Book Reviews : Studying Politics. By WILLIAM A. WELSH. (New York: Praeger Publishers, 1973. Pp. xii, 260. $3.95.)

• Published date: 01 March 1974
• DOI: 10.1177/106591297402700116
• Author: Dickinson McGaw
• Date: 01 March 1974
• Subject Matter: Articles

189
Studying Politics. By WILLIAM A. WELSH. (New York: Praeger Publishers, 1973.
Pp. xii, 260. $3.95.)
How does a political scientist impart to the uninitiated the wisdom, obtained
over a period of more than two thousand years, on the process of studying politics?
One approach presents basic concepts of political science (Dahl, Strickland). A
second approach organizes information around disciplinary subfields (Pool, Irish,
Haas and Kariel). A third method emphasizes theoretical frameworks (Charles-
worth, Young). A fourth approach stresses the historical or bibliographical devel-
opment of the discipline (Somit and Tanenhaus, Hyneman). A fifth perspective
focuses on techniques of data collection and analysis (Sargent and Zant, Zigen-
hagen and Bowlby). A final approach, which is taken in this book, tries to combine
most of the above strategies (Wasby, Welsh). While Wasby’s work is more extensive
and useful as a central focus in an introductory course, Welsh’s text provides a brief
but accurate definitional basis for the beginning undergraduate in political science
and complements basic texts in American government, comparative government,
and political analysis.
The book can be separated into parts dealing with the nature of politics, the
study of politics, and research methods. The first part examines alternative defini-
tions of &dquo;politics,&dquo; the relationship of science to political science, and the goals of
political scientists. In his discussion of goals, however, Welsh omits reference to the
recent disputes between conventional and &dquo;caucus&dquo; political scientists on the role
of activism in the profession.
The second part of the book describes...