Post Behaviouralsim in political Science

What will be discussed in this article is the giant step taken by some behaviouralists themselves to address and probably correct some of the shortcomings and limitations they perceived in behaviouralism. This is the attempt made by behaviouralists to reform behaviouralism based on their own perception and in response to criticism of the traditionalists. It is known as post-behaviouralism. There are seven principles of post-behaviouralism as will be discussed in what follows. Please note that the post behaviouralists are different from anti behaviouralists. The former are themselves behaviouralists while the latter are their critics.

 

Table of Content 

At the end of this article, you should know:

(a) The role of criticism and dialectics in intellectual tradition.

(b) The contribution of the post-behavioral movement to the study of politics

(c) Distinguish the criticisms of the behavioral approach by the traditionalists from the criticisms of the approach by the post-behaviouralists themselves.

 

The Role of Criticism and Dialectics in Intellectual Tradition

The same David Easton, you will remember, the leading American political scientist who formulated the eight foundation stones of behaviouralism is the very one who started the post behavioral movement. The principles are seven, and what we do in this article is discuss them in turn.

1. Substance

2. Social Change

3. Realism

4. Values

1. Substance

The behaviouralists turned post-behaviouralists, acknowledged the need to give greater primacy to the substance or subject of political investigation than the techniques of research and analysis. They argued that the use of scientific and sophisticated tools of research and analysis, while desirable and rewarding, is not the most important thing in the study of politics. A far more important consideration, the post-behaviouralists argued, should be the ability of these tools to contribute to the development of knowledge about the fundamental issues of politics.

2. Social Change

The behaviouralists, as we pointed out in Lecture 3, have been accused of defending the existing social order or status quo under the guise of value-neutrality. The post-behaviouralists, on the other hand, argued that political science should transcend the social conservatism of the behavioral movement and, instead, help to achieve and sustain progressive and constructive change in the society.

3. Realism

The post-behaviouralists recognized that the one-sided quest for scientific sophistication in the heyday of behaviouralism had led to a political science that was hardly in touch with the crises and conflicts of actual political life. The post-behaviouralists argued that contemporary political science could not afford to ignore the grim or unfortunate realities of political existence. Instead, it must address these realities and contribute to their resolution.

(4) Values

The behaviouralists tended to downgrade the role of values in the study of politics and often upheld the need for value-neutrality. The post-behaviouralists, on the other hand, argued that the study of politics must be guided by such positive and progressive values as justice, equality and freedom. The post-behaviouralists indeed argued that if knowledge was to be relevant in the solution of societal problems, then values had to be given a primary or central place in the scientific process. The idea of value - neutrality, they concluded, is not only a myth, but is also socially and politically undesirable.

 

The Contribution of the Post-behavioral Movement to the study of politics

1. Social Relevance

2. Actions

3. Politicization

 

1. Social Relevance

The post-behaviouralists argued that political scientists must be socially relevant by contributing to the solution of the major problems of society. In other words, the post-behaviouralists were of the opinion that it was the responsibility of political scientists to do their best to create and sustain a better society and to uphold such progressive and humane values as egalitarianism, freedom, welfarism and justice.

2. Action

Following from the principle of social relevance discussed above, the post-behaviouralists argued that political scientists must act to reshape society for the better. In other words, the post-behaviouralists were of the view that political scientists must not only be guided by a sense of social commitment and relevance in executing their research agenda, but also take practical and immediate action to reform and improve the conditions of socio-political existence.

3. Politicization

The post-behaviouralists conclude that political scientists not only have a responsibility to undertake socially relevant research, but that they must also take practical steps to improve society. The implication of this argument is that political science, and indeed any area of scientific and systematic knowledge, must be politicized or actively and closely involved in the society's political processes.

In essence, all seven principles of post-behaviouralism discussed in this unit basically revolve around the need to make the study of politics more socially relevant and politically active. It is important to add that the political behaviouralists, unlike the traditionalists, did not oppose the desirability viability of a scientific approach to the study of politics. On the contrary, the post-behaviouralists argued for a science of politics that is more socially relevant. There is no doubt that the criticisms of behaviouralism by the traditionalists and post-behaviouralists overlap or coincide in some respect. Yet, as already indicated, the post-behaviouralists, many of who were fact former behaviouralists, were very committed to the scientific study politics, while the traditionalists were not.

 

Conclusion on Post Behaviouralsim in Political Science 

The post behaviouralist movement arose from the acknowledgement of the limitations of behaviouralism by the behaviouralists themselves. To transcend these limitations, the behaviouralists turned post-behaviouralists proposed the following seven conceptual principles, namely, substance, social change, realism, values, social relevance, action and politicization. The post-behaviouralists differ from other critics of behaviouralism in the important sense that they (i.e. the post-behaviouralists) did not oppose the scientific aspirations of behavioral political science. Rather, they called for a science of politics that is more socially relevant and active.