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Power is the key concept within political science. The majority of political scientists argue that power should be defined in behavioral terms as a relation of coercion between human agents. The traditional view confines power to human behavior & directly observable actions & reactions. Drawing on modern sociological, structuration theory, it is possible to generate a concept of structural power that goes beyond the behavioral perspective. Power is coercion, but the concept of power also refers to agents' structural capabilities. In a fundamental sense the concept of structural power directs attention to the unequal resource agents derive from their structural positions within the societal system. Moreover, structural power is intimately linked to other key notions, such as anticipated reactions & enduring relations of control. Finally, the structuralist perspective on power is highly illuminating of permanent barriers to full democratization in modern society. Unequal resources & social inequality represent major obstacles to the realization of the principles of political equality. 3 Figures, 1 Skema, 31 References. Adapted from the source document.

It is epistemologically motivated to describe the human sciences as divided into one objectivistic (nature/body) & one intersubjectivistic (society) part. The problem is to bridge these parts, & evolutionary theory is chosen as a possible instrument. As a preparation it is necessary to find the relevant epistemological & ontological categories. Two epistemological (objectivism & intersubjectivism) & three ontological (levels of aggregation, position of actors & plans of reality) dimensions are discussed together with some fundamental methodological problems. Another important part of the task is to elucidate societal change in relation to different types of societal patterns (from laws to similarities & differences). 8 Figures, 104 References. Adapted from the source document.

A reading of David Hume with the intent to highlight components of a reformistic approach to social change. The well-known formulation about "reason as the slave of passions" poses the first problem. In spite of this, it is maintained that reason plays a decisive role in Hume's theory of knowledge as in his practice as a political philosopher. Connected with this problem is Hume's skepticism, which is based on the discovery of the logical impossibility of inductive inference. However, this theoretical skepticism does not lead to defeatism regarding the possibility of improving knowledge & society; it just leads to modesty &, paradoxically, to an even more important role for reason. A parallel to Hume's criticism of induction is his demonstration of the impossibility of deducing values from facts. Again, it is necessary to notice the difference between his theoretical position & his recommendations for politics. The task of the historian is to give a causal explanation of social institutions &, on the basis of this, point out values inherent in the institutions. This gives the instrument for a rational discussion of maintaining or reforming the institutions. Obviously, Hume is a relativist, but not in the usual & careless meaning of individual or collective subjectivism. Values are produced by men in a historical process, but as they stand before the historian & the politician, they are as objective as facts. Finally, it is worth mentioning that Hume with his view of the importance of an informed & critical discussion of social problems comes close to critical-rationalism. 28 References. Adapted from the source document.

In a review of Mikael Sundstrom's Connecting Social Science and Information Technology. Democratic Privacy in the Information Age, Sundstrom's account of a theoretical framework that may serve to simplify information technology environments, with a particular emphasis on the importance of privacy (as defined in liberal democratic societies) is critiqued on the grounds that it is reductive in some ways: the concept of a 'grand base' for information technology innovation that attends to access time, information sequentially, interactivity, pervasiveness, real-time transfer, recipient anonymity, sender anonymity, recipient transfer cost, recipient enabling cost, recipient verification of sender authenticity, & search & retrieve ability, while laudable, is not matched by an attention to practicality or cost of implementation. In his response, Sundstrom claims that he has been misunderstood, particularly in his account of the 'grand base,' whereas the author, in his reply, disputes this. 4 References. A. Siegel

This article examines five common misunderstandings about case-study research: (1) Theoretical knowledge is more valuable than practical knowledge. (2) One cannot generalize from a single case; therefore the single case study cannot contribute to scientific development. (3) The case study is most useful for generating hypothesis, while other methods are more suitable for hypothesis testing & theory building. (4) The case study contains a bias towards verification. (5) It is often difficult to summarize specific case studies. The article explains & correct these misunderstandings one by one & concludes with the Kuhnian insight that a scientific discipline without a large number of thoroughly executed case studies is a discipline without systematic production of exemplars, & that a discipline without exemplars is an ineffective one. Social science may be strengthened by the execution of more good case studies. 1 Table, 59 References. Adapted from the source document.

Over the last decades there has been a growing interest in normative theory within the social sciences in general & political science in particular. Timeless questions of good & bad, right & wrong, & of the nature & justification of the good society -- of what the good society ought to be -- have thus surfaced again. However, not much has been written on the specific methodological issues that arise when explicitly approaching normative questions on social scientific, i.e. systematic & inter-subjective, grounds. Departing from a reflection concerning the conceptual meaning of norms & values -- the anchor of normative analysis -- & by confronting different axiological positions, this essay formulates a few guiding principles for a normative methodology. These principles include requirements on internal validity (accuracy, consistency, clarity, coherence, & intersubjective reasoning) as well as external validity (external justification, plausibility, & empirical relevance). 46 References. Adapted from the source document.

This article presents a way of dealing scientifically with the problem of comparison among dynamically evolving units of analysis in social science, namely by using methods from theoretical, computational & mathematical biology & phylogeny (evolutionary tree) analysis. First, the standard political science & static method of comparative analysis is criticized. Second, some important aspects of the dynamic comparison are presented from its multidisciplinary & historic context, commenting on the compatibility with evolutionary institutional as well as universal Darwinian theoretical perspectives. Third, dynamic comparison is approached using first techniques from standard social science statistical software (SPSS) & then from molecular genetics (MEGA, Molecular Evolutionary Analysis). Examples of evolutionary tree analyses of the European nations are presented & discussed. Similarities & dissimilarities between social science & biological applications of the dynamic comparison techniques are discussed, emphasizing the importance of openness to new techniques & application of panel data for elaboration of new methods of dynamic comparative analyses in social sciences. 2 Tables, 9 Figures, 68 References. Adapted from the source document.

This article raises the issue of 'industrial relations' in the public sector, ie, how employer-employee relations are conceptualized in liberal democratic political theory. The historical & theoretical legacy of this conceptual apparatus can help explain why the welfare workers (employed in publicly financed health care, social service, education, elderly care, & day care for children) are hardly mentioned in the liberal democratic scheme. The liberal democratic state traditionally focuses on political subjects as if they all were citizens/cohabitants (in the civil society), when in fact roughly 20% of the Swedish electorate at the same time are citizens/co-workers (in the local welfare state). The issue of rights & duties in direct & indirect relations between the local state & the citizenry is therefore heavily biased in favor of the citizen-as-cohabitant/consumer. If both these roles of the citizenry were adequately handled in political theory, this would possibly cast a new light on New Public Management as well as the current Swedish focus on freedom of choice ('exit rights') for welfare consumers. It is argued that there is nothing inherent in liberal democratic political theory that could block the application of the idea of a neutral & benevolent state to the citizen-as-coworker. A coherent application of the Marshallian scheme of civil, political, & social rights therefore means the inclusion of social rights to citizens-as-co-workers. 55 References. Adapted from the source document.