Political Science Research Articles

Generating learning through the crowd

Social media and higher education pedagogy have enjoyed a chequered relationship with significant debates about the efficacy of social media as a site of student centred learning, the manager/host of an individual’s learning trajectory and as a tool of facilitating collaborative learning at scale. This paper presents the findings from the evaluation of Constitution UK, an innovative civic engagement and open learning project run by the London School of Economics and Political Science (UK). This was the lead initiative in an institution-wide shift in pedagogical approach, designed to transform the learning experience through supporting students to be co-producers of knowledge. We argue that some of the behaviours inherent in social media learning (centred on fleeting connections, digital identity and discontinuous engagement) can create the conditions for effective learning through experience and practice, both at scale in open, online modes as well in the face-to-face delivery environment. Challenging the dominant pedagogical approaches of other massive online programmes, Constitution UK brought together a civil community of people engaging in the process of digital citizenship that produced a crowdsourced constitution for the United Kingdom. The learning design of the project successfully engineered both learning and problem solving at scale. The key aspects of the project arising from how social media can facilitate critical thinking, engagement, peer and crowd learning have informed pedagogical change within the mainstream provision of the School for initiatives such as Students as Producers, civic engagement over Brexit and games-based learning.

Research on the Construction of Legal and Business Integrated Course Groups in Political Science and Court Schools Under the Guide of New Liberal Arts

Research on the Construction of Legal and Business Integrated Course Groups in Political Science and Court Schools Under the Guide of New Liberal Arts

Study on the digital transformation path of traditional media companies in the context of the Internet

In the background of the Internet, traditional media companies are facing very serious challenges. This paper firstly gave a brief introduction to the development of traditional media, pointed out the necessity of digital transformation of traditional media companies, and analyzed Phoenix Media using political, economic, social and technological (PEST) analysis and strength, weaknesses, opportunity, and threat (SWOT) analysis. Moreover, the current development of the company was analyzed, and its digital transformation path was elaborated. Finally, the existing problems of the company were pointed out, and some suggestions were given. This study provides a reference for traditional media companies to carry out digital transformation.

Toward A (Not The) Political Philosophy Of Populism: Democracy, Moral Dualism And Minimalst Theory In Christopher Lasch

Abstract I compare Christopher Lasch's thought to specific features that research in political science attributes to contemporary populism. Lasch openly favoured a historical form of populism but is rarely considered when current forms of populism are discussed. The research literature characterizes populism as superficially tied to democracy while undermining it, as committed to the moral binary of people and elites, and as intellectually “thin” because it does not engage with the complex theories that ground other ideologies. These characters make populism incoherent and inimical to democracy. Lasch manifests all three characters while connecting them to a sustained worldview. Humans’ awareness of death is the core feature that makes them rational, ethical and equal. Attempts to dilute that awareness are inimical to the equality at democracy's basis. Experts and professionals encourage this dilution by promising remedies and progress. Democracy depends on ordinary people who resist elites and their complex phraseologies.

American Presidential Elections 2024: The Core Point of Future Geopolitical Changes

Purpose: This research is focused on the ongoing Russia – Ukraine military conflict, which has already caused some significant changes in foreign policy priorities of major players of international political system. Objective: The objective of this study is to investigate the impact of U.S. 2024 elections to the Russia – Ukraine military conflict outcomes with the aim of analyzing different foreign policy philosophies the two potential candidates have, that can have an effect not only on current Russo-Ukrainian conflict but on the whole global geopolitical situation in the current world. Theoretical Framework: realism as an international relations theory with the system level analysis is used to explain current global geopolitical issues. Method: The issue of methodology is decided according to the necessities of tasks of this article and is mostly based on data analyses, comparison of similarities or differences and case study. Results and Discussion: the current work claims that the major war on the European continent disrupts the core security arrangements which has a shattering effects of unipolar liberal order and how much will this order be changed, is mainly depended on the dedication to it by the U.S.A, European union countries and their liberal democratic allies around the globe. Research Implications: the research findings contribute in raising awareness of the current Ukraine conflict and accumulate the type of knowledge that enriches the political science with theoretical and practical value.

