The proposed textbook does not provide ready-made “recipes” for political behavior: after all, how many people there are, so many ways of their relationship with politics. But it will help you avoid gross mistakes when solving issues and problems that arise in everyday political life, and will introduce you to the basics of knowledge about politics, the state, human rights, and fundamental political science and sociological concepts. Particular attention is paid to the problem of democracy in the political life of society. Recommended by the Scientific and Methodological Center for Educational Books and Teaching Aids of the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Belarus. Addressed to students of senior secondary schools and other educational institutions.

Politics: options for definitions - Politics as art - So, politics is ... - Politician

Origins political science - A new approach to the study of politics - The emergence of modern political science - Why is political science needed?

Society as a system - Politics and economics - Politics and culture - Politics and morality - Does politics have boundaries?

Personality - Social communities - Social group - Strata - Ethnicity. Ethnic group - People - Political institutions - Let's summarize

What are political interests? - Political interests: private and general - Objective and subjective interests

Conflict in politics - Causes of political conflicts - War - How to get out of the conflict? - Resolution or settlement - The role of conflict in politics - Consensus - Achieving consensus - Negotiations

Power in politics - Relations of dominance and subordination - Regulator of public life - Legitimacy of power - Sources of legitimacy - Legality of power

Distinctive features of state power - Resources of power - Functions of state power - Accumulation of power - Separation of power - Vertical division - Power and opposition

Strong power or violence - What indicates the strength of power? - Crisis of power - Overcoming the crisis of power

What is the elite? - Elite theory - The ruling elite: distinctive features - Why does the elite arise? - Elite and privileges - The path to the top

Typology of the elite - “Foxes” and “lions” - Traditional and modern elite - Open and closed elite - Nomenklatura - Structure of the ruling elite - Counter-elite

Let us remember history - Political leaders: why do they arise? - Political leader: influence on society - Leadership: What does it “consist” of? - Why do people strive for leadership? - Leader and manager

Typology of political leadership - Robert Tucker's typology - Margaret Haermann's typology - Leadership style - Charismatic leadership - Cult of personality - The future of political leadership

Signs of the state. Territory - Population - Sovereignty - Governance apparatus - Origin of the state: Aristotle's version - Social contract theory - XIX century. Marxist theory - Why does the state exist? - So, the state is... - Constitution: the foundation of the state - “We, the people...”

Parliament: a little history - Modern parliament - Composition of parliament - Member of parliament - Factions. Speaker - National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus - Government - Government of the Republic Belarus - Head of State - President - President of the Republic of Belarus

Monarchy - Republic - Parliamentary republic - Presidential republic - Form of government in the Republic of Belarus - Forms of territorial structure. Empire - Unitary state - Federation - Confederation

State and society: possible options - Totalitarian regime - Man in a totalitarian state - Why is totalitarianism not eternal? - Civil society - The idea of civil society in the history of political thought - How is civil society created? - Rule of law

Democracy of the Athenian polis - Plato and Aristotle on democracy - New form of democracy English parliament - Jean Jacques Rousseau on democracy - Charles Louis Montesquieu - XIX century: new political realities - Jakes Madison - Alexis de Tocqueville - Joseph Schumpeter on democracy

Criteria of democracy - Representation of interests - Pluralism - Political participation - Enlightened choice - Mutual responsibility - The mechanism of democracy - Economic conditions for the existence of democracy - Social conditions - Democracy and culture - Disadvantages and advantages democracy

What are human rights? - Let's remember history - Universal Declaration of Human Rights - Legal guarantees - Socio-economic guarantees - Rights and responsibilities - Human rights in the Republic of Belarus

Suffrage - Universality of suffrage. Qualifications - Principle of equality - Secrecy of voting - Electoral law in the Republic of Belarus - Electoral systems - Majoritarian system - Proportional representation system - Electoral system: mixed options - Electoral system of the Republic of Belarus - Referendum - Is it necessary to go to elections?

Political party: main features - The emergence of political parties - How are modern parties created? - Why are political parties needed? - Parties and citizens: how relationships are built

Typology of political parties - Parties of the “new wave” - Why is a typology of parties needed? - Party systems - Single-party system - Multi-party system - Two-party system

Social movements - Why do social movements arise? - Formation and development of social movements - Social organizations - Functions of public organizations and movements - Pressure groups - Typology of social movements - Environmental movement - Anti-war movement - Human rights movement

Politics and people: options for relationships - Totalitarian type - Democratic type - How to treat as a politician?

What is political behavior? - Political socialization - Biological factors - Psychological factors - Social factors - Forms of political behavior - Crowd behavior - Some rules of political behavior