Charles Merriam, Max Weber, and the Search for Synthesis in Political Science

The centenary of Merriam's birth provides the opportunity to reappraise the consequences of his prophetic advocacy of a more scientific expression and systematization of political knowledge. The vehicle for this appraisal is a comparison of Merriam's ’activist” epistemology wjth the more s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American political science review 1975-03, Vol.69 (1), p.175-185
Main Author: Leiserson, Avery
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ASPSA Presidential Address, 1975
ENLIGHTENMENT, KNOWLEDGE
MAX WEBER
Persona
POLITICAL AND POWER PROCESS
Political attitudes
Political conflict
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT OR POLITICAL DEGENERATION
Political ideologies
Political philosophy
POLITICAL SCIENCE
POLITICAL SYSTEM AS A WHOLE
Political systems
Political thought
Political violence
Politicians
Social contract
SOCIOLOGY
SYSTEMS ANALYSIS
XXth century
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Summary:The centenary of Merriam's birth provides the opportunity to reappraise the consequences of his prophetic advocacy of a more scientific expression and systematization of political knowledge. The vehicle for this appraisal is a comparison of Merriam's ’activist” epistemology wjth the more self-limiting methodology of Max Weber who, perhaps among all twentieth-century social scientists, stated most explicitly and experienced most poignantly the tensions among the requirements of acquiring objective knowledge about politics and exercising responsibility in political action. Notwithstanding their many points of difference, Merriam and Weber are interpreted as sharing common grounds of disbelief that the disjunction between science and politics will be removed by the development of a unifying, paradigmatic world-view, either within political science or between the several sciences of man, nature, and society. The political context and role of scientists are visualized by the author as consisting in: (1) mastering the personal temptations and obstacles to achieving their own peculiar brand of political competence, (2) securing public recognition and respect for the factual-scientific component of controversial situations involving their sphere of expertness, and (3) acting upon the assumption of joint skills and contributions, along with other scientists, philosophers, technicians (including politicians), and participating citizens in improving the utilization of scientific research in the formulation of public policy and reform of governing institutions.
ISSN:0003-0554
1537-5943
DOI:10.2307/1957898