First 5 Classes of Political Science (2-6) PDF

Class 2: What is Politics and How to Study It?  Politics: Defined as a multifaceted (DAUGIALYPIS) activity for resolving conflict and managing resources in complex societies.  Lasswell's famous definition: "Who gets what, when, where, how, and why?" focuses on decision-mak...

Class 2: What is Politics and How to Study It?  Politics: Defined as a multifaceted (DAUGIALYPIS) activity for resolving conflict and managing resources in complex societies.  Lasswell's famous definition: "Who gets what, when, where, how, and why?" focuses on decision-making and resource allocation.  Colin Hay's contribution: Politics as the study of power within human and social relations, differentiating it from sociology and philosophy.  Approaches to Political Analysis: o Normative: Examines how things "ought to be," focusing on values and ethical considerations (e.g., John Rawls' theory of justice - ,,Normative analysis became more experimental as it was realized that there is a lot of subjectivity and relativism in what is considered “good”, and that not everything can be generalized”.).(Based on interpretation of the past- policies). Normative: deals with issues of a value-based nature – it seeks to understand what is best for life in society. It issues standards for the functioning of institutions, standards that aim to achieve the “good life”. It was the highest exponent of political science until the 20th century but declined with the separation of state and religion, with the Holocaust and with the prosperity after the Second World War. o Empirical/Positivist: Relies on observable evidence to analyze patterns and predict outcomes, avoiding value judgments.  aims to imitate the approach of the natural sciences by limiting itself to what is observable – it is not interested in studying what the world could/should be like, but rather in explaining what it is. Value judgments are not made, reality is simply studied as it is. It seeks to identify patterns in order to try to predict future events. The deductive method is used (starting from a theoretical statement and seeing whether the facts confirm it) – e.g. rational choice theory – or inductive (observing facts and then trying to create a theory to explain them) – behaviouralism. It believes that there is a real and objective world that can be understood through observation. o Interpretative: Emphasizes subjective realities and socially constructed meanings. (This approach is particularly useful for understanding the symbolic and cultural dimensions of politics, such as how political ideologies or symbols influence public opinion and policy decisions.) believes that reality is socially constructed, there is no objective reality and everything depends on the meaning we attribute to things. It aims to examine these meanings imposed by human beings themselves o Semantic: Clarifies the definitions and contested terms in political discourse. (It examines the meaning and interpretation of words and concepts within the political context.) focuses on clarifying the meaning of the concepts we use, as many of the definitions of terms used in CP are highly contested. Class 3: Politics and the State  Max Weber's Definition: The state - is a community claiming a monopoly on the legitimate use of force within a defined territory.  Sovereignty - (What does sovereignty correspond to? (Suverenitetas – visiškas politinis, teisinis ir kitoks valstybės savarankiškumas, nepriklausomybė.)   Sovereignty corresponds to the supreme authority or power of a state to govern itself, make laws, and control its territory without interference from outside sources. It is the principle that the state has the ultimate authority over its affairs, both domestically and in foreign relations. Sovereignty can be seen in two main forms:  In essence, sovereignty means the state’s independence and its ability to make decisions without external interference. o De jure: Legal authority grounded in law.(by right; according to law) o De facto: Practical authority as exercised in reality. (In reality) o De jure authority – who has authority over what according to a set of rules and procedures (such as law) – traditional and rational-legal authority o De facto authority – someone who has authority in practice, without it being associated with rules – charismatic authority.  Types of States: o Minimum State: Intervenes minimally, focusing on law enforcement and national defense (ideal in classical liberalism). Minimum state - State that intervenes little in aspects such as the economy or social issues, focusing only on enforcing the law and ensuring order, and protecting citizens from internal and external threats. Citizens’ rights to life, liberty and property. It is a central feature of classical liberal thought, but it probably never existed in reality. (it never existed 100%) “Utopia of the new right” o Developmental State: Actively promotes economic growth through partnerships with private industries (e.g., Japan). o Democratic Social State: Seeks economic equality and social justice by addressing disparities in education, healthcare, and welfare.  Civil Society: Acts as an intermediary between the state and individuals, fostering participation through organizations like trade unions and advocacy groups. (the wide array of non-governmental and not-for-profit organizations that have a presence in public life, expressing the interests and values of their members or others, based on ethical, cultural, political, scientific, religious or philanthropic considerations). A 'failed state' - is a state that is unable to impose its power and decisions on the population it governs. Within its borders – it is unable to enforce the law. Class 4: Theories of the State  Pluralism: The state as a neutral arbiter among competing interest groups, with power distributed across society. (a situation in which people of different social classes, religions, races, etc., are together in a society but continue to have their different traditions and interests).  