john paul tabakian, ed.d. political science 2 modern world … · 2017. 7. 14. · elitism versus...

John Paul Tabakian, Ed.D.

Political Science 2 Modern World Governments

Fall 2017 / Spring 2017 – Power Point 1

This Week’s Lecture Covers:

•Introduction To Course

•Syllabus Review

•Defining Political Science

Elitism Versus Pluralism

•Defining Comparative Politics

•Defining Theory

•Theories Of Comparative Politics

Rational Choice

Structural-Functionalism

Cultural Approaches

Course Lecture Topics (1)

•Spheres Of Influence

•Transitional Effects & Stabilization

•Power Theory

•Transparency – American Exertion Of Power

•How Governments Interact With One Another

•Reading Assignment For Week #1:

Chapter 1 from “Comparative Politics”

Review Key Terms For Chapter 1

Course Lecture Topics (2)

1. Democracy

2. Democratization

3. Ethnicity

4. European Union

5. Externalities

6. Governments

7. Gross National Product (GNP)

8. Human Rights

9. Income Inequality

10.Nation

11.Nation-States

12.Oligarchies

13.Political Culture

14.Political System

Key Terms For Chapter 1 (1)

15.Public Goods

16.Religious Fundamentalism

17.Sovereignty

18.State

19.State Of Nature

20.Totalitarian Systems

21.United Nations

Key Terms For Chapter 1 (2)

Welcome To Class!

New semesters bring various

hiccups for everyone. This also goes

for your instructor. We are all

adjusting to new situations, course

schedule conflicts and other

adjustments. This course utilizes

various methods to deliver

information. Many of our materials

are media driven. You will find many

to be humorous, thought provoking ,

or even interesting. This first clip is

presented merely for fun. It is titled

“Welcome To School.”

School Frustration.wmv

School Frustration

What Is Political Science?

1. Political science is a branch of the social sciences.– Just like Sociology

2. Each branch is interested in individual and group behavior.– Fundamental difference is the foundational theory

3. Sociologists are biased towards elitism.

4. Political scientists are biased towards pluralism.– Elite theory is still utilized in contrast with pluralism

5. Political scientists examine influences of political behavior.– Result of competing interests

– End result of conflict and compromise

6. Sociologists look at individual behavior.– According to elite influence in general

Role Of Theory (1)

1. Everyone uses theory whether they know it or not.

2. Many of us devise our own theories– Through childhood socializations up to adulthood.

3. Foundation of political science

– Pluralism / Rational Choice Theory

4. Think of theory as a pair of sunglasses

– Filtering unwanted information

– Helps us “see” the truth

Rational Choice Theory (1)

1. What Is The Primary Goal Of The Individual?

– The answer may be summed up in one word: Survival.

– Survival is the foundation for all action.

– Individual parties make decisions based on rationality.

– It Assumes individuals base all decisions on self-interest.

2. Requirements To Make A Rational Choice:

– Perfect information

– Balancing our emotions

3. Rational Choice In One Sentence:– “Decisions are based on self-interest…as we define our self-interest

to be.”

Rational Choice Theory (2)

Who Is Acting Rationally In This Example?

We have a nun and a real-estate mogul. The nun gives up all herworldly possessions and dedicates herself to helping those inpoverty. Her justification may be great rewards in the afterlife. Thereal-estate mogul does not believe in an afterlife, but does believein making as much money as , spending it all on an overlyextravagant and abusive lifestyle. Who is acting rationally? Bothindividuals are for they are fulfilling their self-interest…as theydefine their self-interest to be.

Example Of Theory: Realism

1. Human Nature Is The Predominant Factor

– In a nation-state’s foreign policy

– These policies are focused upon self-interest

– The inherent motive for man is survival

– Applied policies are determined according to political determinations

2. Considered To Be A Synonym For Power Politics– Construed as pragmatic and wrought with simplicity

– Abrupt philosophy focused on the inherent evils of mankind

Realism

This clip is from the movie

“Failsafe.” Walter Matthau

plays the role of National

Security Advisor who applies

rational choice and realist

theory to explain why striking

at the Soviet Union is

necessary to survive.

