is political science a social science

is political science a social science

Exploring the Interdisciplinary Nature of Political Science: A Comprehensive Analysis

1. Introduction to Political Science as a Social Science

Political science has been an established part of the intellectual fabric of Western culture since Classical antiquity. In the first half of the 20th century, political science was practiced mainly in the United States, as its people—traditionally cynical about the central government—sought tools to understand and analyze their own diverse political landscape. Today, political science involves global cooperation and competition. Actors at the international level—regional and national governments, the United Nations, other international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and multinational corporations—have become much more adept at sculpting policy and political outcomes in their own interests. This has increased the need for research and analysis of political science. In turn, academics who study political science bring a wide range of disciplinary interests, perspectives, and methodologies.

Political science is the academic field that deals with the study of the state, systems of government, political activity, and political behavior. Its domain includes international relations among states and their legal, social, economic, and philosophical dimensions. The field is regarded as a social science, and several approaches to the subject are used.

2. Theoretical Foundations and Methodologies in Political Science

Political science considers approbatory aspects of political life and what ought to be the case; the study is not limited to asking what is the case. Moreover, political scientists are in the pursuit of achieving knowledge about how those political orders should be structured and what norms and values ought to be followed and promoted. Political science is like philosophy to some; however, different it may be in its scientific reliability. Their answers to such questions come from empirical research and, to the authors’ information, only philosophy gives broader overviews and argumentations for answering the question of the purpose of political science and why human beings need political order. The rest give relevancy to the research article; meaning, the research should answer the question of what is the purpose of political science and why political science is needed, and the author of the research has to be confident of the proposed purpose and relevancy.

To understand the theoretical focus and methodological approaches in political science research, it is essential to appreciate the discipline and understand how political science fits into other social sciences. One may question here, why study the political world with so many other applicable sciences existing? The key point is that we need to understand that the political world is unlike that of the world of physics or chemistry. We human beings are part of the political world; we establish rules, follow them, and create political order for a good society. We human beings have that unique thinking; we can distinguish what is good for a good society and have chosen a political system for ourselves out of all the different systems that could have been established.

3. Interdisciplinary Connections: Political Science and Other Social Sciences

II. Political Science and Sociology: Political Science and Sociology have Long been Connected There is little disagreement that political science is a social science. However, there continues to be disagreement concerning which disciplines are social sciences. In addition, and more importantly, there remains disagreement concerning the relationships between the social sciences. Despite this disagreement, connections amongst the social sciences clearly exist. Political science and sociology have long been connected with Weber, Marx, and Durkheim simultaneously being honored with the designation “monumental founders” of sociology and contributing important works to political science. Indeed, the connections amongst sociology and political science are wide-ranging.

I. Political Science and Economics: The Relationship Between Political Science and Economics is a Complex One The relationship between political science and economics is a complex one. Clearly, political scientists have studied the political economy for over 2000 years, beginning with a variety of works from the ancient world. Moreover, economics has paid significant attention to the study of political life. The fact that various Nobel Prize-winning economists also have written about political matters demonstrates the continuing importance of the study of the political economy and politics more generally to the discipline of economics.

There is little disagreement that political science is a social science. However, there continues to be disagreement concerning which disciplines are social sciences. In addition, and more importantly, there remains disagreement concerning the relationships between the social sciences. Despite this disagreement, connections amongst the social sciences clearly exist. Political science and sociology have long been connected with Weber, Marx, and Durkheim simultaneously being honored with the designation “monumental founders” of sociology and contributing important works to political science.

4. Case Studies and Applications in Political Science Research

There is a rich and varied literature in political science that relies on case studies. This chapter reviews important contributions and recent developments that cover a wide variety of research topics and methodological approaches. We emphasize the richness of the case-based research and its importance in providing informative evidence, especially when combined with larger-n methods. The chapter is organized into the following sections. The first section reviews conceptual debates on the term case study and its associated methodology. The next section builds on this and critically evaluates the use of case studies by political scientists. This section points toward ways that expansive approaches can lead to case studies enriching and informing larger-n research designs. The second part of the chapter discusses the recent innovative case and interpretation/synthesis studies in political science. The first case study examples are drawn from the qualitative international relations (IR) and comparative politics literature. The examples further demonstrate the richness of the case study and the variety of its application in the design of political science research.