This open panel aims to rethink the development of political science in East Asian countries/regions over the past three decades after Samuel Huntington’s “third wave” and Francis Fukuyama’s “end of history.”
In 1988, Huntington pronounced, “Where democracy is strong, political science is strong.” He later studied democratic transition in the late 20th century and came up with “the third wave.” In 1989, Fukuyama declared “the end of history” when liberal democracy—the subject matter of political scientists—seemed to achieve its ultimate victory. David Easton, John Gunnell, and others examined the causality between regime change and political science. They postulated that this discipline was correlated with democratic transition. In the last two decades of the 20th century, the development of political science, manifesting Huntington’s and Fukuyama’s prophecies, was promising as new liberal democracies emerged in different parts of the world.
However, such a postulation vanishes with the post-millennium disenchantment of Huntington and Fukuyama. Polarization undermines liberal democracies. But political science, irrespective of regime type, continues to grow. If democratic transition is not a necessary factor, how and why is the disciplinary development sustained? That being said, this panel, with a rather specific focus on East Asian countries/regions, aims to reconsider the development of political science over the past three decades. East Asian countries/regions are politically diverse, economically thriving, and culturally interconnected. Their developments of political science, sharing certain mutual grounds, form vivid contrasts. Dialogues among East Asian countries/regions will offer us alternative perspectives on the development of political science.
This panel is looking for 4-6 papergivers, each of whom is encouraged to discuss the development of political science in a distinct East Asian country/region. The papergiver is also encouraged to undertake a cross-disciplinary approach. The theme can be but is not limited to: the genealogy of theory, professionalization, indigenization, gender, ethnicity, academic dependence, or power/knowledge. This panel will follow the IPSA's diversity policy and strive for a balanced representation of papergivers.