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Political Science: An Introduction
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Break Through to Improving Results: Driven by our understanding of the challenges and aspirations inherent to education, MyLab™ & Mastering™ engages learners continuously and offers data-driven guidance that helps them reach specific, measurable learning outcomes.
Before You Buy: This product is accessed in browser and does not require a Kindle. Several custom versions of Pearson’s MyLab™ & Mastering™ products exist for each title and access codes are not transferable. Before you purchase, ensure you have the correct ISBN. You will also need a CourseID, provided by your instructor, to register for and use this product.
Break Through to Improving Results: Driven by our understanding of the challenges and aspirations inherent to education, MyLab™ & Mastering™ engages learners continuously and offers data-driven guidance that helps them reach specific, measurable learning outcomes.
First published February 25, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
October 4, 2019
American liberal political thought exists at the center of the political thought of the author. In my opinion, American liberalism is 'measure of all' for him. What is useful or harmful, what is good or bad, what is democratic or autocratic, what causes public good or bad.
As far as I have read so far, clandestinely he praises the attributes of liberalism and his critique in regard to left is limited with soviet experience which is accepted to have been bureaucratic and extremely centralist. However, theoretical critiques and discussions are neglected. When, as a historical experience, soviets collapse is mentioned, it is said that democracy triumphed and this victorious democracy is western democracy which created colonialism, racism, imperialism and several wars in order to expand liberal virus and reproduce it across the world. In the name of scientific objectivity, fact is distorted and liberal ideology is justified.
As far as I have read so far, clandestinely he praises the attributes of liberalism and his critique in regard to left is limited with soviet experience which is accepted to have been bureaucratic and extremely centralist. However, theoretical critiques and discussions are neglected. When, as a historical experience, soviets collapse is mentioned, it is said that democracy triumphed and this victorious democracy is western democracy which created colonialism, racism, imperialism and several wars in order to expand liberal virus and reproduce it across the world. In the name of scientific objectivity, fact is distorted and liberal ideology is justified.
May 24, 2012
Political Science: An Introduction takes us on a journey which touches on many contemporary aspects of Political Science. The book starts with the assumption that the reader has almost no knowledge of the subject and provides a broad background in political theories, contemporary and historical ideologies and political parties. Other subjects, such as elections, political economy, and international relations are covered as well with the authors striving throughout to elicit the reader to pose questions about the material and to form independent opinions.
This book is a great primer for those with an interest in Political Science who don't know where to begin. The end of each chapter contains a list of books for further reading giving the reader direction on where to expand understanding of the material in each chapter.
This book is a great primer for those with an interest in Political Science who don't know where to begin. The end of each chapter contains a list of books for further reading giving the reader direction on where to expand understanding of the material in each chapter.
September 10, 2013
The basic ideas, concepts, and terminology, is very well explained, but not elaborately enough. The explanation is simple, but a little overgeneralized.
As the title says, this book is just an introduction. It's a good start for beginners.
As the title says, this book is just an introduction. It's a good start for beginners.
August 17, 2015
So This book was my syllabus for 1st Year at FEPS ..
Actually I found the book biased to American thoughts and points of view It's an American book yes but this is supposed to be an International Version !!
The part about the origin of the state wasn't that sufficient ..
I Really didn't like the part where he talked about Islamists ; it was a purely American-one-sided-point of view and this version Again supposed to be international ! so that means that the writer or whatever is directing people to the way or side of an american point of view ..
also the International Relation's Part was too small.. How the IR developed or how did it appear wasn't there in the book !
Actually I found the book biased to American thoughts and points of view It's an American book yes but this is supposed to be an International Version !!
The part about the origin of the state wasn't that sufficient ..
I Really didn't like the part where he talked about Islamists ; it was a purely American-one-sided-point of view and this version Again supposed to be international ! so that means that the writer or whatever is directing people to the way or side of an american point of view ..
also the International Relation's Part was too small.. How the IR developed or how did it appear wasn't there in the book !
October 22, 2020
I had to get a copy for the school. The narratives and perspectives are too US-centric and neoliberal oriented.
Many claims go unexamined as if the author is incapable of identifying his own bias. The examples given are just laughable; for example, he called Marx’s prediction that capitalism will eventually collapse “incorrect” simply because “capitalism hasn’t collapsed”.
