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Who Gets What

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What distinguishes political science as an academic discipline is its emphasis on government and power. However, the study of government and power is not confined to political science, it naturally permeates into other cross-disciplinary connections as well. Economic and political processes are closely related because the actions expand and, or constrain economic activity. For examples, Republicans are more likely to promote free-market policies such as tax breaks and business deregulation, while Democrats favor business regulation and government intervention. Additionally, economic conditions have had a direct influence on political institutions throughout history. The outcomes of numerous presidential and congressional elections have been determined based on the economy. Too many political quarrels are economic and in short, based on Laswell's "Who gets what?" theory, an argument of Who gets What, When and How?
Political scientists also study the social bases of politics. For example, political scientists look at what the political activities of various social classes, races, ethnicities, and religions are. They question how political values, attitudes, and …show more content…

This requires putting historical events and texts into a political context. A good textual example is the U.S. Constitution. It is both a historical and historic document, in that it describes the creation of a new form of government by the Founding Fathers, and a political one, in that it sets the framework for the functioning of the U.S. government as a system of shared powers, checks and balances. Historians are more detailed as opposed to political scientists, who focus primarily on generalizations. A political scientist may put two studies alongside one another to look for similarities and

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