Realism Example.wmv

Failsafe

Elitism

1. Elitism does not promote elite rule.

2. The rules of a society obstruct social progress of masses

3. Elites are needed due mass ignorance and apathy.

4. Elites have two main goals:– Preserve and enhance their positions of power

5. Masses are open to demagogues:– When the economy is doing poorly

– The country is fighting a war that it is losing

6. Demagogues come from the far left or far right.

7. The Founding Fathers were against national referenda

Elitism Summarized (1)

1. Society is divided between the powerful few and the

majority weak.

2. Governing few are not typical of the governed masses.

Elites are not drawn mostly from the upper class

socioeconomic section of society.

3. Non-elites have to be given the opportunity to rise up to

elite positions. The masses have to believe that the

process is continuous or revolution may occur. Barriers

prevent finite elite positions from being overtaken by

unqualified individuals. This is a rat and cheese scenario.

Sufficient Cheese Sufficient Cheese Lack Of Cheese


4. Elites share a common belief on the basic values of the

elite. Any change of public policy will be incrementally slow

rather than revolutionary.

5. Elites may base their actions either on narrow, self-serving

motives and risk undermining mass support, or they may

initiate reforms, curb abuse, and undertake public-

regarding programs to preserve the system.

6. Active elites are not typically influenced from apathetic

masses. Elites influence masses more than the masses

influence elites.

Elitism / Information Flow (1)

1. Information flows from opinion elites down to opinion

leaders who are looked to the public for information.

2. News is first “created” by opinion elites and then sent to

opinion leaders to help disseminate the information.

3. Those at the very top of the elite network decide what

information is deemed as necessary to offer society.

4. These elites may be news makers themselves or in charge

of large media corporations.

5. Opinion leaders may be thought of as journalists, news

anchors, expert pundits or even celebrities who possess

legitimacy among those in society.

Elitism – Information Flow (2)

Governmental elites find it

necessary to manipulate the

masses if doing so serves a

vested interest. Here is a great

example of how a safety video

can serve as a tool for

manipulating the masses from

childhood. Who does the

monkey represent?

Manipulation Example

Bert.wmv

Duck And Cover

Mirror Myth

1. News media outlets “decide

what will be decided.”

2. Bias is exhibited throughout the

mainstream and nontraditional

news sources.

3. The news media stress that

they are nonbiased since they

only reflect reality.

4. Their choice of news subjects

proves their bias.

What We Call The News (1)

Securing market share is vital, for

without it, the major media would

lose advertising revenue. It is

really our fault that the major

news networks willfully focus on

sex, violence and various

negative pieces. Enjoy this video,

“What We Call The News.”

What We Call The News.wmv

What We Call The News (2)

Pluralism & Spheres (1)

1. Pluralism insures that groups are restricted from single

handedly influencing public policy.

2. Cross-cutting cleavages would form, as groups seek

compromise with others to build coalitions that would

succeed in affecting change.

3. Minorities are protected from an overwhelming majority.

4. Majority power-holders are essentially “checked.”– Cross-cutting cleavages balance against overwhelming forces.

Pluralism & Spheres (2)

Campaign Example

http://www.silentvoter.com/

Citizen Based Propaganda (1)

“The War On Terror” sparked a

great deal of media distributed via

the Internet. Elites no longer

maintain total control over

distribution. These videos are

meant to produce an “Us” versus

“Them” mindset.

Alqaeda.wmv

Citizen Based Propaganda (2)

Pluralism Summarized (1)

1. Society is divided into numerous groups with all making

demands on government while none of the participants are

able to dominate all decision-making.

2. Citizens do not directly participate in decision-making, but

they are able to vote for leaders to make decisions through

a process of bargaining, accommodation, and compromise.


3. Competition among leadership groups helps protect

individuals’ interests. Countervailing centers of power – for

example, competition among business leaders, labor

leaders and government leaders – can check one another

and keep each interest from abusing its power and

oppressing the individual. Each of these individual

“spheres of influence” allies themselves with other spheres

that possess similar goals. See “Spheres Of Influence”.

