Why Do Political Scientists Study World Politics?

Why do political scientists study world politics? Describe three goals of theory building in international relations. How does each of these goals add to the sub-field?

Political scientists study world politics in an effort to develop theories that appreciate the relationship between world events and human behavior. They use both scientific and humanistic tools and points of view to examine the political processes of all of the countries of the world. They have an interest in the behavior and culture of foreign nations and question how and why these governments around the world make decisions. They want to understand why things happen and how they are related and why people behave as they do politically.

Specifically, political scientists study governments, social processes, political institutions, public policies, political systems, and political behavior. By asking "of what is this an instance?", they are looking for patterns that will help them understand more clearly what has occurred so political theories, can be formulated and used to assist in the development of improved policies and practices in international relations and, hopefully, be able to better predict future actions.

A political theory is a connected set of ideas (or idea) about why things happen and how events and trends relate to one another. A solid theory in international relations will have the following characteristics: Description: A good theory should have an insightful description of current and past events. Prediction: How well the observation of trends or patterns enables accurate prediction. Prescription: Remedies or recommendations that argue what a policy should be.