Political Science: An Introduction

Political Science: An Introduction
Chapter 2
Theories
(Himawan/epa/Corbis)
Copyright @ 2012, 2010, 2008 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Why Have Theories?
 Theories help us avoid being inundated with vast

amounts of meaningless data and data that do not relate
together
 Theories help us organize our thinking to seek

explanations
 We collect data relevant to the theory we are testing; if

data contradict a theory, then we revise the theory
 Often social science theories provide only partial

explanations
Bottom Up and Top Down Theories
Focusing on Society and Political Institutions
Classic Theories
 Aristotle was both descriptive and normative: he sought
to prescribe the most desirable political institutions
 Machiavelli begins the modern era of political philosophy

with his great work, The Prince
 Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau – key principle was the social

contract, a conceptual notion that all members of a
society agreed to be bound by a particular form of
government
Classic Theories
 Marx argued that everything has a cause, is determined
by laws of nature
 Marx’s theorizing had three major components:

 Economics – Workers are oppressed by capitalists
 Social Class – Every society had two classes: one that owned
the means of production and the other that did the work
 History – The world goes through stages driven by changing
economic systems
 American thinkers through middle of 20th century focused

on institutions – formal government structures
Contemporary Theories - Behavioralism
 Behavioralists concentrate on actual behavior, not on
thoughts or feelings
 Built upon Auguste Comte’s doctrine of positivism, that

social phenomena can be scientifically studied like
physical phenomena
 Behavioralists built empirical basis for political science

with numerous quantitative studies, especially on voting
 Viewed as dealing with minor phenomena, not with more

complex qualitative questions, such as decision-making
Contemporary Theories – Systems Theory
 Systems theory views the political world as a complex
and interconnected system; an impact on one part
affects the other parts
 A country’s politics acts as a feedback loop, e.g.,

citizens’ demands (inputs) generate government
responses (outputs), which then impact the citizens in
various ways, creating new demands (feedback)
 But political environments do not always behave as good

systems; model too static, and does not explain well
much of decision-making process inside government
A Model of a Political System
Modern Theories – Modified Systems Theory
 Modification accepts the feedback process
 Puts “conversion process” of government first: that

government originates most decisions, not citizens
 Much happens within government decision-making

process, independent of citizens’ wishes, such as
interagency competition
Modern Theories – Modernization Theory
 Rooted in Hegel, that all facets of society – economic,

cultural, political – are a package
 Industrialization critical: as a country develops, its

political character develops
 Stability and form of government is determine by

economic development
 When states modernize just one facet, they face turmoil;

traditional sectors oppose modernity
Modern Theories – Rational-Choice Theory
 Invented by mathematicians, especially popular with

economists
 Assumes people are rational actors who maximize their

interests, consciously
 This theory tends to ignore impact of culture, religion
 Assumes people always act rationally
Modern Theories – New Institutionalism
 Believes that institutions, such as agencies, parties,

legislatures, develop their own internal culture
 This culture shapes the behavior and attitudes of

participants in those institutions
 Preservation of the institution is key for members who

control it
 Unlikely that this will be last model in political science

Political Science: An Introduction

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Political Science: An Introduction

 Theories help us avoid being inundated with vast

 Theories help us organize our thinking to seek

 We collect data relevant to the theory we are testing; if

 Often social science theories provide only partial

 Machiavelli begins the modern era of political philosophy

 Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau – key principle was the social

 Marx’s theorizing had three major components:

 American thinkers through middle of 20th century focused

 Built upon Auguste Comte’s doctrine of positivism, that

 Behavioralists built empirical basis for political science

 Viewed as dealing with minor phenomena, not with more

 A country’s politics acts as a feedback loop, e.g.,

 But political environments do not always behave as good

 Puts “conversion process” of government first: that

 Much happens within government decision-making

 Rooted in Hegel, that all facets of society – economic,

 Industrialization critical: as a country develops, its

 Stability and form of government is determine by

 When states modernize just one facet, they face turmoil;

 Invented by mathematicians, especially popular with

 Assumes people are rational actors who maximize their

 This theory tends to ignore impact of culture, religion

 Assumes people always act rationally

 Believes that institutions, such as agencies, parties,

 This culture shapes the behavior and attitudes of

 Preservation of the institution is key for members who

 Unlikely that this will be last model in political science

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