Political science

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For the Randy Newman song of the same name, see Political Science (song).

Political science is a branch of social science that deals with the theory and practice of politics and the description and analysis of political systems and political behavior. Political Science is often described as the study of who gets what, where, when and why. Discovering a proper balance between the individual, the society and its Government for civilization and human progress is paramount.

Fields and subfields of political science include political theory and philosophy, civics and comparative politics, theory of direct democracy, apolitical governance, participatory direct democracy, national systems, cross-national political analysis, political development, international relations, foreign policy, international law, politics, public administration, administrative behavior, public law, judicial behavior, and public policy. Political science also studies power in international relations and the theory of Great powers and Superpowers.

Political science is methodologically diverse. Approaches to the discipline include classical political philosophy, interpretivism, structuralism, and behavioralism, realism, pluralism, and institutionalism. Political science, as one of the social sciences, uses methods and techniques that relate to the kinds of inquiries sought: primary sources such as historical documents and official records, secondary sources such as scholarly journal articles, survey research, statistical analysis, case studies, and model building.

[edit] Overview

Political scientists study the allocation and transfer of power in decision-making, the roles and systems of governance including governments and international organizations, political behavior and public policies. They measure the success of governance and specific policies by examining many factors, including stability, justice, material wealth, and peace. Some political scientists seek to advance positive theses by analyzing politics. Others advance normative theses, by making specific policy recommendations.

Political Scientists provide the frameworks that journalists, special interest groups, politicians, and the electorate analyze issues. Political scientists may serve as advisers to specific politicians, or even run for office as politicians themselves. Political scientists can be found working in governments, in political parties or as civil servants. They may be involved with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or political movements. In a variety of capacities, people educated and trained in political science can add value and expertise to corporations. Private enterprises such as think tanks, research institutes, polling and public relations firms often employ political scientists. In the United States, political scientists known as “Americanists” look at a variety of data including elections, public opinion and public policy such as Social Security reform, foreign policy, U.S. congressional power, and the U.S. Supreme Court—to name only a few issues.

Most American colleges and universities offer B.A. programs in political science. M.A. and Ph.D programs are common at larger universities. Some universities offer B.S or M.S. degrees.^[1] The term political science is more popular in North America than elsewhere; other institutions, especially those outside the United States, see political science as part of a broader discipline of political studies, politics, or government. While political science implies use of the scientific method, political studies implies a broader approach, although the naming of degree courses does not necessarily reflect their content.^[2]

[edit] History

Niccolò Machiavelli, one of the most influential political scientists

Main article: History of political science

[edit] Antecedents

Political science is a late arrival in terms of social sciences. However, the discipline has a clear set of antecedents such as moral philosophy, political philosophy, political economy, history, and other fields concerned with normative determinations of what ought to be and with deducing the characteristics and functions of the ideal state. In each historic period and in almost every geographic area, we can find someone studying politics and increasing political understanding.

In ancient India, the antecedents of politics can be traced back to the Rig-Veda, Samhitas, Brahmanas, and Buddhist Pali Canon. Chanakya (c. 350-275 BC) was a professor of political science at Takshashila University, and later the Prime Minister of Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya. Chanakya is regarded as one of the earliest political thinkers, and is also known as the Indian Machiavelli. He wrote the Arthashastra, which was one of the earliest treatises on political thought, economics and social order, and can be considered a precursor to Machiavelli’s The Prince. It discusses monetary and fiscal policies, welfare, international relations, and war strategies in detail, among other topics on political science.The ancient Tamil literary work Thirukural written 2000 years ago has extensively dealt with political science.The topics discussed by Thirukural include the art of public administration, warfare, political diplomacy, civil society, espionage, qualifications for public office, public revenue and financial administration and local administration.

The antecedents of Western politics can also trace their roots back even earlier than Plato and Aristotle, particularly in the works of Homer, Hesiod, Thucydides, Xenophon, and Euripides. Later, Plato analysed political systems, abstracted their analysis from more literary- and history- oriented studies and applied an approach we would understand as closer to philosophy. Similarly, Aristotle built upon Plato’s analysis to include historical empirical evidence in his analysis.

During the height of the Roman Empire, famous historians such as Polybius, Livy and Plutarch documented the rise of the Roman Republic, and the organization and histories of other nations, while statesmen like Julius Caesar, Cicero and others provided us with examples of the politics of the republic and Rome’s empire and wars. The study of politics during this age was oriented toward understanding history, understanding methods of governing, and describing the operation of governments.

With the fall of the Roman Empire, there arose a more diffuse arena for political studies. The rise of monotheism and, particularly for the Western tradition, Christianity, brought to light a new space for politics and political action. Works such as Augustine of Hippo’s The City of God synthesized current philosophies and political traditions with those of Christianity, redefining the borders between what was religious and what was political. During the Middle Ages, the study of politics was widespread in the churches and courts. Most of the political questions surrounding the relationship between church and state were clarified and contested in this period.

In the Middle East and later other Islamic areas, works such as the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam and Epic of Kings by Ferdowsi provided evidence of political analysis, while the Islamic Aristotelians such as Avicenna and later Maimonides and Averroes, continued Aristotle’s tradition of analysis and empiricism, writing commentaries on Aristotle’s works.

During the Italian Renaissance, Niccolò Machiavelli established the emphasis of modern political science on direct empirical observation of political institutions and actors. Later, the expansion of the scientific paradigm during the Enlightenment further pushed the study of politics beyond normative determinations.

[edit] References

^ Schools offering the B.S. or M.S. in political science include: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Illinois Institute of Technology, University of Idaho, Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and others.
^ See the example of New York University in particular. The term politics is used at:
- University of California, Santa Cruz, Ursinus College, Brandeis University, Cornell College, Occidental College, New York University, Monash University, Mount Holyoke College, Princeton University, Hendrix College, Lake Forest College, and Washington and Lee University
The term government is used by:
- Smith College, Colby College, Dartmouth College, Bowdoin College, Harvard University, Cornell University, Georgetown University, the University of Texas at Austin, the College of William and Mary, the University of Sydney, the University of Ulster, the University of Essex, Victoria University of Wellington (which has both a School of Government and a separate Political Science and International Relations Programme) and the London School of Economics and Political Science to describe the field.
The term politics and government is used by the University of Puget Sound.

[edit] Further reading

American Political Science Review - The Evolution of Political Science. APSR Centennial Volume - Special Issue - November 2006
Klingemann, Hans-Dieter (ed.): The State of Political Science in Western Europe. Opladen: Barbara Budrich Publishers 2007, ISBN 978-3-86649-045-3
Schram, Sanford F. and Brian Caterino (eds.) Making Political Science Matter: Debating Knowledge, Research, and Method. New York and London: New York University Press, 2006.
Robert E. Goodin, Hans-Dieter Klingemann (Hrsg.): A New Handbook of Political Science. Oxford / New York u.a.: Oxford University Press 1996, ISBN 0-19-829471-9 (englisch)
Michael Roskin, Robert L. Cord, James A. Medeiros, and Walter S. Jones, 2007, Political Science: An Introduction (New York: Prentice Hall). ISBN 0-13-24