What term refers to the division of governmental power among different institutions that must cooperate in decision making?

The term that accurately describes the division of governmental power among different institutions that must cooperate in decision making is known as separation of powers. This concept is foundational to the structure of the United States government and divides authority among three branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Each branch has distinct responsibilities and powers, ensuring that no one branch becomes too powerful or operates without the oversight of the others. This division requires collaboration and consent among the branches for effective governance, promoting a system of accountability that is central to democratic principles.

Other terms like checks and balances, federalism, and decentralization also involve aspects of power distribution but do not specifically focus on the division of governmental power among institutions in the way that separation of powers does. Checks and balances, for instance, refer more to the mechanisms that each branch can use to limit the powers of the others, rather than the structural division itself. Federalism pertains to the division of powers between national and state governments, and decentralization involves distributing powers from a central authority to local or regional authorities. Each of these terms has its implications, but they are not as directly related to the cooperative decision-making among the three branches of government as separation of powers is.