4. Individuals may not participate directly in decision-making,

but they can exert influence through active participation in

organized groups, political parties and elections.


5. Leadership groups are open; new groups can form and gain

access to the political system.

6. Political influence in society is unequally distributed, but

power is widely dispersed. Access to decision making is

often determined by how much interest people have in a

particular decision. Because leadership is fluid and mobile,

power depends on one’s interest in public affairs, skills in

leadership, information about issues, knowledge of

democratic processes, and skill in organization and public

relations.


7. Multiple leadership groups operate within society. Those

who exercise power in one kind of decision do not

necessarily exercise power in others. No single elite

dominates decision making in all issues.

8. Public policy does not necessarily reflect majority

preference, but is an equilibrium of interest interaction –

competing interest group influences are more or less

balanced, and the resulting policy is therefore a reasonable

approximation of society’s preferences.

Elitism Versus Pluralism (1)

1. Elitism asserts that the most important division in society isbetween elites and masses.

2. Elitism emphasizes the importance to leaders to maintain theirposition of power – Pluralism emphasizes this devotion to theirgroup interests.

3. Elitism asserts that mass membership of organizations rarelyexercises influence on elite leadership. That these organizationshave no democratic processes and are controlled by leaders whooperate for their own self-interest. Pluralists offer no evidencethat the giant organizations represent the interests of theirindividual members.

Elitism Versus Pluralism (2)

4. Elitism takes into account of all power holders – private andpublic. Pluralism focuses on governmental leaders and those whointeract directly with them.

5. Elitism emphasizes shared characteristics of leaders on top oftheir interest in preserving the social diversity among leaders,differences in backgrounds, ideologies, and viewpoints. Pluralismalso argues that decisions made by leaders are a product of theirrole perception, institutional constraints, interest group pressure,public opinion, etc. Elitism focuses on leadership consensus –Pluralism focuses on elite conflict.

Spheres Of Influence

1. Competing spheres of influence

protect minority rights against

majority factions.

2. Alliances will form among once

competing spheres in order to

“check” another sphere or

individual elite base that acquires

too much power.

3. Individual spheres of influence are

always on the alert for one of their

peers assuming too much power.

Competing Spheres

1. Competing Spheres of Influence

essentially check each other

within the political system.

2. This is essential for the protection

of minority rights especially as it

pertains to majority factions.

3. Elites are those who hold

positions of power in society.

4. Our Founding Fathers considered

the protection of minority rights as

those few individuals whoretained control over society.

Transitional Effects (1)

1. Competition produces great returns for humanity.

2. The result has been America progressing from a

predominantly agricultural society to an industrial, nuclear,

and information based society.

3. Innovation has led to advancements that have greatly

influenced every aspect of society.

4. Society has benefited from constant advancements in

energy harvesting, computers, communication, water

purification, medicine, etc.

Transitional Effects (2)

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

Every significant discovery has in turn greatly influenced societal norms of behavior Masses today view internet communications as a vital necessity. It is nearly impossible to operate in a complex society

without easy access to the web. The majority of masses did not have this belief fifteen years ago. Only society determining that the internet allowed for greater efficiency was it adopted as a societal

norm. Those not willing to adapt became obsolete.

Stabilization

1. Sudden instability is the greatest threat to humanity.

– It threatens to cause irreparable harm to the individual.

2. Elimination of one’s sustenance throws the individual into a

state of war, because their survival is now threatened.

3. Nation-states consist of multiple spheres of interest in turn

consisting of individual units consisting of people.

4. Survival is the primary goal of man and nation-states.

– The primary concern is that of stability

– This philosophy has prevented a major war for over 70 years

– Instability is the primary cause of all conflict

Spheres Of Influence

1. Spheres consist of individuals

who share a common set of

interests and/or belief systems.

2. Individual participants are the

absolute micro-level.

– Family, work, school, political

parties, religion, etc.

– The individual member serves as

the conduit between spheres.

