What is politics?

• The activities of the government,

members of law-making
organizations or people who try
to influence the way a country is
governed. The exercise of power.
• Greek politikos,
from politēs ‘citizen’,
from polis ‘city’.
• នយោបាយ (បា. នយ + ឧបាយ) ឧបាយក្នុងការណែនាំ,
កលល្បច
ិ ឬមេគំនត
ិ ដែលគេផ្តើមឡើងដើម្បដ
ី ឹកនាំជនដទៃឲ្យ
ប្រព្រត
ឹ ្តទៅរកទដៅ
ី យ៉ា ងនេះឬយ៉ា ងនោះ, កច
ិ ្ចការដែលទាក់ទង
ដោយការគ្រប់គ្រងរដ្ឋ។
Political System
• The set of formal legal institutions
that constitute a “government” or a
“state.” Forms of political behaviour,
not only the legal organization of the
state but also the reality of how the
state functions.
• A set of “processes of interaction” or
as a subsystem of the social system
interacting with other nonpolitical
subsystems, such as the economic
system.
• Political systems are the formal and informal political processes by
which decisions are made concerning the use, production and
distribution of resources in any given society. Formal political
institutions can determine the process for electing leaders; the roles
and responsibilities of the executive and legislature; the organisation
of political representation (through political parties); and the
accountability and oversight of the state. Informal and customary
political systems, norms and rules can operate within or alongside
these formal political institutions.
Why comparative politics?
• Comparison => more understanding => similarity and differences
• We can’t understand our own country without knowledge of others
• We can’t understand others without a knowledge of their
background, institutions and history
• We can’t arrive at valid generalization about government and politics
without the comparative methods.
Keys for considering in comparison
• The importance of institutions (federal and unitary systems,
presidential and parliamentary systems, pluralist or corporatist
system…)
• History matters
• The social and economic basis of politics
• Politics matters
• From a mass of detail to general types
 Reflection:
Is there the best Political System?
What types of political systems do
you prefer?
Q and A
Thanks