I’d highly recommend whoever thinking about getting a copy of this to get anything from Andrew Heywood instead.
Many claims go unexamined as if the author is incapable of identifying his own bias. The examples given are just laughable; for example, he called Marx’s prediction that capitalism will eventually collapse “incorrect” simply because “capitalism hasn’t collapsed”.
I’d highly recommend whoever thinking about getting a copy of this to get anything from Andrew Heywood instead.
December 6, 2010
Elementary but at least current.
August 15, 2020
It's a decent introduction, but written with a very partisan outlook, despite its claim to impartiality. The writer views most issues through the lens of a neoliberal/neocon.
January 17, 2024
Wunderbar! Though I wish I'd read this under happier circumstances
July 8, 2025
It was the September of 2012, a season wrapped in lazy monsoon clouds and a soft, anticipatory chill that always hovered around my birthday. I remember the doorbell that morning—nothing dramatic, just the calm ding-dong of another delivery. But what lay inside was far from ordinary: a gift-wrapped copy of Political Science: An Introduction by Michael G. Roskin, sent by none other than my former college head and intellectual elder, Dr. Amritabho Banerjee. The man everyone affectionately called “Dip,” with a mind as sharp as a scalpel and a soul tuned to nuance, had clearly remembered more than just the date of my birth. He remembered what made my mind tick.
At first, I’ll admit, I chuckled. A textbook? For a birthday? I mean—where were the fancy novels, the leather-bound poetry collections, the indulgent literary perfumes I’d grown to expect from well-read friends? But that smile soon dissolved into something quieter—something like awe. Because as I flipped through the preface, something clicked. This wasn’t a textbook thrown at a student. It was a kind of intellectual compass, handed over by someone who had already walked several miles ahead.
Roskin’s Political Science: An Introduction may, at first glance, seem like your standard poli-sci 101 fare: chapters on ideology, institutions, systems, policies, comparative frameworks, global conflicts, public opinion, democracy, authoritarianism, and the usual suspects of Western political thought. But there’s a deceptive elegance in its simplicity. Roskin never dumbs things down. Instead, he performs a delicate tightrope act—introducing key concepts with lucidity, without ever sacrificing nuance.
Reading it, I kept returning to one phrase: politics is the authoritative allocation of values. That definition became a kind of echo chamber in my head. I found myself re-evaluating the arguments in my living room, the choices in my city council, even the dynamics at the college canteen table. Roskin doesn’t just talk about systems and institutions—he teaches you to look at them as living, evolving forces. And once you start seeing the world like that, it’s impossible to unsee it.
The strength of this book lies in its pedagogical empathy. It’s aware that its reader may be a first-timer or a skeptical student, so it never condescends. Instead, it builds—from Plato and Hobbes to comparative governance, from American federalism to foreign policy in a multipolar world. It doesn’t pretend the world is tidy. It merely hands you the tools to make better sense of its mess.
One of the chapters that stayed with me most was the one on political ideologies. The careful unpacking of liberalism, conservatism, socialism, nationalism, and the mutations they’ve undergone in the modern context—this wasn’t dry analysis. It felt like a crash course in human belief systems, in why people fall in love with the idea of power and order. Especially in the post-9/11, post-recession world we were still reeling from in 2012, Roskin’s framing offered clarity. Not answers. Just the right questions.
Reading it in those months that followed—late nights curled up with a cup of instant coffee, mornings when news headlines seemed to echo the case studies in the book—I realised how political science was less about "studying politics" and more about learning how to read the world. Dip had known exactly what he was doing.
In hindsight, that birthday gift wasn’t just a book. It was an act of transmission—a passing of the lamp. A reminder that sometimes the most transformative gifts aren’t the ones that flatter your taste, but the ones that challenge your perspective.
Roskin didn’t dazzle me with rhetorical fireworks. He did something far better—he built a structure in my mind, one brick at a time. He left space for disagreement, room for curiosity, and the promise of lifelong dialogue. And as I moved on to reading harder political theory texts—Arendt, Rawls, Foucault—I kept hearing Roskin in the background: calm, reasonable, foundational.
Years later, I still return to that volume. Not for nostalgia, but for grounding. And every time I pick it up, I hear a quiet laugh, see a half-smile, and feel the invisible hand of a teacher saying, “Here. Try looking at the world this way.”
