in many ways
Politics is defined
the process through which power and influence are used in promotion of certain values and interests.
Politics is
What if the statement on a t-shirt is full of hateful references to a specific group? What if it incites people to engage in violence? What should happen if a political statement on a T-shirt uses extremely vulgar language.?
Some political questions are
is associated with those aspects of life that have public significance.
For our purposes, politics
even more broadly to refer to competition over values in domains that are not truly public, such as the politics of the family or office politics.
Sometimes the term politics is used
the area that is subject to politics is very large.
In almost every contemporary society,
When you begin to ask Assessment questions, and especially when you try to answer them.
Political Analysis
the attempt to describe (to answer the what questions) and then to explain politics (to answer the why and how questions).
Political Analysis is
is that they usually reflect the values and interests of the sources of the statement.
One reason to be suspicious of statements about politics
a set of techniques, concepts and approaches whose objective is to increase the clarity and accuracy of our understandings about the political world.
Political science is
1. descriptions of political facts 2. explanations of how and why politics occurs as it does 3. prescriptions of what should happen in the political world
An individual's understanding of politics is composed of three general types of political knowledge:
on what questions and is usually based on one or more facts.
A description focuses
specify why something happens and to provide the reason or process by which the phenomenon occurs.
Explanation attempts to
a value judgment that indicates what should occur and should be done.
A prescription is
what ought to be, not merely description and explanation of what is.
Thus, a prescription deals with answers to questions about
your value judgments
Normative political knowledge is
1. your descriptive knowledge of certain facts. 2. your explanatory knowledge about why certain outcomes occur and most important 3. your priorities among competing values.
Normative political knowledge combines three types of understanding:
Three important sources: 1. authority. 2. personal thought. 3. science.
Each individual's political knowledge is a unique combination of descriptive facts, explanations and prescriptions about politics. What is the basis of such knowledge?
the appeal to any document, tradition, or person that is believed to posses the controlling explanation regarding a particular issue.
Authority (source of knowledge) involves
1. specific authority. 2. general authority. 3. everyone.
3 kinds of authority sources:
A particular individual might place great confidence in the knowledge he derives about politics from a specific authority source, such as a parent, teacher, friend or famous person.
Specific authority sources
A general authority source is one that has substantial influence on a large porportion of people in a society. Ex. constitutions, revered leaders, widely respected media or books and religious teachings. General authorities are especially evident as a bas
General authority sources
addressing what ought to be, not necessarily what is
Normative
we are convinced that something is true because it is a belief strongly held by many other people.
Everyone" as authority
using authority as a source of knowledge.
There are problems with
insisting that something is correct because it is so "obvious" to you.
Personal thought (source of knowledge)
rationality, intuition and personal experience.
Personal thought can be based on
an individual relying on his own rational thought as a means for deciding that something is correct.
Rationality
an individual relying on his feelings, on a sense of understanding or empathy, rather than on reason.
Intuition
an individual being convinced that something is true based on his own personal experiences.
Personal experience
agree on political facts.
Even rational thought will not necessarily enable people to
The goal of science is to describe and explain-answer what why and how questions.
Science (source of knowledge)
Science entails a search for regularities in the relationships among phenomena.
Science is empirical in the sense that it is concerned with phenomena that can be observed or at least measured.
Science is cumulative because it tentatively accepts previousl
Four characteristics of the scientific method
shared knowledge about the political world. They try to : discover regularities among political phenomena using approaches that are empirical, cumulative and testable.
Most contemporary political scientists attempt to use the scientific method to establish
Comparative politics, International Relations, Political Theory, and some Boundary-spanning subfields.
Some subfields of political science are:
similarities and differences in political processes and structures. Comparison might be cross-national or it might compare political actors within a single country. Subsubfields include public administration, political parties, development, individual pol
Comparative politics focuses on
political relations between countries, the behavior of transnational actors and the dynamics within the worldwide system of states and groups. Subjects include war, interstate conflict resolutions, international law, globalization, regional alliances, col
International Relations focuses on
the ideas and debates dealing with imporant political questions. Ex. analyzing Plato, Hobbes, Marx, Rawls. Or original explanations of the political questions themselves. (What is the nature of a just society?)
Political theory or political philosophy focuses on
the source of many of the normative knowledge claims made by the political scientists. Much of the work in political theory is based on the methods of rationality or authority or on an appeal to moral truths, rather than on the scientific method.
Political theory is
Such as Political anthropology, political economy, political psychology, political sociology and biopolitics.
Boundary Spanning Subfields
It is not a "real" science. Its subject matter defies generalization. Its "scientists" cannot be objective. Its practice diverts attention from normative questions.
4 criticisms on scientific method used in politics:
attempt to appoly the scientific method in order to understand the political world better.
Political science means the
political knowledge might reduce our misunderstandings and misconceptions.
In the face of fundamental value conflicts and the potential for massive political violence among individuals, groups and countries,
more effective in knowing how to behave politically as voters political activists and political decision makers.
Enhancing what we know about politics should make us
identify and name crucial phenomena
Concepts
sets of systematically related generalizations that provide explanations and predictions about the linkages between certain concepts.
