1.3 Background information Politology and Political Science

Politology is a branch of social science concerned with theory, description, analysis and prediction of political behavior, political systems and politics. (Synonym: political science (much more common).

Politics is the activity through which people make, preserve and amend the general rules under which they live. Politics is also an academic subject (sometimes indicated by the use of 'Politics' with a capital P). Politics is defined in different ways: as the exercise of power, the exercise of authority, the making of collective decisions, the allocation of scarce resources, the practice of deception and manipulation, and so on. The word 'politics' is derived from polis¹, meaning literally city-state. Ancient Greek society was divided into a collection of independent city-states, each of which possessed its own system of government. The largest and most influential of these city-states was Athens, often portrayed as the cradle of democratic government.

To study politics means to study government, or to study the exercise of authority. Authority can most simply be defined as 'legitimate power'. Whereas power is the ability to influence the behaviour of others, authority is the right to do so. Politics is what takes place within a polity², a system of social organization centered upon the machinery of government. Politics is therefore practised in cabinet rooms, legislative chambers, government departments and the like, and it is engaged in by a limited and specific group of people, notably politicians, civil servants and lobbyists.

Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the empirical study of the state, government and politics. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of and political behavior. Political science intersects with other fields; including anthropology, public policy, national politics, economics, political systems, comparative politics, psychology, sociology, history, law, and political theory. Although it was codified in the 19th century, when all the social sciences were established, political science has ancient roots; indeed, it originated almost 2,500 years ago with the works of Plato and Aristotle.

Political science is commonly divided into three distinct sub-disciplines which together constitute the field: political philosophy, comparative politics and international relations. Political philosophy is the reasoning for an absolute normative government, laws and similar questions and their distinctive characteristics. Comparative politics is the science of comparison and teaching of different types of constitutions, political actors, legislature and associated fields. International relations deal with the interaction between nation-states as well as intergovernmental and transnational organizations.

Political science is methodologically diverse and appropriates many methods originating in social research. Approaches include positivism, interpretivism, rational choice theory, behavioralism, structuralism, post-structuralism, realism, institutionalism, and pluralism. Political science, as one of the social sciences, uses methods and techniques that relate to the kinds of inquiries sought: primary sources such as historical documents and official records, secondary sources such as scholarly journal articles, survey research, statistical analysis, case studies, and model building.

Political scientists study matters concerning the allocation and transfer of power in decision making, the roles and systems of governance including governments and international organizations, political behavior and public policies. They measure the success of governance and specific policies by examining many factors, including stability, justice, material wealth, and peace.

Political scientists provide the frameworks from which journalists, special interest groups, politicians, and the electorate analyze issues. According to Chaturvedy, "...Political scientists may serve as advisers to specific politicians, or even run for office as politicians themselves. Political scientists can be found working in governments, in political parties or as civil servants. They may be involved with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or political movements. In a variety of capacities, people educated and trained in political science can add value and expertise to corporations. Private enterprises such as think tanks³, research institutes, polling and public relations firms often employ political scientists.

Modern political science stresses the importance of using political concepts and models that are subject to empirical validation and that may be employed in solving practical political problems.