At first, I’ll admit, I chuckled. A textbook? For a birthday? I mean—where were the fancy novels, the leather-bound poetry collections, the indulgent literary perfumes I’d grown to expect from well-read friends? But that smile soon dissolved into something quieter—something like awe. Because as I flipped through the preface, something clicked. This wasn’t a textbook thrown at a student. It was a kind of intellectual compass, handed over by someone who had already walked several miles ahead.
Roskin’s Political Science: An Introduction may, at first glance, seem like your standard poli-sci 101 fare: chapters on ideology, institutions, systems, policies, comparative frameworks, global conflicts, public opinion, democracy, authoritarianism, and the usual suspects of Western political thought. But there’s a deceptive elegance in its simplicity. Roskin never dumbs things down. Instead, he performs a delicate tightrope act—introducing key concepts with lucidity, without ever sacrificing nuance.
Reading it, I kept returning to one phrase: politics is the authoritative allocation of values. That definition became a kind of echo chamber in my head. I found myself re-evaluating the arguments in my living room, the choices in my city council, even the dynamics at the college canteen table. Roskin doesn’t just talk about systems and institutions—he teaches you to look at them as living, evolving forces. And once you start seeing the world like that, it’s impossible to unsee it.
The strength of this book lies in its pedagogical empathy. It’s aware that its reader may be a first-timer or a skeptical student, so it never condescends. Instead, it builds—from Plato and Hobbes to comparative governance, from American federalism to foreign policy in a multipolar world. It doesn’t pretend the world is tidy. It merely hands you the tools to make better sense of its mess.
One of the chapters that stayed with me most was the one on political ideologies. The careful unpacking of liberalism, conservatism, socialism, nationalism, and the mutations they’ve undergone in the modern context—this wasn’t dry analysis. It felt like a crash course in human belief systems, in why people fall in love with the idea of power and order. Especially in the post-9/11, post-recession world we were still reeling from in 2012, Roskin’s framing offered clarity. Not answers. Just the right questions.
Reading it in those months that followed—late nights curled up with a cup of instant coffee, mornings when news headlines seemed to echo the case studies in the book—I realised how political science was less about "studying politics" and more about learning how to read the world. Dip had known exactly what he was doing.
In hindsight, that birthday gift wasn’t just a book. It was an act of transmission—a passing of the lamp. A reminder that sometimes the most transformative gifts aren’t the ones that flatter your taste, but the ones that challenge your perspective.
Roskin didn’t dazzle me with rhetorical fireworks. He did something far better—he built a structure in my mind, one brick at a time. He left space for disagreement, room for curiosity, and the promise of lifelong dialogue. And as I moved on to reading harder political theory texts—Arendt, Rawls, Foucault—I kept hearing Roskin in the background: calm, reasonable, foundational.
Years later, I still return to that volume. Not for nostalgia, but for grounding. And every time I pick it up, I hear a quiet laugh, see a half-smile, and feel the invisible hand of a teacher saying, “Here. Try looking at the world this way.”
July 13, 2018
awesome
June 7, 2019
Not well
February 19, 2022
Ótima análise
December 29, 2020
nice
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 13, 2024
Decent introduction to the field, but it lacks many of the necessary nuance. I get it though; it is an introductory book, and it tries its best to make itself engaging.
March 10, 2022
Political Science
1. 5星，政治启蒙书
2. 论说，实用，政治科学
3. 解释政治科学的基本概念，结合时事
4. Content:
1. Basics
2. Attitude
3. Interaction
4. Institutions
5. Power
1. 5星，政治启蒙书
2. 论说，实用，政治科学
3. 解释政治科学的基本概念，结合时事
4. Content:
1. Basics
2. Attitude
3. Interaction
4. Institutions
5. Power
June 19, 2014
It is very good one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
December 25, 2014gamelll
November 14, 2015
I was disappointed. I probably expected more detail than an introduction can provide.
March 8, 2016
Wonderful Info!
October 19, 2016
Thank goodness that's over!
Want to read
September 16, 2019ff
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 26, 2014
Accidentally I bought two copies.
Great book for first learners.
Great book for first learners.
Want to read
June 30, 2015i think it good
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews