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Good political science is about making true and important statements about politics. Its first task is to allow this objective to guide practical research -- and teach how to work. Good political science is not paralyzed by the difficulties of reaching one's own ideals. Nor is it more difficult to achieve those ideals than those of anybody more important. Good political scientists note that difficulties are reflected on them, but never let them reduce involvement in political science tasks. Only by way of exception may good political science consist of a discussion of good political science. Adapted from the source document.

A manifesto for the good political science raises some fundamental questions. What makes the manifesto as a genre? Are there any essential difference between a political manifesto in the conventional sense and a scientific manifesto? The function fills texts of this kind in an academic discipline? No matter what we think of functional explanations in general, I would in this context to say that we can get the answer to the first two questions through the last. An etymological meaning of the word "manifesto" can be helpful. Manifesto is that which is obvious, and to manifest something that is obvious there. But this opens up once an ambiguity: this means that what is revealed in a manifesto is something that is already evident outside the manifesto, or vice versa, something that is made manifest by Manifesto, by manifesting? Adapted from the source document.

Katarina Eckerberg, Chairperson of the Society of Political Sciences, informs members of the new Borad of Directors, & exhorts all members & students to actively participate in the coming activities of the Society. Promises to organize the website, to publish more regularly, to improve the political science debate in general. A. Barral

In 1870, political science was established as an academic discipline, attached to history, at the Lund University. In 1877, a chair in history and political science was created. Twenty-five years later, it was transformed into a chair in political science and statistics. In 1926, that symbiosis was put to an end and political science was awarded a chair of its own. Pontus Fahlbeck, professor from 1889 to 1917, was a historian who developed into a social scientist with broad interests: political science, statistics, economics, and sociology. Several of his books were also published in foreign languages and he had many contacts with colleagues abroad, particularly in France and Germany. However, the critical period in the modernization of political science in Lund happened just after the middle of the 20th century, with Nils Stjernquist, holding the chair from 1951 to 1983, at helm. The dependence of history and legal science waned; the influence of social science, especially in its American version, increased. The result was a modern political science department with broad interests and worldwide contacts. References.

Comparative politics is the only one of the political science subdisciplines that is defined in methodological rather than substantive terms. Since, however, scientific enterprises are always and unavoidably comparative, any emphasis on comparison and comparative method is certainly less than helpful in attempts to grasp the meaning of the term "comparatie politics". According to general usage in political science, comparativists are engrossed in political similarities and differences between countries; this lexical definition, however, corresponds poorly with stipulative definitions embedded in the practice of research. For one thing, by performing important hypothesis-generating and similar tasks, studies of one case form a central and integrated feature of comparative politics. Furthermore, much comparative research moves on the levels of individuals and groups, and makes use of countries as contexts rather than units. As political science has matured to be a nomotetic discipline, aiming at the building of empirically falsifiable explanatory theory, the crossing of borders in space and time has become a necessity, and comparative politics is today much more than an isolated political science compartment only. References.

This article aims to identify what critical categories are applied to review of doctoral dissertations in political science & what patterns of change might impact these same categories through time. Some of the fundamental concepts entailed in faculty review of dissertation are presented here on the basis of centuries-old thought. While these concepts remain valid today, their application is assumed to have changed. Through a content analysis of reviews made of political science dissertations over a 20-year period, a notable shift in emphasis is made from critical attention to source material & empirical analysis to critical attention to perspective of the writer & theoretical approach. Important developments in the composition of review committees are also discussed, including an increase in the committee's number of professors within one discipline, international profile, & departmental balance regarding the department of the dissertation author. These & other changes are here situated in the larger framework of character shifts that have affected political science & other disciplines throughout the last generation. 2 Tables, 14 References. C. Brunski

A professor in public law discusses her experience with interdisciplinary sciences, especially between public law and political science regarding peace and conflict research. Public law and political science are unified in many ways, especially after the increasing influence of the highly politicized EU-law, and have yielded good results within the study of soft law (i.e. informal rules), conflict, human trafficking, and the power of the EU jurors. However, maybe the most ambitious project of them all is the research of how states of war and dictatorships can be transferred into states of peace and democracy. Despite its many opportunities, interdisciplinary science has its problems, such as a lack of a mutual scientific language and different theoretical structures. Luckily, many of these problems can be countered with thorough planning. L. Pitkaniemi

The results of ten years' studies on women equality are briefly discussed. The difficulties to establish a high level academic career for women are emphasized. Mainly economical reasons, such as limitations to obtain intermediate grants after the postdoc phase, are blamed for this situation. A. Barral

The Central Bureau of Statis in Sweden is gathering data on the duration of studies in arts & sci's. All S's who take an examination are obliged to fill out a questionnaire on this subject. So it is possible to compute (1) the (total - sum) duration, & (2) the net duration: time used for studies proper (all obstacles to studying such as illness, military service, part-time or full-time job, are subtracted), which gives information about the effectiveness of the study concerned. There appear to be large diff's in duration between diff combinations of subjects. I. Pipping.

Introduces political psychology as a field that began in the early 20th century in the United States when Charles Merriam from the University of Chicago was researching how psychological factors are affecting political choices. In Europe political psychology has mainly been concerned with the reverse questioning: how politics are affecting psychology. Since the 1950's political psychology has been associated with analyzing and understanding international conflicts as is exemplified with Kelman and Fisher's research. L. Pitkaniemi

The article explains the process of selection of a Professor in Political Sciences with special emphasis in administration at the University of Lund in Sweden. The curriculum vitae & merits of each candidate, both in research & pedagogic, as well as their administrative experience, are presented, together with a general evaluation. Each of the three members of the hiring committee establishes a rank for the three final candidates, & Professor Axel Hadenius is appointed. Katarina Eckerberg, Axel Hadenius, Jonas Hinnfors, Mats Sjolin, Drude Dahlerup contributed. A. Barral

International Politics has been characterized as an American social science. This article traces the early development of the discipline in Sweden in the shadow of US hegemony. The advantages & disadvantages of the Swedish decision to keep International Relations (IR) within the broader discipline of Political Science are discussed. Recalling the early tensions between International Politics & Peace & Conflict Research, the author identifies some prominent traits in the development of Swedish IR in recent decades. Finally, broader developments in IR research generally are outlined in terms of consecutive debates, continuously broadening research themes, fashions, reaction to dramatic events in the world, & dialectics between paradigms emphasizing anarchy or order. References. Adapted from the source document.