Understanding the Political World

by Danziger, James N.; Smith, Charles Anthony

• ISBN13: 9780133941470
• ISBN10: 0133941477
• Edition: 12th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2014-12-30
• Publisher: Pearson

Summary

NOTE: You are purchasing a standalone product; MyPoliSciLab^® does not come packaged with this content. If you would like to purchase both the physical text and MyPoliSciLab search for 0134113934 / 9780134113937  Understanding the Political World plus MyPoliSciLab for Comparative Politics — Access Card Package, 12/e, which contains:

•  0133941477 / 9780133941470 Understanding the Political World, 12/e
• 0134064054 / 9780134064055 MyPoliSciLab for Comparative Politics Access Card

MyPoliSciLab should only be purchased when required by an instructor.

 

For courses in Introduction to Political Science

 

Grasp the Ever-Changing Nature of International Politics

Understanding the Political World gives readers deeper insight into the continually evolving nature of international politics. Presenting key concepts, relevant research findings, and detailed explanations, the Twelfth Edition offers readers a path to understanding the challenges of politics and political differences. The text explores the subject matter from a comprehensive and comparative standpoint, using real examples from different international political systems to demonstrate how politics are understood throughout the world. By directly questioning readers to understand and explain what they know, Understanding the Political World brings an abstract subject into focus by relating it to readers’ opinions and lives. Through real examples of political institutions and processes, readers can better understand the nature of global politics.

 

Also available with MyPoliSciLab

MyPoliSciLab for Comparative Politics courses extends learning online, engaging students and improving results. Media resources with assignments bring concepts to life, and offer students opportunities to practice applying what they’ve learned. And the Writing Space helps educators develop and assess concept mastery and critical thinking through writing, quickly and easily. Please note: this version of MyPoliSciLab does not include an eText.

 

Understanding the Political World, Twelfth Edition is also available via REVEL™, an immersive learning experience designed for the way today's students read, think, and learn. 

 

Author Biography

James N. Danziger is a Research Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Irvine, where he also has served as Chair of the Department of Political Science, campus-wide Dean of Undergraduate  Education, and Chair of the Academic Senate. He is recipient of many honors and awards, including a Marshall Scholarship  (to Great Britain), a Foreign Area Fellowship, Woodrow Wilson Fellowship, Phi Beta Kappa, and an IBM Faculty Award. He received the first UC Irvine Distinguished Faculty Lectureship Award for Teaching in 1987,the UC Irvine Distinguished Service Award in 1997, and the campus’ highest honor, the Extraordinarius Award in 2009. His Ph.D. is from Stanford University, and he has held visiting appointments at the universities of Aarhus (Denmark), Pittsburgh, and Virginia. His research has received awards from the American Political Science Association and the American Society for Public Administration. He has published extensively, particularly on information technology and politics, and been an active participant in local politics.

 

Charles Anthony Smith received his PhD in political science from the University of California-San Diego (2004) and his JD from the University of Florida (1987). He is an Associate Professor at the University of California-Irvine. His books include The Rise and Fall of War Crimes Trials: from Charles I to Bush II (NY: Cambridge University Press, 2012), and Globalizing Human Rights (NY: Routledge 2014). He has published articles in Law & Society Review, Political Research Quarterly, Justice System Journal, International Political Science Review, Judicature, Journal of Human Rights, Election Law Journal, Studies in Law, Politics & Society, Human Rights Review, Journal of International Relations & Development  among other journals and published chapters in edited volumes with Cambridge University Press,  Oxford University Press, and University of Pennsylvania Press, among others. He has served as guest editor for special issues of the Journal of Human Rights and Human Rights Review. His research considers the role of courts, law, and litigation in the contestation over a variety of types of rights. He considers this unifying research theme using a variety of methodologies in the context of the United States, in comparative contexts, and in the realm of international relations and globalization. He has won a variety of awards for both his teaching and research.

