Theory and Methods in Political Science

407 Pages·2017·2.678 MB·English

by  Vivien Lowndes (editor), David Marsh (editor), Gerry Stoker (editor)

Political
Analysis
4th Edition
EDITED BY
VIVIEN LOWNDES,

DAVID MARSH,
& GERRY STOKER
Series Editors: B. Guy Peters, Jon Pierre and Gerry Stoker
Political science today is a dynamic discipline. Its substance, theory and methods
have all changed radically in recent decades. It is much expanded in range and
scope and in the variety of new perspectives – and new variants of old ones – that it
encompasses. The sheer volume of work being published, and the increasing degree
of its specialization, however, make it difficult for political scientists to maintain a
clear grasp of the state of debate beyond their own particular subdisciplines.
The Political Analysis series is intended to provide a channel for different parts of
the discipline to talk to one another and to new generations of students. Our aim
is to publish books that provide introductions to, and exemplars of, the best work
in various areas of the discipline. Written in an accessible style, they provide a
‘launching-pad’ for students and others seeking a clear grasp of the key meth-
odological, theoretical and empirical issues, and the main areas of debate, in the
complex and fragmented world of political science.
A particular priority is to facilitate intellectual exchange between academic
communities in different parts of the world. Although frequently addressing the
same intellectual issues, research agendas and literatures in North America, Europe
and elsewhere have often tended to develop in relative isolation from one another.
This series is designed to provide a framework for dialogue and debate which,
rather than advocacy of one regional approach or another, is the key to progress.
The series reflects our view that the core values of political science should be
coherent and logically constructed theory, matched by carefully constructed and
exhaustive empirical investigation. The key challenge is to ensure quality and
integrity in what is produced rather than to constrain diversity in methods and
approaches. The series is intended as a showcase for the best of political science in
all its variety, and demonstrates how nurturing that variety can further improve
the discipline.
Series Editors: B. Guy Peters, Jon Pierre and Gerry Stoker
Editorial Advisory Group: Frank R. Baumgartner, Donatella Della Porta, Scott Fritzen, Robert
E. Goodin, Colin Hay, Alan M. Jacobs, Eliza W. Y. Lee, Jonathon W. Moses, Craig Parsons,
Mitchell A. Seligson and Margit Tavits.
Published
David Beetham
The Legitimation of Power Ioannis Papadopoulos
(2nd edition) Democracy in Crisis? Politics, Governance
Peter Burnham, Karin Gilland Lutz, and Policy
Wyn Grant and Zig Layton-Henry B. Guy Peters
Research Methods in Politics Strategies for Comparative Research in
(2nd edition) Political Science
Lina Eriksson Jon Pierre and B. Guy Peters
Rational Choice Theory: Potential Governance, Politics and the State
and Limits
Heather Savigny and Lee Marsden
Jean Grugel and Matthew Louis Bishop Doing Political Science and International
Democratization: A Critical Relations
Introduction (2nd edition)
Rudra Sil and Peter J. Katzenstein
Colin Hay Beyond Paradigms: Analytic Eclecticism
Political Analysis in the Study of World Politics
Colin Hay, Michael Lister and David Martin J. Smith
Marsh (eds) Power and the State
The State: Theories and Issues
Gerry Stoker, B. Guy Peters and
Andrew Hindmoor and Brad Taylor Jon Pierre (eds)
Rational Choice (2nd edition) The Relevance of Political Science
Johanna Kantola and Emanuela Cees van der Eijk and Mark Franklin
Lombardo Elections and Voters
Gender and Political Analysis
Keith Dowding
Vivien Lowndes and Mark Roberts The Philosophy and Methods of Political
Why Institutions Matter Science
Vivien Lowndes, David Marsh and Dimiter Toshkov
Gerry Stoker (eds) Research Design in Political Science
Theory and Methods in Political
Science (4th edition)
Theory and Methods in
Political Science
Fourth edition
Edited by
Vivien Lowndes, David Marsh
and
Gerry Stoker
© Vivien Lowndes, David Marsh and Gerry Stoker 2018
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this
publication may be made without written permission.
No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted
save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence
permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency,
Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS.
Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication
may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
The authors have asserted their rights to be identified as the authors of this
work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First edition published 1995
Second edition published 2002
Third edition published 2010
Fourth edition published 2018 by
PALGRAVE
Palgrave in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited,
registered in England, company number 785998, of 4 Crinan Street,
London, N1 9XW.
Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States,
the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries.
ISBN 978–1–137–60352–4 hardback
ISBN 978–1–137–60351–7 paperback
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully
managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing
processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the
country of origin.
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A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
Contents
Lists of Figures, Tables and Boxes xiii
Preface to the Fourth Edition xv
Notes on Contributors xvi
1 Introduction 1
Vivien Lowndes, David Marsh and Gerry Stoker
What is politics? What is it that political scientists study? 7
What is a scientific approach to politics? 9
The discipline of political science: a celebration of diversity? 11
PART 1 THEORY AND APPROACHES
Introduction to Part 1 17
Vivien Lowndes, David Marsh and Gerry Stoker
2 Behavioural Analysis 20
David Sanders
T he rise of the behavioural movement and its core
characteristics 21
Criticisms of the behavioural approach 25
Objections to the positivist claim that statements which
are neither definitions (useful tautologies) nor empirical
are meaningless 25
The tendency towards mindless empiricism 26
