Individual Behavior and Motivations in Political Science
Political science starts with people. Every election result, every protest movement, every policy change traces back to decisions made by individuals. Understanding why people make the political choices they do is the foundation for everything else in this course.
Two broad categories of factors shape political behavior: psychological factors (what's happening inside someone's head) and sociological factors (how their environment and social world influence them). These interact constantly.
Individual behavior in political science
Individual behavior and decision-making are the building blocks of political processes and outcomes. The main forms this takes:
- Voting behavior refers to the choices individuals make in elections, like which candidate or party to support
- Political participation goes beyond voting to include activism, volunteering, attending rallies, contacting elected officials, and other forms of engagement
- Political attitudes and beliefs shape how people perceive and respond to issues, from policy support to trust in government
Psychological factors play a significant role in shaping these behaviors:
- Personality traits influence political preferences. For example, people who score high on authoritarianism tend to support strong leaders, while those high in openness to experience tend to hold more liberal views.
- Cognitive biases affect how people process political information. Confirmation bias leads people to seek out information that supports what they already believe. Framing effects change how people react to an issue depending on how it's presented.
Sociological factors also shape political behavior over time:
- Socialization is the process through which people absorb political values and norms from family discussions, school, peer groups, and media exposure
- Social identity shapes political attitudes and group affiliations. Racial and ethnic identity, gender, and socioeconomic class all influence how someone engages with politics.
- Nationalism can powerfully shape both individual behavior and group identity, tying political loyalty to a sense of shared national belonging
Motivations and ideologies in politics
Different motivations drive people into political action:
- Self-interest pushes individuals to prioritize their own well-being, like economic concerns or personal security
- Altruism motivates people to support policies that benefit society broadly, even at personal cost
- Civic duty is the feeling of social responsibility that encourages participation in voting, community organizing, and public life
Political ideologies provide frameworks for interpreting political issues. Think of them as lenses people use to decide what government should and shouldn't do:
- Liberalism emphasizes individual rights, equality, and government intervention to address social problems
- Conservatism values tradition, limited government, and free market principles
- Socialism advocates for collective ownership of resources and greater economic equality
- Libertarianism prioritizes individual liberty and minimal government intervention in both economic and personal life
- Democracy as a political system emphasizes popular sovereignty and citizen participation in governance
Public opinion is the aggregate of individual attitudes and beliefs across a population. It matters because politicians respond to constituent concerns when setting policy priorities, and shifts in public sentiment (tracked through approval ratings and issue salience) shape electoral outcomes and government responsiveness.
Civil Liberties, Civil Rights, and Political Institutions
Civil liberties vs. civil rights
These two terms sound similar but point in different directions. Civil liberties are freedoms from government interference. Civil rights are guarantees of equal treatment by the government. Both matter, but they protect people in different ways.
Civil liberties include:
- Freedom of speech ensures you can express views without censorship, whether through protest or criticizing government policies
- Freedom of religion protects the right to practice your faith without discrimination, including wearing religious symbols and attending services
- Right to privacy protects against unwarranted government intrusion, such as unreasonable searches
- Due process guarantees fair legal proceedings and protects against arbitrary government action
Civil rights focus on equal treatment:
- Non-discrimination laws prohibit unequal treatment based on protected characteristics like race, gender, or sexual orientation
- Voting rights ensure equal access to elections by prohibiting discriminatory practices and guaranteeing representation
- Equal access to public services promotes fairness in areas like education, healthcare, and housing
Together, civil liberties and civil rights protect individual autonomy, enable self-expression, and work to ensure equal opportunities for marginalized groups by addressing historical inequalities.
Groups and institutions in politics
Individuals don't act alone in politics. They organize into groups and work through institutions that amplify their influence.
Political parties are organizations that contest elections and shape policy. They aggregate interests and mobilize voters around shared goals through campaigns and rallies. They also formulate policy platforms and nominate candidates for office.
Interest groups are organizations that seek to influence policy without running candidates themselves. They lobby elected officials and provide expert testimony to shape legislation. They also mobilize public opinion through petitions, demonstrations, and grassroots campaigns to pressure decision-makers.
Media functions as an institution that shapes political discourse. Media outlets practice agenda-setting by determining which issues receive coverage and how stories are framed. Media also plays a watchdog role, holding government officials accountable through investigative reporting and exposing misconduct.
International Relations and Globalization
Themes of international relations
When political science zooms out beyond a single country, it enters the field of international relations (IR). Here, the focus shifts to how nation-states interact with each other and how global forces shape politics.
Two major theoretical perspectives frame these interactions:
- Realism emphasizes the pursuit of national interests and the importance of military and economic power. It sees the international system as competitive, with great power competition and arms races as natural outcomes.
- Liberalism (in the IR sense) highlights the role of international institutions and cooperation in promoting stability, pointing to organizations like the United Nations and international treaties as tools for managing conflict.
Globalization has reshaped political processes in major ways:
- Economic interdependence increases the influence of multinational corporations and global markets through trade agreements and foreign investment
- Cultural exchange facilitates the spread of ideas and norms across borders through social media, international education, and migration
Transnational challenges are problems that no single country can solve alone. These require global governance and collective action:
- Climate change demands international cooperation like the Paris Agreement and renewable energy initiatives
- Global health crises such as pandemics require coordinated responses through organizations like the World Health Organization
- International terrorism and security threats cross national boundaries, requiring intelligence sharing and multilateral operations
Key concepts in international relations
- Sovereignty is the principle that a state has supreme authority within its territory. It's central to the modern state system and the basis for why countries resist outside interference.
- Diplomacy is the practice of conducting negotiations between representatives of states or groups, and it's the primary alternative to conflict.
- Balance of power refers to the distribution of power among states to prevent any single state from dominating others. Alliances and military buildups often aim to maintain this balance.
- Collective action in IR addresses global issues that require cooperation among multiple states, though getting countries to cooperate when they have competing interests is one of the central challenges of international politics.