Theories
in many ways
Politics is defined
the process through which power and influence are used in promotion of certain values and interests.
Politics is
What if the statement on a t-shirt is full of hateful references to a specific group? What if it incites people to engage in violence? What should happen if a political statement on a T-shirt uses extremely vulgar language.?
Some political questions are
is associated with those aspects of life that have public significance.
For our purposes, politics
even more broadly to refer to competition over values in domains that are not truly public, such as the politics of the family or office politics.
Sometimes the term politics is used
the area that is subject to politics is very large.
In almost every contemporary society,
When you begin to ask Assessment questions, and especially when you try to answer them.
Political Analysis
the attempt to describe (to answer the what questions) and then to explain politics (to answer the why and how questions).
Political Analysis is
is that they usually reflect the values and interests of the sources of the statement.
One reason to be suspicious of statements about politics
a set of techniques, concepts and approaches whose objective is to increase the clarity and accuracy of our understandings about the political world.
Political science is
1. descriptions of political facts 2. explanations of how and why politics occurs as it does 3. prescriptions of what should happen in the political world
An individual's understanding of politics is composed of three general types of political knowledge:
on what questions and is usually based on one or more facts.
A description focuses
specify why something happens and to provide the reason or process by which the phenomenon occurs.
Explanation attempts to
a value judgment that indicates what should occur and should be done.
A prescription is
what ought to be, not merely description and explanation of what is.
Thus, a prescription deals with answers to questions about
your value judgments
Normative political knowledge is
1. your descriptive knowledge of certain facts. 2. your explanatory knowledge about why certain outcomes occur and most important 3. your priorities among competing values.
Normative political knowledge combines three types of understanding:
Three important sources: 1. authority. 2. personal thought. 3. science.
Each individual's political knowledge is a unique combination of descriptive facts, explanations and prescriptions about politics. What is the basis of such knowledge?
the appeal to any document, tradition, or person that is believed to posses the controlling explanation regarding a particular issue.
Authority (source of knowledge) involves
1. specific authority. 2. general authority. 3. everyone.
3 kinds of authority sources:
A particular individual might place great confidence in the knowledge he derives about politics from a specific authority source, such as a parent, teacher, friend or famous person.
Specific authority sources
A general authority source is one that has substantial influence on a large porportion of people in a society. Ex. constitutions, revered leaders, widely respected media or books and religious teachings. General authorities are especially evident as a bas
General authority sources
addressing what ought to be, not necessarily what is
Normative
we are convinced that something is true because it is a belief strongly held by many other people.
Everyone" as authority
using authority as a source of knowledge.
There are problems with
insisting that something is correct because it is so "obvious" to you.
Personal thought (source of knowledge)
rationality, intuition and personal experience.
Personal thought can be based on
an individual relying on his own rational thought as a means for deciding that something is correct.
Rationality
an individual relying on his feelings, on a sense of understanding or empathy, rather than on reason.
Intuition
an individual being convinced that something is true based on his own personal experiences.
Personal experience
agree on political facts.
Even rational thought will not necessarily enable people to
The goal of science is to describe and explain-answer what why and how questions.
Science (source of knowledge)
Science entails a search for regularities in the relationships among phenomena.
Science is empirical in the sense that it is concerned with phenomena that can be observed or at least measured.
Science is cumulative because it tentatively accepts previousl
Four characteristics of the scientific method
shared knowledge about the political world. They try to : discover regularities among political phenomena using approaches that are empirical, cumulative and testable.
Most contemporary political scientists attempt to use the scientific method to establish
Comparative politics, International Relations, Political Theory, and some Boundary-spanning subfields.
Some subfields of political science are:
similarities and differences in political processes and structures. Comparison might be cross-national or it might compare political actors within a single country. Subsubfields include public administration, political parties, development, individual pol
Comparative politics focuses on
political relations between countries, the behavior of transnational actors and the dynamics within the worldwide system of states and groups. Subjects include war, interstate conflict resolutions, international law, globalization, regional alliances, col
International Relations focuses on
the ideas and debates dealing with imporant political questions. Ex. analyzing Plato, Hobbes, Marx, Rawls. Or original explanations of the political questions themselves. (What is the nature of a just society?)
Political theory or political philosophy focuses on
the source of many of the normative knowledge claims made by the political scientists. Much of the work in political theory is based on the methods of rationality or authority or on an appeal to moral truths, rather than on the scientific method.
Political theory is
Such as Political anthropology, political economy, political psychology, political sociology and biopolitics.
Boundary Spanning Subfields
It is not a "real" science. Its subject matter defies generalization. Its "scientists" cannot be objective. Its practice diverts attention from normative questions.
4 criticisms on scientific method used in politics:
attempt to appoly the scientific method in order to understand the political world better.
Political science means the
political knowledge might reduce our misunderstandings and misconceptions.
In the face of fundamental value conflicts and the potential for massive political violence among individuals, groups and countries,
more effective in knowing how to behave politically as voters political activists and political decision makers.
Enhancing what we know about politics should make us
identify and name crucial phenomena
Concepts
sets of systematically related generalizations that provide explanations and predictions about the linkages between certain concepts.
Theories