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The Post-Behavioural Approach. (UPSC CSE Mains 2016 - Political Science and International Relations, Paper 1)
Post- Behavioural Approach is both a movement and academic tendency. It opposed the efforts of the Behavioural Approach to make Political science a value free science. The Post- Behavioural Approach is a future oriented approach which wants to solve problems of both present and future. To this approach, the study of Political Science should put importance on social change. To it political science must have some relevance to society. Along with relevance, this approach believes that action is the core of study political science. It accepts that political science needs to study all realities of politics, social change, values etc. There are some basic characteristics of Post- Behavioural Approach. Importance on action and relevance, human problem oriented, qualitative and qualitative, concerned with regularities and irregularities are the basic features of Post-Behavioural Approach. David Easton has given seven features of post behavioralism.
1] Technique is important but the purpose for which the technique is used is more important. It is better to be vague than to be non-relevant.
2] Post behavioralism does not reject values, rather invite values.
3] Theory should have capacity to solve the crisis.
4] We should promote such values which contribute towards the flourishing of human civilization.
5] Political science is applied science, rather than pure science.
6] The responsibility of social scientists is bigger than the responsibility of natural scientists.
7] Political science is extremely useful discipline, needs to be actively promoted by universities, research foundations.
Considering these seven features, he opined that substance must have precedence over technique, political science should put emphasis on social change, research in social science must not lose touch with reality, study should accord value also, study should also be future oriented etc. To him mad craze for scientism should be discarded as social science can’t be pure science at any cost. Therefore, we can say that Post- Behavioural Approach lays emphasis on substance than technique. It is an attempt to develop a practical, social change-oriented approach to political science. Actually, the Post- Behavioural Approach refines the Behavioural Approach and tries to make it acceptable.