Table of Contents

In This Section:

    I) Brief Table of Contents

    II)Detailed Table of Contents

---

I) Brief Table of Contents

PART I – ON KNOWING THE POLITICAL WORLD

Chapter 1. Politics and Knowledge  

 

PART II – POLITICAL BEHAVIOR

Chapter 2. Political Theory and Political Beliefs  

Chapter 3.  Political Actions  

Chapter 4. Influences on Beliefs and Actions  

 

PART III – POLITICAL SYSTEMS

Chapter 5.  Political Systems, States, and Nations  

Chapter 6.  Political Institutions I: Institutional Structures  

Chapter 7.  Political Institutions II: Institutional Arrangements  

Chapter 8. Political Economy  

 

PART IV Political Processes

Chapter 9.  Public Policy, Power, and Decision  

Chapter 10.  Change and Political Development  

Chapter 11.  Politics Across Borders  

Chapter 12. Political Violence 

 

PART V – POLITICS AMONG STATES

Chapter 13. The Developed Countries of the Global North  

Chapter 14. The Developing Countries

Chapter 15. The Transitional Developed Countries 

---

II) Detailed Table of Contents

 

PART I – ON KNOWING THE POLITICAL WORLD

Chapter 1. Politics and Knowledge  

Towards a Definition of Politics  

On Political Knowledge  

Sources of Political Knowledge  

Political Science  

Where is This Book Going?  

 

PART II – POLITICAL BEHAVIOR

Chapter 2. Political Theory and Political Beliefs  

Normative Political Theory 

Individual Political Beliefs  

Belief Systems 

Political Culture 

Looking Ahead 

Chapter 3.  Political Actions  

Individual Political Actions

Group Political Actions

Political Interest Groups 

Constraints on a Group’s Behavior 

Doing Politics 

Chapter 4. Influences on Beliefs and Actions  

The Environment 

Agents of Political Socialization 

Demographic Characteristics 

Political Psychology 

Concluding Observations 

 

PART III – POLITICAL SYSTEMS

Chapter 5.  Political Systems, States, and Nations  

The State 

The Nation 

The Political System 

Three Major Concepts: A Reprise 

Chapter 6.  Political Institutions I: Institutional Structures  

Executives 

Legislatures 

Administrative Systems 

Judiciaries 

Concluding Observations 

Chapter 7.  Political Institutions II: Institutional Arrangements  

Constitutions and Constitutional Regimes 

Democracies and Nondemocracies 

Areal Distribution of Power 

Forms of Executive–Legislative

Relations 

Classification and Clarity 

Chapter 8. Political Economy  

Politics and the Economy 

A Political-Economic Framework 

Measuring Economic Prosperity 

Two Ideal-Type Political Economies 

Key Problems of Each Ideal-Type Political Economy 

Politics and Political Economy: The Other “ISMS” 

Concluding Observations 

 

PART IV Political Processes

Chapter 9.  Public Policy, Power, and Decision  

Public Policy 

Explaining Public Policy Decision

Making 

The Elite Approach 

The Class Approach 

The Pluralist Approach 

The Three Approaches Compared 

Chapter 10.  Change and Political Development  

Change 

Development 

World of Changes 

Concluding Observations 

Chapter 11.  Politics Across Borders  

Perspectives on States’ Behavior 

Mechanisms of Political Cooperation Across Borders 

Power Politics Across Borders 

Chapter 12. Political Violence 

Violence 

Political Society 

Types of Political Violence 

Use of Force Between States 

Evaluating Political Violence: Means and Ends 

 

PART V – POLITICS AMONG STATES

Chapter 13. The Developed Countries of the Global North  

Grouping the States in the Contemporary World 

Goal: Prosperity 

Goal: Stability 

Goal: Security 

The Developed Countries Overall 

Chapter 14. The Developing Countries

Grouping Countries in the Developing World  

Achieving Development in the Global South: Some Obstacles 

Goal: Prosperity 

Goal: Security 

Goal: Stability 

The Rise of the Global South? 

Chapter 15. The Transitional Developed Countries 

The Postcommunist Developed Countries 

Goal: Prosperity 

Goal: Stability 

Goal: Security 

The Latin American Transitionals 

Goal: Prosperity 

Goal: Stability 

Goal: Security 

The BRICS Countries  

So. . . 

Appendix: Political Analysis  

Glossary  

References  

Photo Credits  

Index