Neo-Pluralism: Recognizes the influence of elites and uneven power distribution within pluralist systems. (Neo-pluralism is an updated version of pluralism that acknowledges the existence of inequalities among groups in society. While classical pluralism assumes that all groups have equal opportunities to influence political decisions, neo-pluralism recognizes that some groups, particularly elites, have disproportionate power and access to resources.) Neo-pluralism still emphasizes competition among groups for political influence.   Corporatism: Focuses on policy-making through consultations among elites representing different societal sectors, like business and labor. (Corporatism is a political system of interest representation and policymaking whereby corporate groups, such as agricultural, labour, military, business, scientific, or guild associations, come together and negotiate contracts or policy (collective bargaining) on the basis of their common interests.)  Marxism: Views the state as an instrument of bourgeoisie domination, existing to maintain class inequalities.( Marxism is a political and economic theory developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It focuses on class struggle, advocating for a society where the working class (proletariat) overthrows the capitalist class (bourgeoisie) to establish a classless society. Marxism criticizes capitalism for exploiting workers and promoting inequality, proposing socialism as a transitional stage toward communism, where the means of production are collectively owned and controlled. New Right: Critiques state overreach, arguing that excessive intervention creates inefficiencies and dependence. (The New Right is a political ideology that opposes excessive government intervention in the economy and society. It argues that too much state control leads to inefficiencies, stifles individual freedom, and creates dependency. The New Right advocates for limited government, free markets, and personal responsibility.) New Right–The State tends to expand its activities beyond what is “healthy” for society. Due to the highly competitive electoral environment, parties make promises to citizens and interest groups during campaigns that they then have difficulty fulfilling, which can lead the State to near bankruptcy. The State tends to act in its own interest and expand the bureaucracy, allying itself with interest groups to increase its power of intervention and increase the financial benefits for both parties. Furthermore, State intervention is inefficient, counterproductive and leads to excessive dependence of citizens on the State, discouraging self-initiative and not rewarding individual effort appropriately. This theory believes that the state should be kept to a minimum, because if it is no longer seen as a source of benefits by interest groups, politicians will lose the tendency to try to “buy” voters at the expense of taxpayers. This theory criticizes pluralist beliefs that the state is neutral and argues that liberal democratic politics tends to lead to “governing failure”. It is ‘socially conservative and economically liberal’. Class 5: Power and Authority  Steven Lukes’ Three Dimensions of Power: 1. Decision-making: Who wins in visible conflicts.  1st dimension of power – ability to influence decision making – who gets what they want, how often and on what topics? - big question – advantage: it allows an empirical and scientific evaluation of the distribution of power in a group or society, through the analysis of the decisions that were taken and whose interests these decisions align with;  – criticisms: by studying only this dimension, an entire aspect of the political arena related to non-decision-making is missed (for example, until recently environmental issues were not brought into political debates, which can be an exercise of power because someone exercises power by excluding a certain issue from the political agenda, voluntarily or involuntarily); it ignores the possibility that power exists only as a possession and is possessed by a person or group without being exercised – I am capable of influencing decision-making but I choose not to get involved because these decisions will not harm me. 2. Agenda-setting: Who determines which issues are prioritized.  2nd dimension of power – ability to influence/change the political agenda – who decides what issues are discussed publicly, which groups are allowed to participate, and what opinions are expressed. It focuses less on the decisions that are made and more on the decisions that are prevented from happening, whether consciously or unconsciously. – this can happen, for example, when in a democracy none of the parties are interested in discussing a particular issue or when all the parties agree and share the same opinion, so that there is no public discussion on the issue and the expression of different opinions is not permitted. Parties exercise power even if it is not a conscious choice. The same can happen with interest groups. – The analysis of how this face of power works tends to lead to elitist conclusions, since the 'mobilization of bias' that traditionally occurs in politics tends to favor the preservation of the 'status quo', maintaining the power of the elites and removing radical proposals from the political agenda. However, this is not necessarily always the case, since there are situations in which popular pressure prevails over the interests of the elites.  Critics - we must consider that there are exceptions. Minorities also have the power to assert their interests and influence the decision- making process in their favor. 3. Manipulation: Shaping beliefs to align with dominant interests.  3rd dimension of power – ability to shape the preferences/interests/thoughts of political actors – the manipulation of people’s perceptions and thoughts so that they agree with/share the interests of the most powerful groups, to avoid confrontation and opposition – this dimension distinguishes the “real” interests of individuals from the “felt” interests that are instilled in them, and states that people do not always know their own minds and wills. However, stating this implies the existence of an objective criterion of truth that we can use to distinguish the real from what is false (does not exist). – this notion was widely used by Marx, who said that the ideas, beliefs and values of a society are those of its ruling class, and that this class exercises the 3rd dimension of power to keep the proletariat unaware of its own exploitation. The “real” interests of the working class would then be the abolition of capitalism, even if the “felt” interests expressed by the population are not these. – criticism: it is not possible to know whether people’s interests were in fact manipulated or whether those are their genuine desires and therefore it is not scientific to talk about this third dimension of power  “Human beings are not fully rational and autonomous” none of us have an independent mind. We are influenced by the media, education, family, friends, etc. Our interests are always influenced by external elements. Power is to make others make decisions and to manipulate and shape their thinking. To make people believe that their interests are in line with these powerful groups.  Max Weber's Types of Authority: o Traditional: Rooted in customs and long-established practices.  Traditional – It is based on respect for long-established traditions and customs, which are not questioned or need to be justified because they reflect the way things have always been. Previous generations accepted that authority and we do the same. – It is associated with hereditary systems of power and privilege, such as patriarchal or gerontocratic power (power of the elders). Traditional authority is present in tribes and small communities and can be found vestigially in monarchical regimes. – It is no longer as widely accepted today: tradition has been losing importance as society changes and evolves at an increasing rate; this authority is often not compatible with democratic principles and equal opportunities. Respect and long-established traditions – It has always existed. We must accept it based on a hierarchical system. It is debatable because it does not go against the democratic system. o Charismatic: Derived from the leader's personal qualities and ability to inspire loyalty.  Charismatic – It is based on charismatic leaders whose characteristics and ability to appeal to others makes them respected by the masses as an authority, regardless of their status, social position or position. – Charisma can be natural or manufactured (training of oratory skills and cultivation of an image in the media; creation of a cult of personality through propaganda;) – It has a messianic quality, with promises that the total submission and devotion of the “followers” will lead to a positive transformation of their lives or their country. – It frequently appears in authoritarian and fascist governments, as was the case with Hitler or Mussolini. – Historically, it is a dangerous type of authority and that is why it is viewed with suspicion. o Rational-Legal: Based on established laws and procedures, dominant in modern bureaucracies.  Rational-Legal  – It is based on legal and constitutional rules, which determine and limit what an individual who holds a leadership position (president, PM…) has the power to do. – The bodies are governed by well-defined rules in legal documents and in this type of authority there is less capacity for abuse of power. – Characteristic of large-scale bureaucratic organizations, authority is associated merely with the position and the powers that correspond to it, never with the individual who occupies it. – Associated with democratic regimes and dominant in modern industrial societies In today's world there is a greater tendency towards rational-legal authority, but combinations of the other types of authority can still be found in various forms of government. De jure authority – who has authority over what according to a set of rules and procedures (such as law) – traditional and rational-legal authority De facto authority – someone who has authority in practice, without it being associated with rules – charismatic authority.  Legitimacy: The foundation of stable governance, achieved through public acceptance of authority. (The legitimacy of a political system is crucial to the long- term stability and survival of a regime, because only then is it considered justified or acceptable. For a government to be considered legitimate, it may require broad public support and general compliance with widely accepted constitutional rules; but legitimacy can also be “manufactured” through a process of ideological manipulation and control for the benefit of political or social elites.)  It comes from the legal framework of the state. It clearly defines what the president, deputy, prime minister) can do – rule of law. Abuse of authority is less likely. Class 6: Democracy - Government by the people, people can make decisions and have the right to hold their leaders accountable. It was influenced by utilitarian philosophy, in the sense that democratic government has the duty to maximize the happiness of the people, that is, to satisfy their needs (utilitarian theory of democracy – Jeremy Bentham). For Bentham, democracy is necessary to ensure that political leaders will prioritize the interests of the people and not their own.  Types of Democracy: o Direct Democracy: Citizens participate directly in decision-making, ideal for small communities. o Representative Democracy: Elected officials act on behalf of constituents - (constituents are the people politicians have been elected to represent.), more effective on a large scale o Deliberative Democracy: Decisions result from informed, inclusive public discussions.  says that decisions can only be accepted as legitimate and democratic if they are created after a very detailed discussion of the issues, with the inclusion of all points of view and equal opportunity for everyone  to participate; people are encouraged to go in with an open mind to listen to the points of view of others and to put aside their personal interests, being as impartial as possible when expressing their opinion, without the intention of defending only their opinion or “fighting” against opposing opinions; through this process of discussion, we must reflect together and arrive at the “most correct” solution, which has a moralizing effect and tends to lead to fairer, more effective and more “legitimate” decisions; this deliberative process has the power to change the positions of those who participate and reduce extreme polarization, bringing people closer to a consensus;  CRITICISM – only works with small groups; in the experiments that have been done, people are often unable to understand complex issues or “don’t want to be bothered” and choose to go with the majority opinion; individuals do not change their opinion so easily when it comes to issues that affect them a lot, which makes it difficult to reach a consensus; it aims to minimize differences, something that is much criticized because the essence of politics is the existence of different opinions and values. o Cosmopolitan Democracy: Advocates global governance mechanisms to address cross-border challenges.  says that in a globalized world in which we are greatly influenced by factors external to the state and by decisions that are made outside the state, it no longer makes sense for democracy to be exercised only at a domestic level; uses the European Union as an example; says that due to the difference in power and influence between states, international institutions are not democratic; democracy in international institutions must be exercised at the level of individuals and not of states; wants to create regional parliaments that function in a similar way to the EU in different parts of the world, and hold frequent transnational referendums; wants to create a second UN general assembly made up only of citizens;  CRITICISM – in this model the role of the state is no longer clear and the model only seems to make sense when there is no longer a state; on such a large scale, individual people will feel even less represented; it  would be very difficult for there to be a common cultural heritage among people from different countries and their loyalties are very much linked to their national identity, so it would be difficult for them to accept a global identity.  Cosmopolitan democracy refers to a model of political organization in which citizens, regardless of their geographical location, have rights to political participation through representation in global affairs in parallel with and independently of their own government. o Ecological Democracy: Expands political consideration to future generations and non-human entities.  says that we should bring two more actors into the political community: future generations and non-human beings; aims to find a form of government that is more conducive to environmental protection; believes that future generations have interests and that these may contradict those of current generations, and that since our actions will irreversibly affect the living conditions of future generations, they deserve to have their interests represented and defended; advocates that there should be reserved seats in government for human representatives of future generations and non-human beings, and that there should be clauses in the constitution so that the government cannot make decisions that harm animals/nature/future generations;  CRITICISM – can we know what the real interests of future generations are?; do we know what the real effects of our actions will be on the future?; how many future generations will we be representing?; is it legitimate to think about future generations when there are currently people living in precarious (NESAUGIOS) conditions? Should their interests take precedence (VIRŠENYBĖ) over those of the people who are alive now?; Animals should not participate in politics because they cannot speak and do not have rational capacity (we also do not let children participate in politics because they do not have the intellectual capacity to do so) – we can defend their interests without them having political representation;  Challenges: o Democratic recession: Decline in trust, participation, and performance.   At the beginning of the 21st century, we are witnessing a democratic recession – the emergence of authoritarian regimes and populist movements; an increase in abstention; and distrust of politicians and the corrupt system. There are several possible causes: the perception that Western democracies perform poorly in economic terms (social inequality); the belief that democracy has no intrinsic value and that the fact that it has principles of equality and freedom that are considered ideal does not mean that this is the case in practice, which delegitimizes the democratic regime because people prefer concrete results. o Balancing majority rule with minority rights to prevent oppression. (Ensuring that while the majority's decisions are respected, the rights of minority groups are protected. This prevents the majority from imposing policies that could oppress or harm smaller, less powerful groups in society.)