Political Ideologies and Theories Pols 341 Douglas Brown 2009
Jan 05, 2016
Political Ideologies and Theories
Pols 341
Douglas Brown
2009
Political Ideologies and Theory
What is ideology? What is theory? Broad ideological categories Political Labels in Canada Comparing labels, ideologies and
theories
The role of ideology and theory Ideology: sets of ideas about politics that
focus on the goals of a political community politics, and its underlying values
Theory: sets of ideas and concepts about the study of politics that provide overall explanations: e.g. empirical generalizations, models, critical alternatives
Johnson’s “Competing ideologies”Textbook, chapter 2 Three main ideological strands:
Conservatism Socialism Liberalism
“The triumph of the Liberal centre”
Schools of Theory (General Political Science)
Pluralism Neo-pluralism New Right
Elite Theory (or Managerialism) Neo-institutionalism
Marxist / Class analysis Neo-marxist
Some queries about ideology… What are “tories” and do they still exist? So what is meant by “neo-conservative” and
“neoliberal”? Who are the real radicals and who is the
“establishment”? Does left-right still have any meaning? What is identity politics/ green politics…and
how does it fit in the categories
Some queries about party labels Are New Democrats just “Liberals in a hurry”? What was the difference between Reform
and the Progressive Conservatives? Is the new Conservative party a successful
coalition? What are the ideological divisions in the
Liberal party? Do party labels mean the same thing at the
federal and provincial level ?
Pluralism: standard theory--
Rule by the many and the diverse Focus on individuals and their values Society-centred The State is implicit only Key preoccupations: elections, influence and
lobbying, polling Major theoretical hybrid: New Right (including
public choice, rational choice theories)
Tough question…
Is the pluralist school of thought embedded in a broader political ideology, and which one….?
Elite or Managerial Theory: Standard Version -- The rule of institutions Focus on organizations and behaviour of office-
holders State-centred Key preoccupations: leadership, coercion,
decision-making, accommodation, organizational logic
Major hybrid: Neo-institutionalism (i.e. institutions embedded in society)
Tough questions…
Is the managerial school of thought embedded in a broader political ideology, and which one….?
Can you be a political liberal or social democrat and also have managerial assumptions about public admin?
Marxist or Class Analysis: Standard version -- Rule by the dominant economic class of society Focus on class formation and “struggle” Society-centred Key preoccupations: capital accumulation, class
hegemony, State legitimacy, emancipation of labour
Major hybrids: neo-marxism, neo-institutionalism (acknowledging the relative autonomy of the State)
Tough questions ?
Is the Marxist school of thought embedded in a broader political ideology, and which one….?
Do you have to be a Marxist to find value in the Marxist analysis?
Conclusions Ideology matters, but party labels don’t
always capture the ideology Ideology is always in tension with pragmatism
and caution, especially for a governing party or one that really wants to govern
Theory about politics/public admin is influenced by ideologies, but the two can take separate tracks
Being analytical means, in part, being clear about underlying ideals, beliefs, assumptions.