Britannica Sources used in this answer

How did totalitarian governments in the 1920s and 1930s change the focus of political science?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Rubbing of Chinese philosopher Confucius in traditional robes with a long beard, based on a design attributed to Wu Tao-hsuan, with Chinese characters above and beside the figure. — political science Stone rubbing (19th century?) of Confucius from a design attributed to Wu Daoxuan (flourished 700–760 CE).

The rise of totalitarian dictatorships in the 1920s and 1930s, coupled with the onset of World War II, fundamentally shifted the focus of political science away from the traditional study of formal institutions, law, and constitutional procedures.1

While earlier scholarship often viewed constitutions as reliable models for governance, the failure of the Weimar Republic and the deceptive nature of the Soviet Union’s 1936 constitution demonstrated that formal structures could mask authoritarian realities. Consequently, political scientists—particularly in the United States—began to prioritize the study of actual political behavior over static institutional analysis.1

This transition fostered the development of behavioralism, an approach that explored the "bottom" of the political system by focusing on quantifiable data. Research shifted toward:1
* The roles of elites, political parties, and interest groups.1
* Legislative and bureaucratic processes.1
* The factors influencing electoral choices among voters in democracies.1

By emphasizing observable facts and group interactions, this movement effectively transformed much of political science into a form of political sociology.1