hindenberg appointed Hitler as chancellor.
d. Hitler given broad powers by emergency decree that he used to ban
political parties and eliminate opponents.
5. Creation of Federal Republic of Germany
a. Nazis defeated in 1945.
b. Allies divided Germany into four zones with United States, Britain,
France, and Soviet Union each controlling one.
c. Soviet zone became the German Democratic Republic (East Germany).
d. Other three zones combined to create Federal Republic of Germany
(West Germany).
e. The two Germanys were unified as one country in 1990.
B. The state
1. A semisovereign state
a. Federal authority is divided between national and federal governments.
b. Federal authority also constrained by power of European Union to make
trade and environmental policy and European Bank that makes monetary
policy.
c. Third, power of central state is constrained by power of judicial review in
which Constitutional Court can nullify laws passed by the government.
d. Constrained by powerful and encompassing interest groups.
e. Constrained by bicameralism.
2. Main state institutions
a. Parliamentary form
b. Legislature
i. Bundesrat is upper chamber representing lander (states) with
number of seats based on population of lander.
ii. Bundestag is the lower house, which selects the leader or chancellor
with members elected at least every four years based on electoral
rules that allow voters to select the candidate they wish to represent
them and apportion seats in the Bundestag according to proportional
representation.
c. Head of state is the president
i. Performs ceremonial functions
ii. Selects a party leader to form a government
d. Head of government is the chancellor
i. Commands majority support in the Bundestag
ii. Sets the general guidelines of policy
3. A stable state
a. Constraints on government power have encouraged consensual decision-
making and incremental change.
b. Germany now confronts problems on which it is difficult to gain
consensus.
i. Immigration
ii. Balancing the budget
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C. State and society
1. West Germany thrived while Germany was divided into two countries.
2. Control of government by the Christian Democratic Union (CDU),its sister
party the Christian Social Union from 1945 to 1966.
3. Government control was shared between the conservative CDU and the Social
Democratic Party (SPD) from 1966 to 1969.
4. Have been shifting coalitions of parties since then.
5. New issues such as immigration have caused the CDU and SPD to lose
ground to new small parties such as the Free Democratic Party and the
Greens.
D. Political culture
1. Pre-World War II political culture of militarism, nationalism, anti-Semitism
2. Postwar culture based on different set of principles
a. Culture was demilitarized.
b. Nationalism was delegitimized.
c. New respect for democracy
3. Reasons for change
a. Defeat in war
b. Contrition for crimes of the Holocaust
c. Allies’ imposition of new democratic institutions
d. Allies’ banning of Nazis and militarism
e. Comparing West Germany’s success with the new institutions to East
Germany’s failure
4. Greatest challenge: immigration
a. Many former East Germans immigrated to what had been West Germany.
b. Workers from Turkey and other foreign countries.
c. By 2011, 9 percent of the population foreigners.
d. Different values, religions, and cultural practices tested Germans.
e. Native Germans have sometimes responded with racist attacks and
xenophobic outbursts.
f. Unification and immigration will test new German political culture.
E. Political economy
1. Extraordinary economic revival after World War II
a. Steady and fast economic growth
b. High wages
c. Low inflation
d. Generous welfare benefits
2. The social market economy
a. State’s role not to intervene in economy but to promote cooperation
among its different actors and provide generous welfare benefits
b. These actors were well organized and powerful employer associations,
unions, and banks.
c. Banks provided patient capital that allowed managers to think for the long
term about their businesses.
d. Employer associations provided vocational training for workers.
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e. Unions bargained with firms on behalf of workers, moderating wage
claims and resolving disputes with employers.
3. Decline of the social market economy
a. In 1980s and 1990s economic growth slowed.
b. Labor market became divided between workers who had jobs with good
wages and benefits and those with little or no job prospects.
c. Rising budget deficits because of rising costs of social programs and costs
associated with unification of Germany.
d. Consequences
i. Banks less patient and wanted faster return on investments
ii. Industry less willing to pay high payroll taxes to pay for social
benefits
iii. Unions and employers’ associations less encompassing
iv. Unions and business associations destabilized
4. Shifting course, and recession.
a. Both employers and worker representation councils have sought more
labor flexibility.
b. Social Democrats, meanwhile, increased co-payments, tightened eligibility
rules, cut welfare benefits and taxes to revive growth.
c. Wages stagnated.
d. These reforms, and wage restraint, positioned Germany well when
recession hit in 2008.
e. Government was freer to engage in higher deficit spending to stimulate the
economy.
f. Subsidization of worker wage costs kept unemployment low.
g. Germany struck a new bargain that paid dividends, but the tradeoff was
wage stagnation, fewer benefits, and greater inequality.
5. Germany more assertive internationally
a. In past, emphasized being a good neighbor as part of the European Union.
b. It is the largest member of European Union and has become more
assertive in promoting its national interests.
c. At the same time, Germany is still reluctant to seize the initiative.
VIII. COMPARING CAPABILITIES AMONG SWEDEN, THE UNITED STATES, AND
GERMANY
A. Compare which of the three political models best meets criteria of good society.
B. Comparing capabilities among Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Germany
requires more subtle and discerning measures than those used to compare
developed and less-developed countries.
C. Physical well-being
1. Instead of infant mortality, use poverty rates as dependent variable.
2. Use poverty line for family of four in the United States in 2014 of $23,850
equalized for purchasing power in Sweden and Germany.
3. Sweden and Germany representing the social democratic and Christian
democratic models perform better than the U.K., representing extreme market
democracy.
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D. Informed decision making
1. Need more demanding measure than literacy rates since 99 percent of all three
countries are literate.
2. Use International Adult Literacy Survey, which has five rankings of being able
to understand and use printed information in daily activities.
