Contemporary political analysis 1600-SZD-WM-WAP
The following topics will be discussed as part of the subject, which will also be the starting point for conducting academic discussion:
1. Types of Sciences and Their Methodological Differences – ambiguity of the notion of science; science and knowledge; types of knowledge; types of sciences and their methodological differences; typology of sciences according to Wilhelm Dilthey; consequences of Dilthey's distinction (naturalism vs anti-naturalism); two models of science in political science.
2. The Subject and Scope of Research in Political Science – the subject of research and the subject of cognition; specificity of the subject of study in political science; principle of aspectuality; building a research project in political science and a post-positivist, constructivist, activist, pragmatic worldview.
3. Multi-dimensional and Syndromatic Character of Cognition (Research) in Political Science – the levels and/or dimensions of scientific analysis of political sphere; syndromatic understanding of the research subject in political science; politics as fuzzy object of research.
4. The Problem of Political and Politicization – the category of political; mechanism of primary and secondary politicization; aspectuality of politicization.
5. The Problem of the Scope in Political Analysis – principles and goals of methodological individualism; holism directives; the problem of structural conditions: ecological, demographic, economic, political, cultural and their different determination in relation to politics.
6. The Dualism of Agency ↔ Structure - subjective / individual approach to the political space (personal domain); objective / structural approach to political space (structural domain); the notion of human agency; dialectical thinking of agency-structure.
7. Political Subjectivity – the concept and attributes of political subjectivity; subjectivity of individuals, social groups and large communities; subjectivity and the process of emancipation in politics.
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Knowledge:
Knows and understands:
- basic principles of knowledge transfer to the economic and social sphere as well as commercialization of results of scientific activities and know-how related to these results.
Skills:
Can:
- use knowledge from various fields of science or the field of art to creatively identify, formulate and innovatively solve complex problems or perform research tasks, in particular:
- define the purpose and subject of scientific research, formulate a research hypothesis
- develop research methods, techniques and tools and apply them creatively
- infer on the basis of scientific research results.
Assessment criteria
Assessment Tasks: active participation and class attendance (number of admissible absences - 2)
Learning Outcomes Assessment: Based on oral test.
Assessment criteria: Passing or failing credit based on an oral interview concerning a set of subject areas covered.
Bibliography
Aleksander J. C., Giessen B., Münch R., Smelser N. (ed.), The Micro-Macro Link, University of California Press, Berkley 1987.
Babbie E., The Practice of Social Research, Wadsworth / Cengage Learning, 2013.
Creswell J. W., Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches, SAGE, London 2014.
Grigsby E., Analyzing Politics. An Introduction to Political Science, Wadsworth/ Cengage Learning, Belmont 2009.
Hay C., Political Analysis. A Critical Introduction, Palgrave Macmillan, New York 2002.
Hoffmann J. A Glossary of Political Theory, Edinburg University Press, Edinburg 2007.
Karwat M., Pierzchalski F., Tobiasz M. (ed.), Constituents of Political Theory. Selected Articles of Warsaw School of Political Theory, Peter Lang Edition, Berlin 2021.
Leopold D., Stears M. (ed.), Political Theory: Methods and Approaches, Oxford University Press, Oxford 2008.
Marsh D., Stocker G. (ed.), Theory and Methods in Political Science, Palgrave Macmillan, London 2010.
Mouffe Ch., On the Political, Routledge, London & New York 2005.
Nowak S., Methodology of Sociological Research. General Problems, Dordrecht / Boston and Warsaw 1977.
Pierzchalski F., Political Leadership in Morphogenetic Perspective, Peter Lang Edition, Frankfurt am Main 2017.
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: