ESSENTIALS OF

COMPARATIVE POLITICS

READING NOTES

CHAPTER I
 Chapter I -
introduction

spring

↳
2010 :
tunisian man sets himself on fire

protesting police and indifference

.

corruption gov .

protests against gov

overthrown
.

gov

-
'S hosni after 30 office
2011
egypt Mubarak
resigns
:
pres .

years in

arab
I ybla 'S muammar
gaddafi killed after 40
year rule

Start of civil war bashar at assad stays power

Syrian
-
in
,

" -

migration Crisis , 400,000 t

Killed

political violence

→ of and
role
religious economic conflict

/
→
destabilize
technological Change can
fragment communities

→
ethnic
/ religious origins

Syria and
.

ex :

iraq

what ?
ummm
is
comparative politics

'
→
Study and comparison of domestic politics across countries

political parties
.

elections
, ,
revolutions ,
etc .

Sometimes overlaps with international relations studies

.

-
categories

analytical ( assumptions / theories ) establish Cause and effect

concepts
.

methods
.

-
ideals ( beliefs Iva lues ) Of
preferred outcomes

-
the of
Comparing pursuit power across countries

ex democracy vs authoritarianism monarchy vs

parties etc
.

:
, ,
.
 power
:
ability to

influence
others or

impose one 'S will

politics
I
→
for that will
Struggle
more
in
any group power give
one or
persons

to for the
ability make decisions
larger group

"
"

ex world politics
country office
.

:
, ,

method
comparative

↳
without criterion Studies collections of details
or
guides ,
are
just

↳
compares cases AND conclusions

seek that could be valid other cases

generalizations
'

out in

reasoning

-
inductive

ex :
case Study Of NK

testable
hypothesis ending with
-

go
from
Studying a case to a

generalization of

nationalism
evidence
provide enough test
'

not to
may

foundation which to build theories

.

be
greater
can a on

↳
deductive

Start
hypothesis effect to test
.

with Situation and about cause and

generate

against cases

hypothesis about
:
ex

nationalism tested
on numerous countries

faced
problems by comparative Sts

↳ control Of variables

diverse across
.

economies ,
cultures ,
etc .
countries

change
variables time
-

can over

-
interactions between variables

-
h
"
multi to produce particular
.

causality
=
interaction outcome

-
limits to information
gathering
fear
distorted info ,
of

to
-

of speaking journalists or
He small
cases is
generally researchers , persecution

access to information ( travel Secretive remote locations

language )
'

etc
,
regimes , , ,
.

-
focus on area studies ( single geographic region )

↳
selection bias

Which 'S
.
focus on areas
experiencing what we're
studying ,
ignoring
others ( ex :
rapid growth inequality and revolutions in book )
which ? ,

C . Search for cause and effect CENDOGENEITY )

 be first
may Westerner

to
separate philosophy
and politics
Aristotle and
comparative politics

1-
conducted comparative research On
political ( )
existing Systems regimes

158
analyzed constitutions of City States
.

greek
-

delineate proper deviant and despotic

,

of
Origins political Science
of the
analyses
influenced
writing nature of political
↳
Of US constitution
Italian niccolo machiavelli and economic

( y
organizational power

followed by thomas hobbes

john locke
jean-jacques
rousseau max Weber
.

- .
.

, , ,

advocating particular political Systems with observation fancily sis

-
world wars and cold war

as societies develop they

become capitalist democracies

generated modernization theory
.
,

around values
converging
and characteristics
"
behavioural
-
revolution

investigation Shifted from political Institutions toward individual political

.

away

behaviour ( behaviour is m )

"

approach
\ I

set of methods to politics

.

new

promoted deductive
reasoning
.

mmmm

theories

1-
rational Choice ( choice )
game

study how humans their preferences

.

act on

'
- - '

allow
can
prediction of future Outcomes
.

Institutions

→
formal

based ( democracy )
.

Sanctioned
On
officially rules ex
religion army courts tax
:
, , , ,

-
Informal

fun
-

unwritten official but Still powerful ( ex : national Sports ,

buildings )
terms

focus on one may

-
freedom
erode other Lex :

inequality , distribution ,

individual 'S ability to act

independently without fear resources )
-

. . . communism
, ,

free speech assembly

.

religion
, ,
etc .

DRIVEN
politics is
by
-

equality the ideal of

reconciling
individual freedom and
www.
.

Standard of
living shared by individuals within a
group
Ieye equality