Problems and Methods in the Study of Politics [Hardcover]

Prominent scholars of politics offer original discussions exploring what political science is and how it should be studied.The study of politics is beset by debates about method. At the core of these debates is a single unifying concern: should political scientists view themselves primarily as scientists, or should they instead try to illuminate the large, complicated, untidy problems thrown up in the world, even if the chance to offer definitive explanations is low? In this book, some of the world's most prominent scholars of politics offer original discussions exploring what political science is and how political scientists should aspire to do their work.The study of politics is beset by debates about method. At the core of these debates is a single unifying concern: should political scientists view themselves primarily as scientists, or should they instead try to illuminate the large, complicated, untidy problems thrown up in the world, even if the chance to offer definitive explanations is low? In this book, some of the world's most prominent scholars of politics offer original discussions exploring what political science is and how political scientists should aspire to do their work.In this volume some of the world's most prominent scholars of politics offer original discussions exploring what political science is and how political scientists should aspire to do their work. Although beset by constant debate about method, at the core of the study of politics is the unifying concern as to whether political scientists should view themselves primarily as scientists, or, instead, try to focus their knowledge on resolving the many complex world crises currently happening.Introduction: problems and methods in the study of politics Ian Shapiro, Rogers Smith and Tarek Masoud; Part I. Description, Explanation and Agency: 2. Problems, methods and theories in the study of politics, or: what's wrong with political science and what to do about it Ian Shapiro; 3. Of problemsl“'