Social Science (087) — AI-generated practice question

Democracy: Accountability, Responsiveness, and Legitimacy

Democracy is considered the most preferred form of government for the following reasons:

1. Accountability: Democracy ensures that rulers are accountable to citizens. Regular, free and fair elections, open public debate, and citizens' right to information make the government answerable. Transparency in decision-making — the ability to examine procedures — is a key feature absent in non-democracies.

1. Responsiveness: Democratic government follows deliberation and negotiation before taking decisions. Though this causes some delay, decisions become more acceptable and effective. However, democracies often fall short in fully addressing people's demands and are not always free from corruption.

1. Legitimacy: This is where democracy clearly outperforms all alternatives. It is the people's own government, elected by them. As South Asian data shows, 94% of people support rule by elected representatives, reflecting overwhelming legitimacy across the region.

Thus, while democracy may be slow and imperfect, its legitimacy, transparency, and accountability make it the most preferred form of government worldwide.

Source: Outcomes of Democracy, Chapter 5

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• The examiner expects three clear outcomes — accountability, responsiveness, legitimacy — since the question directly names them. Structure your answer around these three.
• Always mention that delay in democracy is worthwhile because decisions are more acceptable (this counters the "slow and imperfect" part of the statement).
• The South Asia data on legitimacy is a strong factual point — include it briefly to show evidence-based reasoning.
• Avoid writing about economic growth or social diversity here; the question is specifically about these three outcomes only. Stay focused.