In this article you will learn about the Scope of Comparative Politics in Political Science.
Scope of Comparative Politics
All Political Structures
Comparative Politics includes the study of all structures - formal, non-formal, government and extra-government, which are directly or indirectly involved in politics in all the countries of the world. It is not limited only to the study of the three formal government organs - legislature, executive or judiciary. Along with these, Bureaucracy, Pressure Group, Interest Groups, Elites, Political Parties and all other human political associations form a part of the scope of Comparative Politics.
Functional Study of all Political Structures
Comparative Politics seeks to study politics less from the point of view of the legal institutions in terms of their powers and more from the point of view from their functions which constitute the political process and their operation in the environment. It studies the functions of interest articulation, political communication, interest aggregation, rule-making, rule-application, rule-adjudication, decision-making, socialisation, policy-making and the like.
Study of Political Behaviour
Another important part of its scope is the study of the behaviour of the people in the process of politics. Voting behaviour, leadership recruitment, political participation, mass politics, elite behaviour, populism and the like form an integral part of the modern comparative politics studies.
Study of Similarities and Differences in all Political Systems
Comparative Politics also undertakes an analysis of the similarities and differences among politics processes and functions. However, the approach is not legalistic, descriptive and formalistic. It is on the basis of the actual functioning of political processes and structures that the similarities and dissimilarities are empirically explained and compared. The objective is not to decide as to which is the best structure or process or system but to make an objective systematic analysis of their behaviour similarities and differences.
Study of all Political System
Comparative Politics seeks to analyse the actual behaviour, action and performance of all political systems, western as well as non-western. Political Systems are compared and analysed in terms of their functions, structures, capabilities and their performances in their environments. The actual working of various political systems is analysed with a view to gather objective and systematic knowledge about their actual functions.
Study of the Environment and Infrastructure of Politics
The study of Politics demands a study of the psychological, economic, sociological and anthropological environment, in fact the social environment as a whole, in which each political system operates. For studying this, modern political scientists have formulated and used several concepts, such as political culture, political modernisation, political socialisation and the like. The study of the political culture of various political systems forms a very popular focus in comparative politics. Study of the Infrastructure of politics forms an important part of the scope of Comparative Politics.
Study of Political Culture
Political Culture is composed of beliefs, attitudes, values and emotions of a society that relate to the political system or politics. These values and beliefs greatly influence the behaviour of each political system. The study of Political Culture is an integral part of the scope of Comparative Politics.
Study of Political Socialisation
It is the process by which an individual acquires his political beliefs, values, orientations and habits. It is also a part of the scope of Comparative Politics because the actual behaviour of politics depends largely on this process. It is the process by which Political Cultures are changed and maintained in every society.
Study of Political Participation
Political Participation is considered as a universal process. The only difference is that while in some states, it is limited, and in others it is wider. It provides legitimacy to the government and administration. It brings stability in the system because it demonstrates the consent and will of the people in favour of the political system and its functions and structures.
Study of Political Parties, Pressure Groups and Interest Groups
Organised and maninted groups are found in every political system. These are formed voluntarily by individuals for fulfilling some special objectives. Along with them, there are some other groups (Anomic Groups like Dharna Groups Action committees) that come into existence suddenly due to a particular event and remain in existence for a short period. These groups reflect the wishes of the people through public meetings, programmes, symbols, demonstrations, etc. These try to influence the working of the political system. Political Parties contest elections, form government and form other such functions. The nature and functions of political parties and the other interested groups always exercise a big role in the working of a democratic political system.
Study of Power, Influence, Authority and Legitimacy
Modern political scientists hold special emphasis on the study of Power, Influence, Authority and Legitimacy. They use these concepts for a classification of political systems on the basis of the nature of authority relations and also struggle for power.
Study of all Political Processes
Political processes like Policy-making, Decision-making, Judicial Process, Leadership-recruitment process and other, are always at work in all political systems. The actual working of every political system depends upon these political processes. Hence, a comparative study of all the political processes is an integral part of the scope of Comparative Politics.
Therefore, the scope of Comparative Politics is very comprehensive and broad. It includes everything that falls within the area of political activity and political process and also involves conscious comparisons in studying political behaviours, political structures, political processes and political activities of all political systems. It is now guided by the goals of comprehensiveness, precision, realism and scientific theory-building.
This article on Scope of Comparative Politics in Political Science is contributed by Dipshikha Anand. If you like LawStudyPoint.com do follow us on our Twitter handle.