Long-Term Trends in Conventional Political Participation in the Federal Republic of Germany

The purpose of this study was to identify long-term trends in conventional participation in the Federal Republic of Germany. The time frame for the analysis covered the period between 1946 and 2016. Conventional participation was measured against two variables using regression analysis: the level of participation in elections and the level of membership in political parties. For both variables, statistically significant development trends were identified, which were mainly of a declining nature. The data employed concerned voter turnout in elections to the Bundestag and Landtags, and the development process of membership levels in six major political parties: CDU, SPD, CSU, FDP, Alliance 90/The Greens, and the Left/PDS

Simon`s Puzzle: Heuristics in the Process of Making Political Choices

In this article we analyse one of the most fascinating paradoxes of mass politics. Based on the data from the studies of neurobiologists, neurologists, social psychology, cognitive and evolution studies we answer the question specified in literature as the Simon’s puzzle: How is it possible that citizens have their opinions about politics, if they know so little about it? We began our analysis from the criticism of the economic rationality approach. To do this, we referred to the Allais paradox, cognitive dissonance theory, Ellsberg paradox, the concept of bounded rationality, conjunction fallacy and prospect theory. Next, we described the evolutionary processes shaping the minds of Homo sapiens and characterised cognitive mechanisms, thanks to which people can make political choices, especially in view of the shortage of time and information. The following heuristics are referred to herein: affect, recognition, judgment and imitation

Teoriogrowe modele bezpieczeństwa narodowego – podstawowe zagadnienia i przykłady

The article is a brief introduction to the use of game theory models in studies of national security. It is divided into four parts. The first part discusses basic theoretical issues, i.e. the division of game theory into analytical and behavioural, the concept of the rationality of players, the assumption that the rationality of players is common knowledge, the Nash equilibrium, Pareto efficiency and the classification of games. The second part briefly describes the evolution of game theory analyses in national security. Attention is drawn to the relationship between the development of game theory and military requirements. The third part provides an example of how game theory models can be used in national security studies. Trade relations, which adopt the schema of interactions of the prisoner’s dilemma, are discussed in detail. During the analysis, the general model of the prisoner’s dilemma, the initial game defining the problem under consideration, and its solutions in the form of an iterated game and metagame are presented. The entire discussion concludes with a summary. The analyses indicate the following advantages of the application of game theory models to the study of national security: 1) game theory models significantly simplify the analysed interactions, thus, allowing to penetrate the processes, bringing out features and relations which have hitherto escaped researchers; 2) the application of game theory models does not require researchers to be familiar with complex mathematical formalisms; 3) game theory models enable the identification of social dilemmas, i.e. situations where the short-term interests of an individual are at odds with the long-term interests of society

Idealisation, genetic explanations and political behaviours: Notes on the anti-reductionist critique of genopolitics

The rapid development of genetic research, determined, among others, by the requirements of The Human Genome Project, and a gradual reorientation in the perception of the role of nature and culture in the process of shaping complex networks of human relations by some political scientists, result in the increasing application of genetic data and methods in research regarding political behaviours. One of the key philosophical objections against the studies of the genetic foundations of political behaviours is that of excessive reductionism. This is supposed to manifest itself in the inadequate selection of the level of analysis for the explained phenomenon, the incompleteness of explanations and their low utility. My findings show that this objection is not sufficiently supported by contemporary science. Both studies using classical behavioural genetic methodologies and studies using DNA-based methods show that genes most likely play a role in political behaviours. Emphasising the significance of genetic influences in the midst of multiple extra-genetic interactions generates highly idealised explanations. Using the conceptual apparatus of the deformational concept of culture, I have demonstrated that the omission of a number of important extra-genetic influences by researchers is a consequence of focusing on specific causal patterns. This omission, however, does not entail negating the influence of non-genetic factors and, importantly, it may not have to be permanent. Following this approach, if correct, the reductionism of research into the genetic foundations of political behaviours is a standard cognitive procedure applied in science

Studying Political Violence Using Game Theory Models : Research Approaches and Assumptions