The assumed independence of theory and observation 28
The strengths of the behavioural approach: an example 30
Conclusion: the behavioural legacy in the twenty- first century 37
Further reading 38
3 Rational Choice 39
Andrew Hindmoor and Brad Taylor
Introduction 39
The methods of economics (and rational choice) 40
The logic of collective action 43
Collective action and the environment 46
What’s wrong with rational choice theory? 48
From imperialism to peaceful co-existence 52
Conclusion 52
Further reading 53
v
vi Contents
4 Institutionalism 54
Vivien Lowndes
The ‘traditional’ institutional approach 55
The emergence of the ‘new institutionalism’ 57
The ‘three new institutionalisms’ 58
Core features of new institutionalism 59
Institutions as rules not organisations 60
Institutions as informal as well as formal 61
Institutions as dynamic as well as stabilising 62
Institutions as embodying values and power 62
Institutions as contextually embedded 63
New institutionalist dilemmas 64
What is an institution anyway? 64
Where do institutions come from, and how do
they change? 67
Are the normative and rational choice approaches
compatible? 70
Conclusion 73
Further reading 74
5 Constructivism and Interpretive theory 75
Craig Parsons
Origins of constructivism 76
What is and isn’t distinctive about constructivism? 78
Variations within constructivism 83
Epistemological variations 83
Different mechanisms and different social constructs 85
Different methods 87
Conclusion 90
Further reading 91
6 Feminist and Gendered Approaches 92
Meryl Kenny and Fiona Mackay
What is feminism? 92
Political science: gendered foundations 93
Women in political science 96
Gender and political science 97
Political representation 102
Feminising political parties 103
Gendering the state and state feminism 104
Dilemmas and challenges 105
Conclusion 107
Further reading 107
Contents vii
7 Marxism: A Global Perspective 109
Ray Kiely
M arxism and capitalism: structuralist economism or
agency-led contingency? 110
Marxist economism and base and superstructure 110
Marx and capitalism 112
Marxism, capitalism and nationalism 114
M arxism and globalisation: economistic unilinearity or
contingent uneven development? 115
Marxist economism and capitalist diffusion 115
Marx and the unequal international order 116
M arxism, imperialism and uneven development as 
dependency 118
M arxism and hegemony: the significance of Gramsci 119
Debating globalisation in the twenty-first century 120
Contemporary globalisation defined 120
T he continued relevance of Marxist ideas I: globalisation
as uneven and combined development 121
T he continued relevance of Marxist ideas II: hegemony
and the international order 122
Conclusion 123
Further reading 124
8 Poststructuralism 125
Mark Wenman
French structuralism 127
From structuralism to poststructuralism 129
Poststructuralism in politics and international relations 130
T he ontological and epistemological assumptions of
poststructuralism 133
Criticism and evaluation 137
Conclusion 140
Further reading 141
9 Political Psychology 142
Frank Mols and Paul ‘t Hart
An interdisciplinary enterprise 142
Political conflict and contention 144
Political leadership and followership 146
Who leads matters 147
H ow groups create leaders, and leaders gain
followers 147
Political beliefs and voter attitudes 151
Perceiving the political world 151
viii Contents
Causes and consequences of political attitudes 152
Radicalisation and extremism: pathology or politics? 152
Understanding political decision-making 154
From homo economicus to homo psychologicus 154
Groups as asset or problem in policy
decision-making? 155
Methods and prospects of the field 155
Further reading 157
10 normative Political theory 158
Chris Armstrong
Introduction 158
Methods in normative political theory 159
Rawls on reflective equilibrium 159
Cohen on facts and values 162
Normative theory and global justice 164
Political ideals and feasibility 166
Further reading 170
PART 2 METHODS AND RESEARCH DESIGN
Introduction to Part 2 173
Vivien Lowndes, David Marsh and Gerry Stoker
11 A skin not a sweater : ontology and epistemology in
Political science 177
David Marsh, Selen A. Ercan and Paul Furlong
Ontology and epistemology introduced 178
The meaning of ontology and epistemology (and
methodology) 178
The relationship between ontology and epistemology 179
Distinguishing ontological and epistemological positions 181
Distinguishing broad ontological positions 182
Distinguishing broad epistemological positions 183
Interrogating different approaches to ontology
and epistemology 185
Positivism 186
Interpretivism 189
Critical realism 193
Ontology and epistemology in empirical research 194
Empirical research on deliberative democracy – positivism
versus interpretivism 195
Conclusion 197
Further reading 198
Contents ix
12 Meta-theoretical Issues 199
David Marsh
Conceptualising structure, agency and the ideational realm 200
Structure 201
Agency 202
The ideational realm 204
Dialectical approaches to the relationships between structure
and agency and the material and the ideational 204
Structure and agency: the dialectical approaches 204
Structuration theory 205
The Morphogenetic approach 205
The strategic-relational approach 206
Bourdieu and habitus 208
The material and the ideational: thin and thick constructivism 209
Stability and change 211
Hay: a linear conception of time 212
Tonkiss: a non-linear conception of time 212
A flexi-time model: a circadian conception of time 213
More on punctuated evolution 213
Conclusion 217
Further reading 218
13 Research Design 219
Dimiter Toshkov
What is research design? 219
The research process 220
The elements of research design 222
Research questions and research goals 222
Theory and empirical research 225
Conceptualisation and operationalisation 227
Types of research methodologies 228
Case and variable selection for different types of research 230
Experimental research 230
Large-N observational research 232
Comparative research 233
Single-case studies and within-case analysis 234
Conclusion: the power and promise of research design 235
Further reading 236
14 Qualitative Methods 237
Ariadne Vromen
Debates on qualitative methods: the rediscovery of qualitative
analysis 237
What is distinctive about qualitative methods and analysis? 243