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Difference between science and social science
scope and methodologies of political science
importance of political science
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There has been a serious debate within academia, as to the validity of Political Science being an actual science. Furthermore, there are opposing viewpoints between political science scholars as to the discipline being a social science or a synthesis of natural and social science. One such academic; Charles Merriam asserts that political science has the characteristics of both sciences, because it adapt the study of human behavior to provide an analysis of political institutions. Political scientists in theory espouse the notion that political science borrows elements from the hard sciences in terms of objectivity to scientific inquiry and how governmental institutions function.
As a soft science, it is extremely difficult a strictly measurable criteria for a methodology and objectively. Furthermore, according to James Farr Political Science is a discipline, which uses behaviorism as the basis form an understanding of political institutions. In contrast, to the hard sciences, which uses scientific method and objectivity as the cornerstone of scientific analysis. However, theories are of the formed as result of methodological interpretation. Furthermore, Political scientists analyze how social and political issues in effort to develop theories about the political behavior and institutions function. Therefore, political scientists use Political methodology as a tool of inquiry to investigate prevailing problem occurring with political institutions.
Therefore, political scientists use Political methodology as a tool of inquiry to investigate prevailing problem occurring with political institutions. There is a prevailing notion between academics within the field that, that political science borrows element from the hard ...
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...e of empirical evidence and scientific inquiry to form a theory. Moreover, Political Scientists adhere to the same principal as their counterparts, because they arrive at their theories through review of literature and engaging an open dialogue on a particular issue.
Therefore, Political Science is a scientific discipline that is despite the factions, that exists between academic within the discipline. Moreover, the there is need for both political theorist and methodologist to set aside their ideological differences, by conducting research from an objective approach. Furthermore, political science an s synthesis of soft and hard sciences, because studies human behavior to gain an empirical understanding of political issues. Finally, the discipline emulates hard science, by applying a scientific method research and analysis of political institutions.
Mintz Eric, Close David, Croc Osvaldo. Politics, Power and the Common Good: An Introduction to Political Science. 2009. Toronto: Pearson Canada. 15,147,183.
Political ideologies (P.I) have existed since the dawn of human Civilization; they have been fought over, discredited, re-approached, and fought over again. Many exist and have been tried over thousands of years. Still the question that plagues humanity is, how best do we manage governmental affairs? It is best to understand that different political ideologies serve different purposes, and that governments must remain ideologically flexible depending on current national conditions.
Shapiro, Ian, Rogers M. Smith, and Tarek E. Masoud, eds. Problems and Methods in the Study of Politics. Cambridge ; Cambridge University Press, 2004.
Political science first emerged as an academic discipline towards the end of the 19th century and mainly focused on formal institutions, structures and organizations within government (Theodore Rosenhof, 1). However, at the mark of the 1920’s this approach towards institutions began to be revised. Soon a behavioral approach towards government surfaced which focused on electoral patterns and voting behavior (Theodore Rosenhof, 1). In using this approach, many academics recognized an alarming amount of movements and change across the state; resulting in a dynamic, rather than a stagnant, political network. These establishments and generalizations made by academics eventually culminated in what is presently known as the realignment theory (Theodore
...udgetary ideas to political conduct is off base. However the essential choice making technique that individuals confront inside the political world is close enough that scientists and professionals have beneficially utilized some budgetary ideas to deal with the variables influencing voters' choices.
Since there is no consensus on what is political, it is important to establish the definition of political processes, so that DDR as a practice can be measured as being political or not. Amitai Etzioni has successfully developed a workable definition of political processes, stating that political processes are "processes [that] concern bridging power differences with society wi...
In her essay "Science, Facts, and Feminism" Ruth Hubbard makes many claims in relating her opinions about the relationship between men and women in society as well as the role science plays in this relationship and the balance of power in the world. One of her claims states that "the pretense that science is objective, apolitical and value-neutral is profoundly political because it obscures the political role that science and technology play in underwriting the existing distribution of power in society." In essence, she is saying that it is ridiculous to claim that science is an objective look at the world around us because science is constantly affected by society and the political establishment. I agree that it is impossible to claim that science is in every way separate from politics and power because those types of people who created the political world also created the scientific world to supplement and support it. For example, the government, a political and power establishment, created the Manhattan Project and put a huge amount of funding into a scientific project that produced the atomic bomb.
There appear to be two options. The first of these options is to abandon all hope of ever having a foundational theory of legitimate government. It is better to throw in the towel than to give in to speculation. This suggests that the political theorist can only make use of existing governments, constitutions, decrees, actions, and the such to investigate legitimate government. To look outside of these would lead to nothing but speculation. Even this, though, seems to be an unacceptable route. The political theorist would be reduced to nothing more than a historian of governments past and present. In addition, the theorist would have to embrace the assump...
Political Philosophy is typically a study of a wide range of topics such as, justice, liberty, equality, rights, law, politics and the application of a codified law. Depending on what the philosophy is, it usually tends to be a very sensitive and a personal ideology that an individual holds within the reality of their existence. Several of the fundamental topics of political philosophy shape up the society that we live in as these specific topics and their implementation by the state ensures a legitimate government. In Political Philosophy, the aforesaid concepts or topics are evaluated and analyzed with tremendous depth in context to their history and intent. Furthermore, in a rather colloquial sense, political philosophy is generally a point of view which after some deep thinking asks questions such as, what are the government’s duties? Is it legitimate? What makes it legitimate? What are the duties of its citizens? What are their rights? Are they protected? So on and so forth. In the following paper, I will canvass my political philosophy and elaborate on my reasoning behind it.
Almost all discussions of polarization in political science consider it in the context of political parties and the democratic system of the government. When polarization occurs in a two-party system, moderate voices often lose power and influence. Political polarization confers to cases in which an individual's position on a given issue, policy, or person is more likely to be defined by their identification with a particular political party, such as a Democrat or Republican. Polarization as a state refers to the extent to which opinions on an issue are opposed in relation to some theoretical maximum. As a process, it refers to the increase in opposition over time. Some political scientists argue that polarization requires deviation on a broad range of issues based on a consistent set of beliefs while others argue it occurs when there are blunt opinionated or ideological divides.
A political institution is a system of politics and government. It is usually compared to the law system, economic system, cultural system, and other social systems. It is different from them, and can be generally defined on a spectrum from left, i.e. communism and socialism to the right, i.e. fascism. Linz’s argument is on the description of Totalitarian and Authoritarian Regimes, which brings the main and important argument of explaining both Presidential and Parliamentary systems. Another important author whose thoughts were referred to political institutions is Seymour Martin Lipset. His argument emphasizes on political cultural-cultural factors rather than political systems. The last individual whose main arguments refer to politics and political institutions is Donald Horowitz. He describes that Linz claims are not sustainable because it is regionally skewed and highly selective sample.
Social philosophy shares a connection with political philosophy through authority, revolution, property, and rights (Hughes). However, as Hughes mentions, social philosophy deals with more subtle forms of social interaction, authority, and conflict. To state it differently, it is legal power versus social power. For example, the influence of a governor, who has legal power, is different from that of a popular high-sc...
There is a very crucial point in the social sciences which make the events and phenomenons more clear. Therefore we as the students of these areas can have the chance seeing the backgrounds of what happens in the world and noumenon of the events. Another important aspect of social sciences is its holistic structure which interconnects different disciplines and they move together helping each other in the area. The purpose of the social sciences is to set up an available and strong method and thus to get the ability of reading the social world.
In the political approach, political authority is divided between a central government and the provincial or state governments. This means that some provinces or states are accorded a substantial measure of constitutional or legal sovereignty, although they still remain subordinates of the central government in certain constitutional or legal respects. The political approach promotes the political values of military strength, economic development, union, and representation. In addition, it is characterized by three central features: state sovereignty, bicameralism, and multiple layers of representation.
I feel that challenges to success in the social science are not similar to the challenges of the natural sciences. The main purpose for my statement is natural sciences base theories on concrete structural forms. Changes are much slower and subjects or matters are constant. Another factor is natural science research is primarily performed in a lab where conditions are more controllable. The similarities between natural science and social science are which they are both observed specific phenomena, only observation for social scientist can be divided as observation, asking question, studying written document. But natural scientist is not able to use those ways because metals, chemicals and other materialistic matters can not be studied like people.