– Various social interactions

influence individual behavior.

Elite Stages

1. Elites are the true minority.

– This is true for all societies.

2. Elites possess large capacities of power.

3. The example shows maximum education.

Pluralism Alliances

1. Alliances will form among once

competing spheres in order to

“check” another sphere or

individual elite base that acquires

too much power.

2. Certain situations may also call

for spheres realize they share a

common agenda with one ormore of their respective peers.

Individual

Interdependent Spheres

Government Business

Power Theory (1)

1. To exert power one must first possess adequate reserves– This is defined simply as “capacity of power.”

2. Achieving higher positions is dependent on various factors

that may include: education; wealth; profession; charisma

and other talents either developed or engrained from birth.

3. This “capacity of power” is not determined according to a

single resource, ability or possession.

4. It is a combination of different variables that serve to make

up the individual.

5. This is just like a battery consisting of energy resources

drawn upon when it comes time to draw power in order to

achieve a set objective.

Power Theory (2)

Like a battery powering a

flashlight so does one’s

individual “capacity of power”

serve to assist one in achieving a

set goal or in this case

influencing or affecting political

behavior to maintain, expand or

protect one’s standing in order

to survive in society.

Power Theory (3)

Power equals resources (capacity of power) times compliancesquared, divided by force. Every accounting of power theory istaken into consideration in the construction of this formula. Wehave explored the contention that the pursuit of self-interestencourages man to engage in political behavior. This serves as thefoundation for rational choice theory, which in turn has led us topower theory. One may argue that the pursuit of power maintainsthe never ending cycle of political: conflict; compromise; alliances;and wars.

Power Theory (4)

Many have countered this argument with a direct assault on

the statement that “there is no morality in politics”. These critics

are both right and wrong. It is true that morality has no direct

correlation with political science if the pursuit of self-interests

and power resources maintains utmost priority. On the other

hand they may be correct if one party sells their pursuit as a

moral cause in order to achieve their agenda. For example,

one may argue that good may come from conflict even if it

leads to the destruction of a nation-state and the slaughtering

of thousands or millions of people if the seed of democracy is

planted and nurtured to maturity.

Transparency (1)

America has grown from the days of a colony to major

power, superpower, and hegemon, to its present empire

status. American power is felt throughout the international

community. Playing poker requires one to adopt what is

commonly known as a “poker face”. Players will hide their

true emotions, even faking their true intentions to catch other

players off guard. Some have even taken to wearing

sunglasses. The exact opposite tactic that the United States

has adopted is “Transparency”. This involves disclosing all

routes the nation-state will undertake with regards to all

forms of public policy pertaining to its political, economic and

military strategies.

Transparency (2)

Alexander Hamilton initiated this

policy as the chief financial

philosopher of the United States

even if he did not coin the term.

Hamilton is regarded as the

chief architect of our economic

policy, which in turn was

developed in order to win the

confidence of domestic US

business and financial elites as

well as gaining the confidence

of international business.

Transparency Example (1)

America possesses the most

technologically advanced

military hardware. This video

demonstrates one of the first

deployable force fields for

light armored vehicles

(LAVs). Welcome to the 21st

Century.

Trophy Presentation.wmv

Trophy


America is not the only nation

that utilizes Transparency.

This video shows the Israeli

Defense Force demonstrating

a new type of gun that can

shoot around corners. A brief

interview with the inventor of

this amazing weapon follows

the demonstration.

Corner Shot.wmv

Corner Shot


Some forms of transparency are bothpolitical and military in nature. Themilitary sponsored the developmentof the Massive Ordinance AerialBurst (MOAB). It is commonlyreferred to as “The Mother Of AllBombs”. It is the largest conventionalbomb in our arsenal. There is apsychological component to thisbomb. A mushroom cloud formsfollowing successful detonation. Itlooks somewhat like a nuclear devicebeing detonated.