The role of pointing gestures and eye gaze in second language vocabulary learning

ABSTRACT Learning a second language is recognized as a necessity for social, political, and economic development. However, the processes contributing to initial vocabulary learning have not been explicated. In a series of experiments, this study examines the role of deictic gestures and gaze in second language vocabulary learning. Such cues have been shown to be fundamental in first language learning, but their efficacy in second language learning has not been established. In three experiments 435 participants learned pseudowords by watching images of a teacher naming objects placed on a table while systematically manipulating pointing and gaze. Moreover, manipulating the position of the object relative to the teacher (within or out of reach) served to establish the possible importance of these cues as social versus attentional constructs in second language vocabulary learning. Results show that gaze and gesture did not affect vocabulary learning, but object position did. We discuss implications of these results for theories of first language and second language vocabulary learning.

A PRAGMATIC STUDY OF MEIOSIS IN SELECTED POLITICAL SPEECHES

This sets the stage for an investigation that will bring together politics and the scientific process of meiosis, two seemingly unrelated fields. To have a pragmatic or realistic view of meiosis in political discourse is what the word "pragmatic" means. It is likely that politicians' use of rhetorical strategies like meiosis, which includes euphemisms and understatements, is the intended topic of this study. This research delves into the impact of meiosis on political discourse by dissecting specific speeches to see how they sway listeners to either agree or disagree with the speaker's stance. An interdisciplinary study of language and communication that draws on biological and political discourse analysis techniques is hinted at in the abstract.

Rentierism—Political Instability Nexus: The Danger of Oil-producing Region Crisis in Nigeria

The growing popularity of the rentier state theory has made the focus on the impact of oil rents on political stability central for revealing how natural resource (including oil) windfalls link to the weakness of institutional quality in any resource-rich economy. Considering the core characteristic of a rentier state (such as Nigeria)—a distributive political economy—the article examines how the stability of Nigerian political system can be affected by oil rents over the period 1996–2021. Through the adoption of autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds test to cointegration and vector error correction mechanism (VECM) for the test of long-run causality, the apparent effect of oil rents on Nigerian political development is reflected in the analyses and findings. Empirical evidence supports the oil impedes political stability assertion, as there is statistically valid negative association between oil rents and political stability in the short run and long run. It is demonstrated that oil wealth could offer greater incentives for civil conflicts, which have resulted in escalating political problems. In addition, the causality mechanism implies that the relationship found merely indicates association between oil rents and the level of political stability in the long term, and it is not causal. Thus, it is posited that through the adoption and implementation of sound policy measures, the escalation of conflicts would likely subside, especially in most oil-rich regions or states, whereas civil order could be promoted. It is, therefore, critical to enhancing fairness in the use and distribution of oil wealth, improving people’s welfare, particularly in the oil-producing communities and in general, ensuring that democratic principles in the management of resource windfalls are sustained. JEL: Q33, Q34, H56, H12

The Politics of Blame-Seeking: Strategic Antagonism, Effective Alignment and Benefitting From Backlash

Why would a politician ever want to be blamed? Under what contextual conditions might blame-seeking behaviour emerge as a rational strategy? What tactics, tools and strategies might they deploy? Where is the empirical evidence of blame-seeking in action and why does it matter? These are the questions this article engages with as it challenges the long-standing ‘self-evident truth’ within political science that blame-is-bad. We argue that a new ‘blame game’ has emerged in which blame generation is deployed not solely to taint opponents but also to demonstrate the blame-seeker’s willingness to challenge convention, break the rules, or side with the marginalized. In a broader context characterized by democratic dissatisfaction, anti-political sentiment and affective polarization, we suggest that blame-seeking assumes a powerful symbolic and performative dimension. Antagonizing certain sections of society and then harnessing the backlash provides a powerful political strategy which challenges traditional scholarly assumptions about credit and blame existing in a zero-sum relationship. We illustrate these arguments using the case of Boris Johnson’s rise to the British premiership. A focus on blame-seeking, we suggest, expands our understanding of what politicians say and do to achieve their goals in polarized political contexts.

