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Political Science Between Vision and Reality: Lessons in Times of Crises

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Abstract

Political science with its rich history, but varying national traditions and contexts, deals with a multi-dimensional and ever-changing subject matter of which we are, inevitably, a part. This poses specific epistemological problems, but also offers the opportunity to contribute to the shaping of political reality by insights and actions. This lecture gives a brief outline of this problematique and then presents, by way of illustration, the findings of a major international research project on the political effects of the Great Depression in Europe in the interwar period. Based on this experience, some (tentative and personal) lessons will be drawn for the state of political science and its potential contributions facing the present world economic crisis.

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Notes

  1. This was originally delivered as the Stein Rokkan Lecture, ECPR Joint Sessions of Workshops, Muenster, 24 March 2010.

  2. The comprehensive results of this project have been published in two volumes, one giving detailed historical accounts of each case, the other comprising the cross-cutting comparative analyses (see Berg-Schlosser and Mitchell (2000) and (2002) plus a number of articles in international journals).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Political Science, Philipps-University, Marburg, D-35032, Germany

    Dirk Berg-Schlosser

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  1. Dirk Berg-Schlosser
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Berg-Schlosser, D. Political Science Between Vision and Reality: Lessons in Times of Crises. Eur Polit Sci 10, 259–271 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1057/eps.2010.48

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