Moab.wmv


Javelin is a fire-and-forget missilewith lock-on before launch andautomatic self-guidance. The systemtakes a top-attack flight profileagainst armored vehicles (attackingthe top armor which is generallythinner) but can also take a direct-attack mode for use against buildingsor fortifications. This missile also hasthe ability to engage helicopters.Javelin is supplied byRaytheon/Lockheed Martin'sJAVELIN Joint Venture.

Javelin.wmv

Javelin

Comparative politics inspires students to establish linkages

between international relations with domestic politics.

Structural-functionalist approaches had failed to recognize the

interactions between international and domestic issues.

Comparative politics deals with complex systems issues that

can include comparing capitalism to communism, democracy

to totalitarianism, free markets to planned economies, etc.

Scholars saw many avenues open to comparison from the

1960s to 1970s when comparative analysis started to take

notice. Nothing seemed to be beyond these scholars as they

pursued every conceivable option including democracy,

authoritarianism, Marxism, revolution, corporatism,

totalitarianism, fragmentation, disintegration, and civil war.

Defining Comparative Politics (1)

Comparing to control is perhaps the major point of interest for

students as it relates to case studies. Control means to test

our hypothesis. An example would be a claim that “Democracy

cannot be imposed on society by an external power.” How do

we know if this is a strong or weak claim? The first thing to do

is look for other cases where democracy has been imposed on

another society. Looking at two cases like Germany and Japan

after World War II reveals that we may need to adjust our main

thesis statement. This is why it is a good idea to look at even

more cases to evaluate the strength of our argument. Though

we cannot ignore any evidence, we can explain why different

results occurred.


Comparative Politics used to be focused mainly on Western

Europe until the Cold War compelled American policymakers

to pay attention to “lesser” countries, regions and former

colonies. The concern was that these countries represented

either future enemies or allies. This concern propelled

American policymakers to learn more about these countries.

Cases are usually based on a specific issue or concern like

industrialization, social revolution, terrorism, democracy, or any

other issue of interest. They are also delimited graphically as

time can be a focal point of analysis.


Comparative Politics Possesses three main theories:

1. Rational Choice

2. Structural Analysis

3. Cultural Approaches

Rational Choice Analysis: This theory argues that self-interests

guides all behavior, which involved conducting a cost benefit

analysis. Individuals weigh the cost along with the benefits and

then decide to pursue something if the benefits outweigh the

costs. If we assume that everyone basis their actions on self-

interest then we have to come to terms with situations

involving actions that are not beneficial. This depends on the

quality of information one has been able to accrue.

Comparative Politics Theories (1)

Decision makers rarely have access to perfect information, as

they simply don’t possess viable access to the information

required to make a rational decision. This includes a lack of

experience, limited data, lack of education, inability to assess

actions of others, lack of knowing future developments, or

even just bad luck. Strategic interaction also comes into play,

which is the implication that indecisions made by one

individual is made according to decisions made by others,

which leads us to game theory. Prisoner’s dilemma is one

aspect of strategic interaction.


Structural-Functionalism: This theory utilizes micro-

interpretation to suggest that given the issue, individuals may

unite temporarily to defend its interests. Structural-

functionalism helps to explain how political leaders can deal

with citizen demands that are hard to fulfill. Instead of

providing the actual goods sought, political leaders may instill

loyalty based on symbolic or cultural goods. The structural-

functional approach maintains two points:

1. In different countries, the same structure may perform

different functions.

2. Absolute power is impossible and no one institution, or

individual entity, no matter how powerful, may be able to

control all facets in society.


Culturalist Approaches: This theory is likely to accept the

arguments of rational choice or structural analysis as both are

seen as helping to construct societal norms. Culturalism

begins with the premise that culture matters in any

explanation. It is important not to state grand assumptions

when using culture as a variable. For example, statements like

“Muslim countries are resistant to democracy,” or

“Confucianism helps explain capitalist development in East

Asia” are not appropriate. The problem with these claims is

that it represents a decontextualized generalization that

portrays culture as clear-cut, uniform, and basically static. The

majority of Culturalists would argue today that culture is multi-

vocal and multidimensional.


john paul tabakian, ed.d. political science 2 modern world … · 2017. 7. 14. · elitism versus...

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