Latvia: Political Developments and Data in 2023

AbstractThe elections of the state president by the Latvian Parliament brought about not only a new Cabinet and a new prime minister but also a new coalition and an advancement of the social liberal agenda, including the legal regulation of same‐sex partnership. The new Cabinet continued a strongly supportive Ukraine policy aided by de‐Russification efforts at the grassroots level. The left‐leaning Progressives became part of the governing coalition for the first time, but their impact on government policies remains to be seen.

The Title of the Growth of New Dynasties in Spain Maghrib and Iran

This research aims to examine the birth and development of new dynasties in the regions of the Spanish Maghrib and Iran after the collapse of major powers such as the Umayyad Caliphate in Spain and the Abbasid Caliphate in Iran. Employing a literature research approach, this study traces the background of the emergence, expansion processes, consolidation of power, as well as the contributions of these dynasties to the intellectual and cultural development in the regions they ruled. In the Spanish Maghrib, the Almoravid and Almohad Dynasties emerged as new powers after the fall of the Umayyad Caliphate. Both dynasties succeeded in uniting the regions of Spain and the Maghrib, albeit with different methods and ideologies. Meanwhile, in Iran, the Ilkhanid, Jalayirid, Timurid, and Safavid Dynasties rose after the collapse of the Abbasid Caliphate, each exerting significant influence and contributions to the political, cultural, artistic, and scientific development. The research findings indicate that the birth and development of these new dynasties not only brought about political changes but also contributed significantly to intellectual and cultural advancements in both regions. The periods under their rule are known as golden ages in the fields of art, architecture, literature, mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, and other sciences. These dynasties fostered the exchange of ideas among various ethnic and religious groups and created a conducive environment for the growth of knowledge and creativity. Overall, this study highlights the importance of the new dynasties in the dynamics of history and civilization, as well as their contributions in shaping new political landscapes and catalyzing the growth of rich knowledge, art, and culture.

Reformative concept analysis for applied psychology qualitative research

ABSTRACT Concept analysis is a useful qualitative research method for psychologists aiming to define, clarify or critique concept meaning and use in theory, practice or research. This article explains Reformative Concept Analysis (RCA), a novel method derived from nursing and political science concept analysis approaches, and reformed for applied psychology research. First, the role of concepts as epistemological vessels in psychological theory and practice is described. Some problems with concept use in clinical practice and research are highlighted, to demonstrate why critical analytic methods to improve concept definition and utility are needed. Then, overviews of some existing concept analysis methods are provided, with summaries of their strengths and limitations from an applied psychology perspective. The importance of comparing and combining meaning frameworks constructed from qualitative narratives and literature review is highlighted. Finally, the eight stages of RCA method are set out, along with some ontological, epistemological, design, rigour and presentation considerations.

A POLICY ENTREPRENEUR’S EIGHT‐STEP GUIDE TO TURN IDEAS TO IMPACT

AbstractSheldrick, the co‐founder of Global Citizen, writes about “how to bring about meaningful change in today’s divided world.” He discusses the concept of the policy entrepreneur, which he says is “a term coined by political scientist John Kingdon.” Sheldrick’s eight steps of policy entrepreneurship are, in his words, (1) Know your policy goal (2) Know which stakeholders matter and how to influence them (3) Mastering the art of timing (4) Mastering the art of storytelling (5) Embrace pragmatic idealism (6) Leveraging your partners’ strengths (7) Know your endgame (8) Communicate stories of success. Within step one: “A well‐defined policy goal is a linchpin that turns good intentions, such as halting illegal deforestation or curbing the spread of infectious diseases, into impactful change.” In step two: “To drive effective change, you must go where those in power meet.” In step three: “Effective policy entrepreneurs identify the opportune moment to advocate for their policy goal and proactively explore ways to expand its acceptability.” In step four: “To craft a memorable story, emphasize the “why” to build trust and provide practical solutions—the “how” —for a chaotic world.”

