Politics can be defined as the study or practice of the distribution of power and resources within a community. It has both formal and informal elements. Formal politics pertains to constitutional frameworks and institutions, while informal politics can include everyday social interactions. Political science studies politics systematically and logically as a social science. There are various approaches to studying politics, including traditional, scientific, systems-based, and political economy approaches. Key components of politics include political institutions, ideologies, parties, and issues. Good governance involves participation, rule of law, transparency, responsiveness, consensus-building, equity, effectiveness, accountability, and strategic vision.
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
0 ratings0% found this document useful (0 votes)
77 views
The Concept of Politics and Governance
Politics can be defined as the study or practice of the distribution of power and resources within a community. It has both formal and informal elements. Formal politics pertains to constitutional frameworks and institutions, while informal politics can include everyday social interactions. Political science studies politics systematically and logically as a social science. There are various approaches to studying politics, including traditional, scientific, systems-based, and political economy approaches. Key components of politics include political institutions, ideologies, parties, and issues. Good governance involves participation, rule of law, transparency, responsiveness, consensus-building, equity, effectiveness, accountability, and strategic vision.
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 32
INTRODUCTION:
The Concept of Politics and
Governance What is Politics? Etymologically, the term Politics emanates from the Greek word Politika meaning the “affairs of the cities”. During the Middle Ages, the word comes from the French politique and Latin politicus, meaning relating to citizens, civic, or belonging to a state. It is basically the study or practice of the distribution of power and resources within a given community. Formal Kinds of Semi-formal Politics Informal It pertains to the structured and defined
Formal operation of a constitutional framework,
institutions, and methods. Public policy Politics falls on this category. It includes neighborhood Semi-formal associations and student
Politics governments where political party
politics exists. It is also known as everyday politics which affects everyday lives of man like Informal how the household or office is managed Politics and how one person impacts one another. Political science is a field of What is discipline that is under the umbrella Political organization of social science, the Science? profession of social actions. The power of performing certain actions especially acquired by experience, study and observation is art. Art is a selective re- creation of reality according to a person’s metaphysical value – judgement. It concretizes man’s fundamental view of himself
Politics, as and of his existence. Thus, political art means the power to perform selective re- creation of reality inspired by experience,
an art study, and observation. Political art stylizes man’s
consciousness to suit a person’s objectives. It is art that makes one truly unique, distinct from the multitude, and what others cannot be. Science is a set of rules and methods for investigating reality logically and
Politics, as a systematically. Political science is
therefore a science to the extent that it science observes the cardinal rules of scientific logic. Traditional Approaches in Scientific General Theory the study of Systems Approach Politics Structural-Functional Political Economy Traditional/Historical Approach Most political scientist make some use of history, but traditionalists concentrate almost exclusively on this area, emphasizing chronology and the historical development of government structures and institutions. Scientific/Behaviorist Approach Behaviorists are concerned mostly with empirical theory which deals with the observable world, rather than normative theory which involves value judgements. The scientific approach of behavioralists brough a new, technical vocabulary to the study of politics, a vocabulary which must be learned to understand much of contemporary political science. General Approach Theory This approach focusses on identifying all the critical structures and processes of society, explain their interrelationships with politics, and predict a wide array of governmental outcomes. Politics is not totally predictable because, since human behavior is involved, there can be no direct cause-and-effect relationship among all variables. Systems Approach The essence of systems theory is that the politics of a country can be predicted by the interaction between the social environment and an abstract political system which processes or converts demands and supports into outputs, producing an overall stability of homeostasis. Structural-Functional Approach The thrust of this approach is that it specifies the activities of a viable political system and explains how these functions must be performed to maintain the stability of the political system. Political Economy Approach Politics and economics are never entirely separate phenomena. Economics involves conflict over scarce resources, while politics generally involves decisions about who will pay and who will benefit from the production and distribution of products and services. Political Institutions Components of Political Ideologies Political Parties Politics Political Issues These comprise the state, government, agencies, organizations like party-list groups Political and civil societies, governmental Institutions departments, political systems, and the functions of the political beings or individual within the institution. These refer to the set of beliefs and doctrines that serve as the guide in the Political political, economic, and social action of a Ideologies state. Foremost examples are idealism, realism, rationalism, and extremism. There are groups and agglomeration of certain individuals who aspire to occupy Political Parties public office. This varies from one government to another as its structure, memberships, and political views. These are governmental and societal controversies debated over time inclusive of Political Issues topics such as abortion, to taxation, and government spending, foreign policy, and trade. 1. Participation Core 2. Rule of the law 3. Transparency Characteristics of 4. Responsiveness Good 5. Consensus orientation 6. Equity Governance 7. Effectiveness and Efficiency 8. Accountability 9. Strategic vision Participation Rule of the law Transparency Responsiveness Consensus Orientation Equity Effectiveness and Efficiency Accountability Strategic Vision END OF MODULE 1