Introduction into Politics

What is the Social Science terminology?

1. Concept - power, influence, arms 2. Theory and Model - security dilemma / action-reaction model of arms-race Theories provide inputs into models and are a way of describing the outputs of model. 3. Paradigm - Defensive realism

What is the critique of Positivism?

1. Any knowledge we derive from the five senses is mediated by the concepts we sue to analyse it, so there is no way of classifying or describing experience without interpreting it(Quine) This means: Theory and experiment are not simply separated , theory affects the facts we focus on and how we interpret them. This may affect the conclusions we draw. 2. There are obvious differences between social and physical phenomena that make social science impossible. - Social structures unlike natural, do not exist independently of the activities they shape.

What is science?

1. It should explain - helps us understand why thing happen in the way they do 2. It should forecast - provide us with some means of anticipating how thing will happen in the future. Explanation is far more precise and more reliable than forecasting. Variety of non-scientific means have been used but they did not produce widespread agreement on the validity of the results. The scientific method in contrast has shown itself capable of generating agreement across cultures. Science comes closer than any other method to build a consensus with regard to explanation and forecasting. The scientific method by which hypothesis are verified by testing them against the available evidence.

What are the two broad approaches to defining politics?

1. Politics as an arena or location, in which case behavior becomes political because of where it takes place. It is restricted to some social contexts and institutions. This is politics as art of the government. 2. Politics as a process or mechanism, in which case political behavior is behavior that has distinctive qualities and so can take place in any social context. As dimension of social behavior. This includes compromise and conflict and power and the distribution of sources.

What is Politics?

Essentially contested concept - the term has a number of acceptable and legitimate meanings. The activity through which human beings attempt to improve their lives and create the good society.(Aristotle) Politics is above all a social activity, a dialogue. In its broadest sense it is the activity through which people make and preserve the general rules under which they live. Politics is inextricably linked to the phenomena of conflict and cooperation To clarify the meaning of the word, we must address to major problems: the mass of the associations that the word has and that even respected authorities cannot agree what the subject is about. Politics is defined as: the exercise of power, the science of government, the making of collective decisions, the allocation of scarce resources.

How can we explain the Scientific(positivist) position?

Hume argued that knowledge starts from our senses. On the basis of such direct experience we can develop generalizations about the relationship between social phenomena. The aim is to develop statements that under a given set of conditions, would result in predictable outcomes. In ontological terms Scientificts are foundationalists, because they thought there is a real world out there. Their focus was on identifying the causes of social behavior. "To detect the regularities in nature and deduce what it implies for the next case and observer the outcome of the prediction"

What is the empirical cycle?

Observation (collecting and organizing empirical fact to form hypothesis) - Induction (forming hypothesis) - Deduction (deduct consequences) - Testing (test the hypothesis)- Evaluation(evaluate the outcome) = AGAIN

Why cannot we change the position?

Researchers cannot adopt one position at one time and another on another occasion. These positions are not interchangeable because they reflect fundamental different approaches to what social science is and how we do it.

What is the problem with the scientific method and the human affairs?

Scientific method does not work with equal precision when it comes to the study of human affairs due to consciousness.

What is the importance of taking ontological or epistemological position?

Social scientist's orientation to their subject i shaped by their position. This position shapes the approach to theory and the methods which the social scientist utilizes.

What is Methodology?

Study of methods & the ways in which knowledge is produced.

What is Behaviouralism?

The belief that social theories should be constructed only on the basis of observable behavior, providing quantifiable data for research. A psychological approach which emphasizes scientific and objective methods of investigation. There is a law/rule, we make an observation and a conclusion on it.

Politics as power?

The broadest and most radical definition. Rather than confining politics to a particular sphere (government, public realm) this view sees politics at work in all social activities and in every corner of human existence. Politics takes place at every level of social interaction - families, nation, global stage. Politics is in its essence power:the ability to achieve a desired outcome. Also politics as struggle over scarce resources and power can be seen as the means through which this struggle is conducted. 1. Who gets what, when and how 2. A struggle for power 3.The authoritative allocation of values in a society

What is a Theory?

The connection between cause and consequence. A series of approaches and perspectives on the question what the meaning of factual observations is and whether there can be considered expressions of fundamental relationships. How can we go about acquiring that knowledge?

Politics as Public Affairs?

The distinction between political and non-political coincides with the division between an essentially public sphere of life and what can be thought of as a private sphere. Where is the line between public and private? The distinction conforms to the division between the state and the civil society. The institutions of the state are public in the sense that they are responsible for the collective organization of human life + they are funded at the public's expense. Politics should not infringe on personal affairs and institutions. Politics as essentially public activity. Politics is an activity concerned with creating a just society (Aristotle)

Politics as the art of government?

