Basic Concepts of

Politics and Governance

Lesson I: Politics, Governance and other Key
Concepts.
“Man by Nature is a Political Animal.”

- Aristotle
 POLITICAL SCIENCE
 Deals with the study of power in society,
politics, and government.
 The dynamic character of human society and the
differences in contexts of different states have
resulted in different views, theories and
definitions on the concepts of political
governance.
 Having basic knowledge on political
science can be empowering for every
citizen, especially in a democratic
country like the Philippines. There are
various theories in political science, but
we only have to study the concepts in the
Philippine context.
 1. Political science is the study of power and government
systems.
 2. Power is not a central concept in political science.
 3. The study of politics involves a complex process of
quantitative and qualitative interpretations based on available
data.
 4. Aristotle defined political science as the study of people.
 5. Politics is generally defined as the activity that influences an
individual or a group of people.
 6. Only government officials have the right to study politics.
 Social contract theorists like Thomas Hobbes, Jean-Jacques
Rousseau, and John Locke during the 17th and 18th century
Europe stressed the hypothetical state of nature that was devoid of
any kind of government. This state of nature is often violent and
chaotic; therefore, people enter themselves into a social contract or
a written or unwritten binding agreement among the people that
bids for the creation of a government and the consequent use of
politics for the achievement of peace and order(Baradat 1997).
 1. Political science is the academic discipline that deals with key issues and
concepts in politics. 2. Niccolò Machiavelli is widely accepted as the father
of modern political science because of his discussion on maintaining power
in his books The Prince and Discourses. But even before Machiavelli, both
Plato and Aristotle had already provided broad discussions on the 5 central
concepts in politics such as the concept of justice(what and who is morally
and politically right), power (source of authority), the right types of
constitutions and governments (different types of governments and
states),political structures (different ideologies in a state), and right and
virtuous leadership(who should lead in a certain political system) (Curtis
1981).
 Key fields in politics include power relations in society, forms
of government, political behavior, and with the cultural turn of
the 20th century, the inclusion of political culture and the civil
society's role in government. While politics deals with power in
society in general, governance specifically deals with power in
government and how this institution exerts power for the
benefit of the society. Today, the discussion of politics and
governance in political science has been divided in 8-12 5
different fields of interests, namely, political theory, political
methodology, comparative politics, international relations, and
law (Roskin et al. 2007).
 POLITICAL THEORY
 deals with the different perspectives and ideas
regarding politics and governance of different
political philosophers from the ancient times
like Aristotle to Niccolò Machiavelli, to the time
of Industrial Revolution through Karl Marx, and
contemporary political philosophers.
 POLITICAL METHODOLOGY

 is
more concerned upon the application
of political concepts into research and
policymaking almost similar to the
applied nature of public administration
(Roskinet al.2007).
 COMPARATIVE POLITICS and INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS
 is about comparing various political systems and different constitutions
among different countries through time. This type of study is not new for
it was made by Aristotle and Plato during the golden age of ancient
Greece in their influential works, Aristotle's Politics and Plato's The
Republic, when they compared various forms of governments 15
International relations bear resemblance to comparative politics; but
instead of comparing, it concentrates on establishing and maintaining
relations among countries through time. And by relations, those who are
studying this field attempt on maintaining peaceful and diplomatic
relations among countries (Roskin et al. 2007).
 LAW
 is another central concept in politics and governance.
Law is basically any written statement that limits or
guides the behavior of a certain group. Politics, as the
art and science of government, highlights the role of
law in organizing and stabilizing individual interests
to prevent the overlapping individual needs and
promote collective gains in society
 The knowledge of politics and governance therefore is a
critical attribute of a citizen belonging to a certain state. In
ancient Greece, anyone who was ignorant of the laws and
the political processes of the polis was considered an idiot
(Curtis 1981) primarily because of the democratic structure
of the polis where every male was expected to participate in
decision-making and politics. Today, the knowledge of
politics and governance not only helps in the participation of
an individual in the state but it also helps in safeguarding an
individual against bad government practices and abuse.
 THE END