Political Science is the study of politics, structures and governance processes.Political science is the discipline that is dedicated to study the systems, institutions, processes and political behavior in a given government or state.Politics’, in the version given by Aristotle, is not a singular but plural term.Politics therefore a set of complex activities of various kinds, which are carried out by citizens.
The political science emerged as a discipline and institution in the mid-nineteenth century.Political Science can be understood as the discipline that leads the political structures in a systematic way. In this sense, the word “science” is used as an idea opposed to the notion of “opinion”.
It is, therefore, a discipline of the Social Sciences that deals with the study of systems of government, analyzes of political behavior and political activities in general. It takes care, mainly, of the actors who participate in political activities, and also consider their actions in which these actions are taken. It is also devoted to the study of political dispute processes, that is, the processes of confrontation in the name of the distribution of powers.
In his studies, Political Science resorts to several other areas of human knowledge. The fields of study of economics, law, sociology, history, anthropology, public administration, international relations, psychology, and political philosophy are part of the theoretical framework upon which the efforts of political science are supported.
This is an area that seeks to understand the structure and changes of government processes or any system of organization that guarantees security, justice and civil rights to citizens. It also analyzes the various political behaviors that exist, aiming at the distribution of powers within the State.
Political Science and other Social Sciences.
At this point it is necessary to emphasize the relation of Political Science with the most varied areas of Social Sciences, such as Economics, History and Psychology.
The knowledge of the economic aspects on which the social structure is based are fundamental for the understanding of the political phenomena by which a society is governed. In this sense, Carl Marx said that economy is the basis of social structure, and fundamental aspect of the politicization of society. It is not without reason that the discipline Political Economy has a fundamental importance in the scope of Political Science.
History, and also the Historian, have a very important contribution in Political Science. It helps us to understand the origin of past systems, ideas, and political doctrines throughout the Western-Eastern tradition. The history of political thought must encompass the history of political events. In addition to the history of political events, there is also the study of the history of institutions and the history of political ideas.
The relationship between Political Science and Psychology, more specifically Social Psychology , may not seem so clear. The basis of political phenomena and Social Psychology, is that the foundations of power and obedience are psychological in nature. In addition, there is already a specific discipline in the field of psychology where issues related to the phenomenon of power and politics are discussed.
Political science is nowadays in charge of analyzing the exercise of political power, state activities, administration and public management, political systems, party system and election processes, among many other subjects.It describes different models of state according to the origin of authority. Likewise, it tries to define the qualities that a prince must meet in order to be able to govern with authority.
Political science studies the state and its relations with human groups.The difference between basic rights and civil rights would be as follows: while basic rights apply to any individual, regardless of the existence of a society or not, civil rights belong to a political community . There is no consensus as to which rights would be “basic” and which would be “civil”, as these vary according to the historical context in which society finds itself.
For the German Max Weber , for example, the state would be a community of individuals that gives its representatives (ie, the government body) the exclusive ability to use force to regulate living in society – thereby controlling conduct of each of the inhabitants. This capacity became known as the monopoly of violence