Establishing an inverted U-shaped pattern of violence and war from prehistory to modernity: towards an interdisciplinary synthesis

AbstractHow have broad patterns of violence and war changed from the dawn of humanity up to present time? In answering this question, researchers have typically framed their arguments and evidence in terms of the polarized debate between Hobbes (or hawks) and Rousseau (or doves). This article moves beyond the stalemated debate and integrates the most robust existing theoretical developments and empirical findings that have emerged from various disciplines over the past 20 years– primarily sociology, political science, anthropology, and archaeology– to answer the question. Drawing on carefully curated violent lethality data for pre historically appropriate hunter-gatherers, as well as historical pre-state and state societies, it shows that simple narratives of violence and war decreasing through history from ostensibly high levels in the human state of nature, on the one hand, and the obverse insistence that the once mostly peaceful communities became highly belligerent with the transition to modernity, on the other, are both wrong. Instead, multiple lines of existing evidence and theoretical perspectives suggest a complex, non-linear, Kuznets-style relationship between violence and the passage of history.

Locating Subalternity in Tribal Politics in India with Special Reference to Uttar Pradesh

The study of tribal politics in India has broadly followed two patterns. The first is the preoccupation of scholars with the question of integration of tribals into the 'mainstream' or the 'real political process' which is almost coterminous with the imaginary of what can commonly be referred to as the 'learning process' of 'nationalist politics'. (1) The second approach is an offshoot of the first and scholars have been preoccupied with the question of the impossibility of resolving the issues faced by tribals within the first framework. Accordingly, this framework tries to take out the discourse of tribal politics from what is perceived as a 'narrow and partial' approach to study the contribution made by the 'people on their own' as Ranajit Guha puts it. The subaltern Studies Collective started by Guha in the 1980s provided a trenchant critique of nationalist politics. With tribal communities getting increasingly embroiled in political action with development induced displacement in post Independent India, such an approach has gained further traction. (2) The paper makes a limited attempt to study the interaction of tribal politics in one of India's largest states, Uttar Pradesh, vis a vis, attempts to incorporate them into the 'mainstream' through various practices that lie at the intersection of the 'public' and 'private' by placing religion at the centre of identity formation. Historically tribal zones in India have remained under the influence of Christian missionaries and Naxalites. Hindu organisations started work among tribals from the 1990s and their activities can be seen as a countervailing influence against the Christian missionary activities. One of the most popular tropes used by Hindu organisations was that of a creation of a ‘national identity’ among the tribals which was quintessentially a political process. Although anthropologists have long studied the process of Hinduisation' among tribal communities. The paper will show the changing nature of state practices in India vis a vis the tribals who are identified as 'subalterns' and thus be useful for comparative studies across states.

The Velvet Revolution's Best Supporting Actors: Shirley Temple Black and U.S. Embassy Prague, 19891

Abstract This article discusses the contours of U.S. diplomacy in Czechoslovakia before and during the Velvet Revolution of 1989, showing how the U.S. embassy in Prague, in collaboration with the U.S. National Security Council (NSC) and State Department, crafted U.S. policy. Drawing on recently available primary materials (including declassified U.S. telegrams, Czechoslovak archival documents, unpublished memoirs, and original interviews), this article highlights the role of the U.S. embassy during the period from August to November 1989, including how key officials, above all Ambassador Shirley Temple Black, analyzed political developments, assisted Czechoslovak dissidents, and pursued extensive engagement with the Communist government. The article provides the first scholarly, granular account of U.S. diplomacy in Czechoslovakia during the November 1989 upheavals and contributes to the historiography on U.S. foreign policy and the end of the Cold War.