The purpose of the paper is to concisely present basic applications of game theory models for a scientific description of political violence. The paper is divided into four parts. The first part discusses the key theoretical issues including: the assumption of the players’ rationality, the assumption of the players’ common knowledge of their rationality, the Nash equilibrium concept, Pareto optimality, the Nash arbitration scheme and the concept of evolutionarily stable strategies. The second and third parts contain examples of uses of selected models of classical and evolutionary games in the studies on political violence. The following two interaction schemes were used to that end: the Prisoner’s Dilemma and Chicken. The paper ends with a summary and discussion. The key feature of the discussed models is their methodological simplicity, as demonstrated by the lack of need to use complicated mathematical methods. This is why the paper is mainly addressed to individuals who had not studied game theory before or who have insufficient knowledge in the field to conduct own studies

Regression analysis in political science research using the R program

The aim of the article is to present the basic functionalities of the R program for the creation of regression models describing political phenomena. A database of voter turnout during the 2014 U.S. Congress elections categorised according to voters’ age was used for the analyses. The statistical procedures (linear and second-degree polynomial models) applied were discussed in detail, with paths to their respective commands being provided. The article is addressed primarily to postgraduate students in political science and related disciplines, as well as to researchers who have never used the R program before

The reductionism of genopolitics in the context of the relationships between biology and political science

The past two decades have seen an increase in the use of theories, data, assumptions and methods of the biological sciences in studying political phenomena. One of the approaches that combine biology with political science is genopolitics. The goal of the study was to analyse the basic ontological, methodological and epistemological assumptions for the reductionism of genopolitics. The results show that genopolitics assumes methodological reductionism but rejects ontological and epistemological reductionism. The key consequences of the findings are the irreducibility of political science to biology and the complementarity of genopolitical explanations and political science explanations based on culturalism. If my findings prove to be correct, they give rise to the formation of a hypothesis regarding the anti-reductionist orientation of the contemporary links between political science and biology. An important step towards confirming or falsifying such a hypothesis will be exploring the reductionism of contemporary biopolitical approaches such as neuropolitics or evolutionary political psychology

Game Theory Analyses of Political Phenomena with the Use of Gambit Software

The game theory is an issue that is seldom raised in the Polish political science literature. Among the few papers that deal with this topic are the books and articles by Ziemowit Jacek Pietraś. This article is aimed among others at filling this gap. It presents selected applications of Gambit in the game theory analyses of political phenomena. The simplicity of use and general accessibility of the software constitute grounds for the assertion that Gambit may not only be a tool offering valuable applications in research but also an educational aid considerably facilitating the process of learning game theory basics

Long-Term Trends in Conventional Political Participation in the Federal Republic of Germany

The purpose of this study was to identify long-term trends in conventional participation in the Federal Republic of Germany. The time frame for the analysis covered the period between 1946 and 2016. Conventional participation was measured against two variables using regression analysis: the level of participation in elections and the level of membership in political parties. For both variables, statistically significant development trends were identified, which were mainly of a declining nature. The data employed concerned voter turnout in elections to the Bundestag and Landtags, and the development process of membership levels in six major political parties: CDU, SPD, CSU, FDP, Alliance 90/The Greens, and the Left/PDS

Graffiti polityczne jako subforma wyrażania poglądów politycznych poprzez działania symboliczne (eksponowanie symboli): Buenos Aires w dobie kryzysu lat 2001-2002

Abstract: Political graffiti as an subform of express of political conviction by the symbolic activities (display of symbols): Buenos Aires in crisis period of 2001-2002 History provides many examples of ups and downs of modern countries, which are called, in professional literature, as terms of economic trends and contractions in the country’s economy, social sphere, international relations and so on. They are most often observed in countries with permanent internal dismay, poorly developed economies and especially prone to the influence of global markets. Without any doubts, Argentina is one of such countries, its history is marked with economical crises, coup d’états, rampant bursts of social discontent and so on… Discontent or the lack of acceptance with the present reality, are very often demonstrated by symbolic actions, such as painting on the walls. Political graffiti, which is described, is one of the simplest and least vulnerable to victimization means of articulating political views. This tendency is illustrated in the present article, in which the understanding of the presentation of selected issues concerning the political graffiti in Buenos Aires, during the crisis years of 2001-2002, has fallen. Key words: political graffiti, symbolic activities, display of symbols, Buenos Aires, Argentin