Category: Foundational Concepts of Politics

The study of political science often involves difficult and philosophical topics. The Saylor Introduction to Political Science reading you read at the beginning of this unit explained that political theory involves the study of politics from a philosophical perspective. Political theory “addresses such issues as the nature of political authority, the relationship of the state…

This handout is designed to teach you how to conduct original political science research. While you won’t be asked to write a research paper, this handout provides important information on the “scientific” approach used by political scientists. Pay particularly close attention to the section that answers the question “what is scientific about political science?”If you…

Read section 17.1. As we just read in the previous article, to study politics is to “study power – who gets what, and how”. This section explains that power can be conceptualized both in terms of “domination” and “collective capacity”. In other words, “power” can refer to the ability to get someone to do something…

This article provides a comprehensive overview of the field of political science, its cross-disciplinary connections, and the various fields and sub-fields of study within the discipline.

Our study of politics will begin with a review of the basic principles of politics and various perspectives on how we define politics and its domain. We will discuss the changing notion of politics over time and across cultures as we work towards a definition. This unit will lay the framework for the remaining five…