Adaptation or transformation? A system‐justification perspective on pro‐environmental beliefs and behaviors

AbstractDespite the need for profound systemic change to deal with environmental issues, this is not happening. At a psycho‐sociological level, System Justification Theory has mostly explained environmental inaction by greater environmental denial on the part of individuals motivated to justify the economic system. In this article, and in line with research in political science and sociology, we propose to also take into account the existence of different beliefs concerning the social change needed to deal with environmental problems. While some do advocate for profound transformations of current socio‐economic systems, others propose to maintain and adapt them. Moreover, these beliefs have different implications in terms of the pro‐environmental behaviors (PEBs) to be adopted by individuals. We therefore hypothesized that, independently of environmental denial, individuals who justify the economic system would adhere more to adaptation beliefs (e.g., individualization of responsibility) and reject transformation beliefs (e.g., incompatibility between economic growth and environmental preservation); and that these beliefs would mediate the effects of system‐justification on PEBs depending on whether or not they challenge the economic system. A correlational study (N = 277) corroborated our hypotheses. The importance of taking into account the system‐challenging (or not) nature of some pro‐environmental beliefs and behaviors is discussed.

The contradictions of unconventional monetary policy as a post-2008 thwarting mechanism: financial dominance, shadow banking, and inequality

AbstractThe global financial crisis (GFC) of 2008 has triggered profound changes in the macro-financial regulatory architecture. Ever since, the interplay between political, institutional, and macroeconomic developments has received increasing attention in political economy, as in the evolutionary macro-financial approach of institutional super-cycles with its concept of thwarting mechanisms. While these institutional structures aim to stabilise the macro-financial system, they may also contradict each other due to unintended side effects. This paper argues that the understanding of thwarting mechanisms can be enriched by further integrating it with political economy literature on finance within the post-GFC institutional setup. It conceptualises unconventional monetary policy as a novel thwarting mechanism and analyses the contradictory implications for overall macro-financial stability with a particular focus on aggregate demand. It suggests three reasons why this thwarting mechanism failed to restore sustained economic growth in the post-crisis decade: First, sustained large-scale asset purchases perpetuate the structural drivers of financial dominance in political power relations, entrenching the role of the shadow banking system within the macro-financial order and impairing the development of other thwarting mechanisms. Second, unconventional monetary policy maintains the tenets of the inflation targeting regime and thereby sustains neoliberal macroeconomic governance with restrained fiscal policy. Third, it exacerbates preexisting wealth and income inequality by redistributing wealth towards asset owners, undermines consumer demand, and thus contributes to stagnation tendencies. Thus, this paper suggests that the contradictions of this novel post-GFC thwarting mechanism contribute to weaken economic growth and thus fail to restore macro-financial stability.

Spain: Political Developments and Data in 2023

AbstractThe year 2023 was marked by a dense and turbulent political period. The country faced local and regional elections, snap elections and the reformulation of the left‐wing coalition government. Spain also chaired the Council of the European Union during the second semester. The victory of the right (the Partido Popular and Vox) in the local and regional elections held in May in 12 regions (Autonomous Communities), precipitated the call for general elections in July 2023. This process culminated in the renewal of the Sánchez coalition government with support from the Basque and Catalan pro‐independence parties and the exclusion of Podemos leaders from the new governing coalition. The decline of Podemos, the emergence of Sumar and the disappearance of Ciudadanos characterise the new Parliament. The reform of the law on sexual consent and the start of negotiations on a controversial amnesty law dominated the political agenda. In terms of the Spanish economy, the negotiation of an addendum to the National Recovery and Resilience Plan also stands out.

Beyond trade-offs: Exploring the changing interplay of public and private welfare provision in old age and health in the historical long-run

Modern welfare states compete with private providers of welfare in offering economic security. This is most evident in the case of pensions competing with life insurance and private pensions as well as of public health insurance competing with private insurance providers. The common view of this public–private relationship is one of a trade-off: longitudinally, political scientists describe how retrenchment was pushed by privatized welfare, whereas economists trace the crowding-out of private to public welfare provisions. Cross-sectionally, they claim that countries have lower public spending levels because they have a large private sector. We suggest a more nuanced view. Drawing on a new long-run panel data of public pension and private life insurance expenditures and contributions in 20 OECD countries since Bismarck to the current day, we show that in the postwar years a cross-sectional trade-off emerged, which then faded. Longitudinally, complementary relationships of public and private provision growth have become the norm. We argue theoretically and show empirically that trade-offs only occur if governments still hold (waning) anti-interventionist and pro-market views.