CHAPTER ONE POLITICS AND KNOWLEDGE

Definitions of Politics. Definitions of Politics. 1) Politics is the exercise of power. 2) Politics is the public allocation of things that are valued 3) Politics is the resolution of conflicts. 4) Politics is the competition among individuals and groups pursuing their own interests. 5) Politics is the determination of who gets what, how, and when.

Politics is a human activity through which power and influence are used in the promotion of certain values and interests. Politics is a human activity through which power and influence are used in the promotion of certain values and interests. - [Explain the distinction between private and public aspects of life] Politics is associated with those aspects of life which have public significance. Other aspects of life are private and thus are beyond the domain of politics. Politics is associated with those aspects of life which have public significance. Other aspects of life are private and thus are beyond the domain of politics. Some examples of issues which have public signiificance: - how much of your income you must give to government as income tax. - how much social and economic benefits the government must distribute and to whom.

Types of Political knowledge Individual understanding of politics. - differs from person to person, - determines our understanding about politics and shapes our decisions, - may be limited, - may be familiar to most people, - may be obtained by various ways.

1- “Government should attempt to create equality through the distribution of wealth, taxation and the provision of public services.” 2- “Political participation should be limited based on gender, race or class.” 3- “Democracy is the most effective form of government.” 4- “Everyone should receive a free education.” 5- “The rich have more political influence than the poor.” Some Political statements that can be used to measure political knowledge:

When you read or hear such statements you might……….. a- ignore them b- accept them c- reject them d- try to evaluate them

Political Analysis is an attempt to describe and explain politics and political facts. Truth Score 0 – 100 What Truth Score would give these statements?

“Political science is a set of techniques, concepts, and approaches whose objective is to increase the clarity and accuracy of an understanding about the political world“. Three general types of political knowledge. 1- Description of political facts 2- Explanations of how and why politics occurs as it does. 3- Prescription of what should happen in any area of political activity.

1) Description: Political knowledge includes descriptive responses to "what" questions. (descriptions may be certain or uncertain) Certain descriptions: -Barak Obama is the President of the United States - France is a member of the European Union - The Soviet Union dissolved in 1991

Uncertain Descriptions - Israel posseses nuclear weapons? - Crimea is a part of Russia? - Basher al-Assad is the leader of Syria?

2) Explanation: Why something happens? - Why do wealthy countries still have high levels of poverty? - What is the cause of inflation? - Why are governments overthrown?

3) Prescription: What Should Happen "Statements about politics often include claims or assumptions that certain choices and actions are more desirable than others". “A prescription is a value judgment that indicates what should occur and should be done. So prescription deals with "normative" political knowledge.

Prescriptive Statements -- Everyone should have the right to vote. -- No state should violate the sovereignty of another -- There should be international humanitarian intervention -- The minimum wage should be higher -- Taxes should not be used to support unemployed citizens

Normative political knowledge combines three levels of understanding 1- Your descriptive knowledge of certain facts. 2-Your explanatory knowledge about why certain outcome occurs. 3-Your priorities among competing values

Should the unemployed benefit from taxation? descriptive knowledge descriptive knowledge (What are the economic resources available to a society) explanatory knowledge explanatory knowledge (The causes of unemployment) Priorities Priorities (equality, individual rights, lower taxes)

Sources of Political Knowledge 1)authority 2)personal thought 3)science 1- Authority a) Specific authority sources: political knowledge derives from a parent, teacher, friend, or famous person. b) General authority sources: leaders, media, the internet, books, personal values. c) Everyone as authority: (common sense) If virtually everyone seems to agree on a fact about politics, there is little reason for you to disagree or challenge that fact. Right?

2. Personal Thought Some facts are correct for us because they are so obvious for us. Here you don't rely on an outside authority. The individual can use their powers of thought to determine what they know about the political world. Such knowledge can be based on rationality, intuition, and personal experiences. a- rationality: When you think that a certain fact is true because it is logical for you, you do not need further justification. For example, you may believe that human beings are equal or unequal.

b- intuition: is the second form of personal thought. Here, your knowledge is based on feelings, on a sense of understanding rather than on reason. c- personal experience: You can be convinced that something is true, because of your own experience. 3. Science, Quantitative Analysis Unlike authority and personal thought as sources of political knowledge "science uses explicit methods that attempt to enable different people to agree about what they know."

Characteristics of scientific method: -Search for regularities -Science is empirical: -Science is cumulative -Science is testable. *Applying scientific method in Political Science. Knowledge clause: “In a democracy men are more likely to vote than women.”  This issue requires an analysis of gender and voting. Is it true that men are more likely than women to vote? How can we analyze this claim by means of the Scientific method.

In order to apply scientific method to analyse political knowledge we can follow the following steps: 1- Examine the existing evidence. We find what has been writtien about “voting” by Political Scientists. We read relevant studies, books, journal articles. 2- Making a hypothesis: You identify or describe what you are going to do in a precise manner. “men are more likely to vote than women.” 3- Operationalizing key concepts: This means that you specify exactly what each concept means and how they might be measured. (what is meant by “voting” and “democracy”) 4- Gathering appropriate data: You need a strategy for colleting evidence that is valid and reliable. You must collect data about specific elections in one or more democracies. The relevant data can be gathered from books or reports or you may conduct a field study to measure the phenomena through a survey.

5- Analyzing the evidence: You compare the results obtained from different elections men women men women voted  77% 67% did not voted  23% 33% Making inferences for using a statistical technique. This technique helps you to decide whether the difference in the data for women and men is greater than might expected by chance. - Is the evidence sufficient? (men are more likely to vote than women) - Is it possible to make generalization about gender and voting based on only two elections? - What is our inference about gender and voting?