3. Use rankings 1 and 2, with 1 being functionally illiterate.
4. According to the results, Sweden does a better job than the U.K. or Germany
in providing adults with skills they need to realize their potential.
E. Safety
1. Use homicide rates per 100,000 as indicator of safety.
2. Sweden and Germany have similar homicide rates of 1.0 and 1.2, with the
U.K. at 1.2.
F. Democracy
1. All three countries have a Polity IV ranking of 10.
2. According to more nuanced measures, however, the quality of democracy is
better in Sweden, which outperformed Germany and finally the U.K.
G. Overall, Sweden, representing social democracy, performed best, followed by,
Germany, representing Christian democracy, and the United Kingdom,
representing extreme market democracy.
REVEL Assets
9.3 Describe the history, political culture, political economy, political institutions, and party
system within Sweden.
Video: Far-right gains in national elections shatter Sweden’s immigration image
Reading: Rise of the Populists: Swedish business rattled by national election result
9.5 Describe the history, political culture, political economy, political institutions, and party
system within the United Kingdom.
Case Study: Parliamentary Democracy in Ireland
Video: General Election 2010. The First Election Debate
Reading: The Future of the Union-The Day After: Sadness not anger proves the epilogue to hope
9.7 Describe the history, political culture, political economy, political institutions, and party
system within Germany.
Video: Angela Merkel wins parliamentary elections
Reading: A Woman of Power, German Upper House Files Law Suit to Ban Neo-Nazi Party
233
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A ______________ can be defined as countries that share similar institutions, policies,
and politics.
a. regime
b. party family
c. political system
d. political model
introduce the three models found among them.
Topic: Introduction
Difficulty Level: Easy
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
2. Scandinavian nations that adopt the social democratic model are capitalist, despite their
reputations as socialist countries, because:
a. private ownership of the means of production prevails, and the state sets neither
prices nor production levels.
b. the nation’s high welfare state spending is funded mostly by private enterprise.
c. it is a democratic nation with universal suffrage and protection of civil liberties.
d. famous companies such as H&M and Volvo are based in Scandinavian nations.
Answer: a
Learning Objective: LO 9.2: Summarize the main features of the social democratic
model.
Topic: Social Democracy
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
3. ________________ parties have been dominant in Scandinavian nations, either as part of
ruling coalitions or at the head of government.
a. Left-leaning labor or workers
b. Christian democratic
c. Socialist
d. Social democratic
Answer: d
Learning Objective: LO 9.2: Summarize the main features of the social democratic
model.
Topic: Social Democracy
Difficulty Level: Easy
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
234
4. A characteristic of Scandinavian nations is:
a. support for state ownership of business.
b. a lack of an entrepreneurial spirit and risk-taking
c. low labor participation rates and standards of living
d. a relatively high percent of public employees in the labor force.
Answer: d
Learning Objective: LO 9.2: Summarize the main features of the social democratic model
Topic: Social Democracy
Difficulty Level: Easy
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
5. Welfare state programs in social democratic nations tend to offer ___________
protection, with everything from day care to job training to elder care.
a. universal
b. social
c. cradle-to-grave
d. labor security
Answer: c
Learning Objective: LO 9.2: Summarize the main features of the social democratic
model.
Topic: Social Democracy
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
6. Which type of political model has the highest level of taxes and public spending?
a. Christian democracy
b. social democracy
c. extreme market capitalism
d. market socialist
Answer: b
Learning Objective: LO 9.2: Summarize the main features of the social democratic
model.
Topic: Social Democracy
Difficulty Level: Easy
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
235
7. Active labor market policies:
a. ensure that workers do not lose their jobs.
b. ensure that unemployed workers can take as long as needed to find a new job.
c. reassure unemployed workers that they do not need to find a new job.
d. offer job training and support for workers to move to find new jobs.
Answer: d
Learning Objective: LO 9.2: Summarize the main features of the social democratic
model.
Topic: Social Democracy
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
8. Which of the following is an accurate statement about social democratic countries?
a. High taxes have undermined global economic competitiveness.
b. Large welfare states have undermined the work ethic.
c. Large welfare states have caused shortages of skilled workers.
d. Large welfare states have enabled women to enter the workforce in large numbers.
Answer: d
Learning Objective: LO 9.2: Summarize the main features of the social democratic
model.
Topic: Social Democracy
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Remember the Facts
9. Social democratic parties have been successful in Scandinavia in part because:
a. Scandinavian countries got an early start on industrialization and the development of
a working class.
b. Scandinavian elites violently oppose democracy.
c. Working-class living standards are low..
d. even middle-class Scandinavians came to believe in the value of gradual socialism.
Answer: d
Learning Objective: LO 9.2: Summarize the main features of the social democratic
model.
Topic: Social Democracy
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
236
10. In a ____________ democracy, policymaking is inclusive, with power shared and views
of parties not in the government considered.
a. corporatist
a. pluralist
b. Christian
c. consensual
political institutions, and party system within Sweden.
Topic: Sweden: The State
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
11. In Sweden’s government, the ombudsman is:
a. a member of the cabinet.
b. the term for the leader of the opposition party in parliament.
c. the term for the speaker of the Riksdag.
d. a parliamentary office that investigates state agencies for misconduct.
political institutions, and party system within Sweden.
Topic: Sweden: The State
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Understand the Concepts
12. __________________ has reduced support for welfare state spending in Sweden, and
hurt social trust as well.
a. Large budget deficits
b. The declining competitiveness of Swedish companies
c. The effects of the recent world economic recession
d. The increasing percentage of immigrants in the population
political institutions, and party system within Sweden.
Topic: Sweden: Political Culture
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Skill Level: Apply What You Know
237