Chapter 6: Comparative Political Sociology

Willfried Spohn

Comparative political sociology Sociology and political science have a complex relationship and against the backdrop of the two disciplines political sociology can be defined as an interdisciplinary field of inquiry developed by both sociologists and political scientists to study the interrelations and interactions between the socio-cultural life-world and the political sphere: between society and state, between social and political institutions, groups and behaviour. Political sociology in short, looks at ‘the social bases of politics’ (see inter alia , Braungart and Braungart, 2000; Janoski et al., 2004; Kimmerling, 1996; Lipset, 1959; Nash, 2000; Orum, 1983, 1996). 1 Comparative political sociology relates to those parts of political sociology that use explicitly a comparative methodology and related comparative methods. Whereas comparative politics concentrates on the comparative analysis and explanation of political phenomena, comparative political sociology as an interdisciplinary field of inquiry combines comparative politics and comparative sociology, focusing on socio-cultural phenomena and Modern ...

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