Political sociology and political theory

Political sociology and political theory cover similar ground but have tended to do so in different ways. Political sociology is interested in a certain, broad, range of subject matters. It embraces state-societal relations, sociological aspects of the political landscape, such as political parties, social movements, and so on, and the political dimensions of a broad range of sociological phenomena. As a key branch of sociology, it has a particular conceptual and empirical interest in the descriptive character of these relations and entities, in causal explanations as to how they have become what they are, and in strategic possibilities for the future. I will say from the start that political sociology, like all forms of sociology, is at its best when underpinned by sociological and social theory, and this point will play an important role in the chapter. Political theory is interested in much the same stretch of ground, but focuses in on normative, ethical – ‘should’ and ‘ought’ – issues. It is concerned to morally evaluate states of affairs. In developing ways of conceptualising and reasoning that are adequate to the task of formulating moral judgements, political theory has tended to subordinate those dimensions of entities, states of being, relations, causation and strategy in situ that are the focus of sociological theory and sociology. For its part, sociology, and political sociology within it, lacks a developed conceptual vocabulary with which to approach issues of moral judgement. This chapter aims to establish some of the ground on which the dialogue between political sociology and political theory can take place. There will be a particular emphasis on encouraging reflection across the two sets of concerns, suggesting how the two perspectives might be brought together in a framework equipped to examine and evaluate specific cases.