What Is The Relationship Between Politics And Political Science

What is the relationship between politics and political science

 

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Difference Between Politics And Political Science

What is the difference between political science and politics?

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WALTER FISCHER | CERTIFIED EDUCATOR

Political Science, as one other answer notes, is an academic discipline. However, it is far broader than simply the study of politics. Political Science does involve the study of politics, but it encompasses also the study of political systems around the world, including the structure and functioning of disparate governments in every region of the world. Governing structures vary widely around the world, especially during the Cold War, when the Soviet Union and its satellites and allies in Eastern Europe and across the so-called "Third World" were governed by brutal totalitarian regimes that often had forms of parliaments that were simply "rubber stamp" institutions that provided a thin veneer of respectability for the dictators who actually ran those countries. In other words, communist regimes had "central committees" and other ostensibly legislative bodies that, in practice, merely affirmed decisions made by the top handful of members of those governments ruling circles, usually known as a "Politburo," or Political Bureau. 

Within the narrow definition of "Political Science" provided in the other answer, the field does, as noted, involve the study of politics, such as the factors that cause people to vote a certain way in elections, public confidence in the governing structures, and divisions within electorates that help to understand the perceptions of different ethnic groups or socioeconomic classes toward various issues and politicians.

"Politics" refers to the practices of elective and nonelective political systems with regard to the manners in which leaders are elected or appointed, the minutiae involved in political campaigning in democratic systems, the dynamics between and within disparate factions within any particular system (for example, relations between so-called "hard-liners" and "liberals" or "moderates"), and the relationship of citizenry to governments. In a democratic system, politicians (those seeking elective office such as mayor or congressman) interact with the public whose votes they need to win an election. In a nondemocratic system, the focus is more on relationships within the governing party or regime. All of this constitutes "politics." Political Science is the study of all of this, as well as of the economic systems of different countries and the manner in which relationships with other countries or political entities are conducted.