Our answer will probably be based on the idea that men are more likely to vote than women, but if you get data for other presidential elections you would discover that women have voted at a higher rate than men in every US presidential elections since 1980, and at a lower rate in every election prior to Our first inference is incorrect Things can change. For this reason generalizations must be made with care All important variables should be considered. For example, education level or social status, profession, ethnicity etc., may affect voting behavior. 7- Conclusion: It requires extensive data, careful analysis, and consideration of several alternative explanations.

Qualitative Analysis Is directed toward the exploration of a subject in an effort to gather understanding rather than proving or disproving a hypothesis Is directed toward the exploration of a subject in an effort to gather understanding rather than proving or disproving a hypothesis Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons for it. Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons for it. The pursuit of knowledge which may be used to build a hypothesis which can be empirically tested through quantitative methods. The pursuit of knowledge which may be used to build a hypothesis which can be empirically tested through quantitative methods.

Types of Qualitative Inquiry Ethnography, grounded theory, phenomenology, philosophy, ethical inquiry, critical social research, historical research. Ethnography, grounded theory, phenomenology, philosophy, ethical inquiry, critical social research, historical research. Qualitative Questions: Qualitative Questions: questions about meaning questions about meaning how people make sense of the world how people make sense of the world questions that illuminate context questions that illuminate context questions that investigate processes questions that investigate processes

Sub fields of Political Science 1- Comparative Politics: Focuses on similarities and differences in Political processes and structures. 2- International Relations: Focuses on the relations between states, non-state actors and international phenomenon such as economics, globalisation and conflict. 3- Political theory or Political Philosophy focuses on the ideas and debates dealing with important Political questions. (what is political justice? Equality?democracy? Human rights?) 4- Multi Disciplinary Sub fields Political science links with other fields of inquiry that borrows and adapts ideas from other disciplines.

Comparative Politics Comparative analysis of different countries and political systems. Comparative analysis of different countries and political systems. Comparisons may be based on a variety of factors: Size, economy, demographics, geography etc. Comparisons may be based on a variety of factors: Size, economy, demographics, geography etc.

International Relations International Relations has its origins in the inter-war period 1918 – It was founded as a discipline to understand the causes of conflict. International Relations has its origins in the inter-war period 1918 – It was founded as a discipline to understand the causes of conflict. It has since expanded to incorporate a broad number of issues not just related to foreign policy and conflict. It has since expanded to incorporate a broad number of issues not just related to foreign policy and conflict. It is composed of a vast variety of theoretical concepts from the traditional, such as Realism and Liberalism, to the more nuanced theoretical frameworks such as constructivism, feminism, post- positivism, critical thought and post-structuralism. It is composed of a vast variety of theoretical concepts from the traditional, such as Realism and Liberalism, to the more nuanced theoretical frameworks such as constructivism, feminism, post- positivism, critical thought and post-structuralism.

Political Theory – Political Philosophy Born from the philosophical thought of the ancient world political theory attempts to answer complex questions regarding human social relations. Born from the philosophical thought of the ancient world political theory attempts to answer complex questions regarding human social relations. All politics is tied to some philosophical /theoretical concept that provides the framework for thinking about how people should be governed and interact with each other in collective and individual terms. All politics is tied to some philosophical /theoretical concept that provides the framework for thinking about how people should be governed and interact with each other in collective and individual terms. Consciously or unconsciously people are engaged in theory and philosophy at some level on a regular basis. Consciously or unconsciously people are engaged in theory and philosophy at some level on a regular basis.

Multi-disciplinary subfields Increasingly the study of Political Science is tied to a number of subfields. Increasingly the study of Political Science is tied to a number of subfields. Some connections may appear obviously inter- related: economics, sociology, history, law, environment, gender studies, psychology. Some connections may appear obviously inter- related: economics, sociology, history, law, environment, gender studies, psychology. However some are more novel: biology, neuroscience, anthropology, physics However some are more novel: biology, neuroscience, anthropology, physics

Criticisms of Political Science First criticism: Political Science is not a Science. First criticism: Political Science is not a Science. Natural Scientists may argue that Political Science is not a real science in comparison to chemistry, biology or applied physics. Natural Scientists may argue that Political Science is not a real science in comparison to chemistry, biology or applied physics. Is this valid? Yes and no. Is this valid? Yes and no.

A fully developed Science includes four elements: A fully developed Science includes four elements: - Central concepts, which identify and name key phenomena. - Central concepts, which identify and name key phenomena. - Theories, which are sets of systematically related generalizations that provide explanations and predictions about the lineages between certain concepts. - Theories, which are sets of systematically related generalizations that provide explanations and predictions about the lineages between certain concepts. - Rules of interpretation, which indicate the methods that are used to understand whether the explanations and predictions provided by the theory are right or wrong. - Rules of interpretation, which indicate the methods that are used to understand whether the explanations and predictions provided by the theory are right or wrong. - A list of questions (issues) - A list of questions (issues)

Second criticism: Its subject matter defies (disregard) generalizations: Second criticism: Its subject matter defies (disregard) generalizations: it is argued that political world is too complex and contradictable for systematic generalization. it is argued that political world is too complex and contradictable for systematic generalization. Third criticism: Political Scientists cannot be objective: Third criticism: Political Scientists cannot be objective: It is argued that the issues chosen for study are influenced by the researches and his/her social realty such as culture, ideas, life experiences and so on. It is argued that the issues chosen for study are influenced by the researches and his/her social realty such as culture, ideas, life experiences and so on. Fourth criticism: Its practice diverts attention from normative questions Fourth criticism: Its practice diverts attention from normative questions