The exercise of control within society through the making and enforcement of collective decisions. What concerns the state? Politics encompasses the various processes through which the government responds to pressures from the larger society. Tied more to the narrow realm of government. Politics = governmental policies, its realization and its effects. Politics = a situation in which the government is involved or should be involved.

Social Science vs History?

The foundations of IRIO are understanding "why" and predicting "to what extent". The first is History, the second is Political or Social science. In Social Science: 1. Actors are assumed to be rational and predictable 2. Events are strict causation(x event > y event) 3. Patterns are generalizable 4. The objective of the study is explanation and forecasting In History actors are irrational, ill-informed, the events have multiple causes, some patterns are singular and some are generalizable, always understanding why, forecasting is not always possible

Why in Political Science the ontological or epistemological position is a Skin and not a Sweater?

The position cannot be put on and taken off whenever the researcher sees fit.

How can we explain the Hermeneutic(interpretist) position?

The supporters of this theory believe that the world is socially constructed. Their focus is on the meaning of behavior. To understand rather than to interpret and thus in the Hermeneutic tradition it is not possible to establish casual relationship between phenomena.

What is the double hermeneutic?

The world is interpreted by the actors (one hermeneutic level) and their interpretation is interpreted by the observer (a second hermeneutic level)

What is Ontology?

Theory of being. The key question is whether there is a real world out there that is independent from our knowledge. The position reflects researcher's view about the nature of the world. What's out there to know?

What is Epistemology?

Theory of knowledge. The epistemological position reflects what we know about the world and how we can know it. The two key questions are 'Can an observer identify real or objective relations of social phenomena' and if so, how? Subdivisions are Positivist and Interpretists. What and how can we know about it?

What is an example of ontological position?

There are fundamental difference between men and women that are features of their very existence. There are essential differences of 'being' upon which social life is built.

How to classify epistemological and ontological positions?

They are different ways and no agreement on the best way. The most common classification distinguishes between Scientific(also positivist)and Hermeneutic position(Interpretist). Positivist is thick and interpretist is thin.

What is Inrepretism(hermeneutic position)?

They reject the notion that the world exists independently of our knowledge. Rather, the world is socially constructed. It is interpretation and understanding of social phenomena which affects outcomes. Interpretists rarely accept notion of objectivity. Objective analysis is impossible and there is no objective truth. The obvious 'other' of Positivism and is anti-foundationalist. Quantitative methods can produce misleading data and we need to utilize qualitative methods - interviews, focus groups. Rather development of narratives and not theories? Reality: subjective, perceptions are biased Man: active information-processor constructs its own reality Science: reason, induction & deduction; interpretation Research: qualitative, understanding

What is the critique of Interpretism?

To Positivists, the interpretist tradition merely offers opinions or subjective judgments about the world.

What is Realism?

Realists, unlike Positivist do not privilege direct observation. They believe they are deep structural relationships between phenomena which cannot be directly observed, but are crucial to the explanation of behavior. Like the Positivist, unlike the Interpretist, believe that the world exists independently of our knowledge of it.

Politics as compromise and consensus?

Politics as a particular means of resolving conflict: by compromise,conciliation and negotiation rather than through force. The art of the possible. A "political" solution implies peaceful debate and arbitration as opposed to military solution. It is based on the resolute faith in the efficacy of debate and discussion. 1. Politics = every mixture of conflict and cooperation 2. Politics = a process whereby a group of people, whose opinion or interests are initially divergent, reach collective decisions which are generally accepted as binding

What are the four definitions of politics?

Politics as: 1. The art of government (arena) 2. Public affairs 3. Compromise and consensus(process) 4. Power(process)

What is Positivism(Scientific position)?

Positivists adhere to a foundationalist ontology and are concerned to establish casual relationship between social phenomena. They develop explanatory and predictive methods. Like the Realist, unlike the Interpretist, believe that the world exists independently of our knowledge of it. The world is real and not socially constructed. Knowledge starts from our senses, they use deductive methods and there is objective knowledge. Scientific methods are used to find laws and patterns, regularities in nature. Natural science and Social science are broadly analogous. We can establish regular relationships between social phenomenons, using theory to generate hypotheses which can be tested by observation. An observer can be objective in such observations. Reality: objectively "out there"; waiting to be discovered Man: rational individual, subjected to different laws Science: deduction, strict rules Research: quantitative methodology, explaining & forecasting

What are the disagreements over Politics?

What makes a social interaction political? Where it takes place (within government, state, public sphere) or the kind of activity it involves (resolving conflict or exercising control)