Types of Government
Autocracy
Oligarchy
Democracy
Forms of Government
SS6CG4 The student will compare and contrast various
forms of government.
b. Explain how governments determine citizen participation:
autocratic, oligarchic, and democratic.
Essential Questions
How do citizens participate in different forms of government
(autocratic, oligarchic, democratic)?
How is power distributed in different forms of government (unitary,
confederation, and federal)?
What are the important democratic features of parliamentary and
presidential forms of government?
Participation is the Key…
Dictatorship
Dictatorship - A dictatorship consists of rule by one person.
Very few dictators actually admit they are dictators; they almost
always claim to be leaders of democracies. The dictator may be
one person, such as Castro in Cuba or Hitler in Germany.
Monarchy
Monarchy - A monarchy consists of rule by a king or queen.
Sometimes a king is called an "emperor," like in Ancient China.
Today, there are no large true monarchies. The United
Kingdom is no longer a pure monarchy even though it has a
Queen because she has no political power.
Democracy
Democracy - The word "democracy" literally means "rule by
the people." In a
democracy, the people make the rules.
Republic
Republic - In a republic, the people elect representatives to
make and enforce laws.
Autocracy
Government in which one person has uncontrolled or unlimited
authority over others
How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Forms of Autocratic Govts.
•
Absolute or Totalitarian Dictatorship
• Ideas of a single leader glorified.
• Government tries to control all aspects of
social and economic life.
• Government is not responsible to the people.
• People lack the power to limit their rulers.
• Examples- Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini,
Joseph Stalin
How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Forms of Autocratic Govts.
•
Absolute Monarchy
• King, queen, or emperor exercises the supreme
powers of government/unlimited power.
• Position is usually inherited.
• People lack the power to limit their rulers.
• Absolute monarchs are rare today but from the
1400s to the 1700s they ruled most of Western
Europe.
• Examples- King of Saudi Arabia.
How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Forms of Autocratic Govts.
•
Absolute Monarchy
• King, queen, or emperor exercises the supreme
powers of government/unlimited power.
• Position is usually inherited.
• People lack the power to limit their rulers.
• Absolute monarchs are rare today but from the
1400s to the 1700s they ruled most of Western
Europe.
• Examples- King of Saudi Arabia.
Aristocracy
Aristocracy - Rule by the aristocrats. Aristocrats are typically
wealthy, educated people.
Oligarchy
Oligarchy - Rule by a small, select group of people.
Oligarchy
How Governments Determine Citizen
Participation
Government by the few.
Sometimes a small group exercises
control, especially for corrupt and
selfish purposes.
The citizen has a very limited role.
Teacher Notes: Explain the different ways citizen
participation in their government is defined.
How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Oligarchy
• The group gets its power from military
power, social power, wealth, religion or a
combination.
• Political opposition is usually suppressedsometimes violently.
• Examples- Communist countries such as China.
• Leaders in the party and armed forces control
government.
How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Autocracy & Oligarchy
• Sometimes claim they rule for the people.
• In reality, the people have very little say in
both types of government.
• Examples- May hold elections with only one
candidate or control the results in various ways.
• Examples- Even when these governments have a
legislature or national assembly, they often only
approve decisions made by the leaders.
Warning
Most countries have their form of government listed in their
official country name. For example, Brazil’s conventional long
form name is the Federative Republic of Brazil and its
government type is a Federal Republic. This is not always
accurate as North Korea’s official name is the Democratic
People’s Republic of Korea and its government type is a
Communist state one-man dictatorship.
Democratic Republic
**Interesting Note - Democratic Republic - Usually, a
"democratic republic" is not a democracy or a republic. A
government that officially calls itself a "democratic republic" is
usually a dictatorship. Examples: North Vietnam was "The
Democratic Republic of Vietnam” or
"The People's Republic of China."
Activity
Choose a form of government. Please answer the following
questions about your government, and be prepared to share
with the class.
1. What is the name of your government?
2. Who is in charge, and what is he/she called?
3. How did he/she come to power? How long with they stay
in power?
4. Draw the flag of your government
5. All of these things should be presented neatly on the poster
board so the whole class can read it.
Assessment
Create a Voki character at http://www.voki.com/ to be your
president (can look like a person in your class, a famous person,
etc.)
Give the person text to describe the lifestyle this leader would
give to his or her citizens.
Present your character and the poster to the class.