POLITICAL SCIENCE PROJECT

NATURE AND SCOPE OF

POLITICAL SCIENCE
FEATURES OF ALL TYPES OF FACTORS OF
PRODUCTION

SUBMITTED BY :-

NAME :

CLASS :

ROLL NUMBER :

SIGNATURE :
0|Page
INDEX

 INTRODUCTION : PRODUCTION

 FACTORS OF PRODUCTION

 FEATURES OF FACTORS OF PRODUCTION

 CONCLUSION

 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1|Page
INTRODUCTION :
The terms ‘politics’ , ‘political science’, ‘political theory’ and ‘political
philosophy’ are used as synonyms though there is slight change in the shade of
meaning. They represent the study of State. Aristotle, the ‘Father of Political
Science’ , used the term ‘politics’ for the first time in his book ‘Politics’.

The term ‘politics’ is derived from the Greek word ‘polis’ which means
‘city-state’. The term ‘polity’ is derived from the Greek word ‘poleticia’
meaning ‘government’ or ‘constitution’.

DEFINITIONS

The definitions of political science can be divided into two types, namely,
classical or traditional and modern definitions.

Classical or Traditional Definitions

J.W. Garner – “Political Science begins and ends with the State.”

Paul Janet – “Political Science is that part of social science which treats the
foundations of the State and the principles of government.”

R.N. Gilchrist – “Political Science deals with State and Government.”

R.G. Gettell – “It is a historical investigation of, what the State has been, an
analytical study of what the State is, and a politico-ethical discussion of what
the State should be.”

Bluntschli – “Political Science is the science, which is concerned with the

State, endeavours to understand and comprehend the State in its essential
nature, various forms, manifestations and development.”

2|Page
Jenks – “Politics is the study that deals with the State and the Government.”

Dr. Stephen Leacock – “Political Science deals with Government.”

Lord Action – “Political Science is concerned with the State and with the
conditions essential for its development.”

J. Seeley – “Political Science investigates the phenomena of government as

political economy deals with the wealth, biology with life, algebra with
numbers, and geometry with space and magnitude.”

Sidgwick – “Political Science, for Greeks , was like municipal science, but this
subject deals with the societies of which the members are accustomed to obey,
at least in certain matters, the direction given by some persons forming part of
the society.”

Appadorai – “Political Science is concerned with the State and of the

conditions essential to its existence and development.”

Fauley – “Politics include a study of the organisation and activities of States

and of the principles and ideals which underlie political organisation and
activities.”

Modern Definitions

Harold Lasswell and Kaplan – “Politics as an empirical enquiry is the duty of

sharing and sharing of power.”

David Easton – “Political Science is concerned with all those varieties of

activities that influence significantly the kind of authoritative policy adopted for
a society and the way it is put into practice and authoritative allocation of values

3|Page
of a society.” He further says that political science is “the process by which
scarce resources – human, economic, spiritual are allocated within a social
limit , be it a city, a State, a nation or an organisation for the purpose of
providing for human needs and desires.”

Harold J. Laski – “The study of politics concerns itself with the life of men in
relation to organized States.”

Rowe – “Political activity is the activity which is resolved and translated into
policy.”

Max Weber – “Politics is the struggle for power or the influencing of those in
power.”

Robson – “Political Science centres on the struggle to gain and retain power, to
exercise power or influence over other or to resist that exercise.”

4|Page
SCOPE OF POLITICAL SCIENCE:

It is not easy to determine the boundaries of the subject, political science.

Political science emerged as the science of the city-State. With the growth in the
functions of the State on the one hand and political consciousness on the other,
political science extends not only to the State but also to the society and to all
human efforts relating to governance.

Political science revolves round the organised society; the State and the
Government being treated as its chief features. Political science takes to
historical investigation and records the conditions under which the earlier States
operated and their governments worked. Likewise, while analysing the present
State, it takes up the State purpose, structure and functions of the State , its
relations with individuals and groups. Having covered the past and the present,
political science peeps into the future. This is done through value-judgements
and prediction is based on the building up of theories. In the words of R.N.
Gilchrist, “The scope of political science is determined by the inquiries that
arise in connection with the State. These inquiries may broadly be classified
under the State as it is, the State as it has been, the State as it ought to be.”

Political thinkers made generalisations on political phenomena. They expressed

opinions, describes values and formulated certain principles on political matters
such as idealism, liberalism, fascism, communism, etc. Political science
explains such theories originated in the past and present . Besides these, ideals
and concepts like democracy, liberty, equality, sovereignty form, a consider that
power, authority and legitimacy are the central concern of the political science.

Political science deals with the nature of human associations and organisations,
their objects, influences, structures, etc. Politics covers social values, political
social values, political socialisation, public administration, national and
international organisations, etc. are included in the scope of the Political
Science.

5|Page
The subject of Political Science can be divided into two classes, political theory
and political practice. The practical aspect of the political process is then
explored. The organisation of political parties, their functions, support,
structure, ideology and their art of directing the government or playing the role
of opposition are studied. The analysis of political behaviour of both the elite
and masses are also examined. As an extensive study, political science enquires
into the working of the legislature, the civil service and the judiciary.

The study of political science is not limited to the State. It deals with the
national and international problems , international organisations and man’s
relation with them. Thus, the scope of the subject has become very wide.

The scope of political science extends not only to the description and
understanding of the State in its political and administrative spheres but also to
the psychological and social analysis of the individual or group political
behaviour.

As per Gettell, “In its historical aspects, Political Science deals with the origin
of the State and with the development of Political Theories in the past in dealing
with the present attempts to describe, and classify existing political institutions
and ideas. Political science also looks to the future, to the improving political
organisations and activities in the light of changing conditions and changing
ethical standards.” He further states that political science is “the study of the
State in the past, present and future, of political organisation and political
organisation and political functions, of political institutions and political
theories.”

6|Page
NATURE OF POLITICAL SCIENCE:

There are different views on the nature of politics. Aristotle, Bodin, Hobbes,
Bluntschli, Montesquieu, Lewis, Sidgwick, Jellinek, Bryce, etc. hold that
politics is a science. But, writers like J.S. Mill, Maitland, Catlin, Barker,
Buckle, Auguste Comte, etc. maintain that it is only an art.

MEANING OF SCIENCE AND ART

The word ‘science’ literally means ‘knowledge’. Science generally means a

systematic way of gathering and organizing knowledge. “Science is knowledge
ascertained by observation and experiment , critically tested, systematized and
brought under general principles.” As per Garner, “Science is a knowledge
relating to a particular subject acquired by systematic observation, experience,
or study which have been co-ordinated, systematised and classified.” The
conclusions in science are based on experience and observation. The chief
characteristics of science are universality, exactness, precision and
predictability. It is studied by collecting and verifying data, formulating concise
and standard principles, and making predictions. Science is a systematic body of
knowledge based on reasons and evidence.

‘Art’ means ‘skill’ or ‘a way of doing particular thing in a particular way’. It

can be improved by practice, guide by principles.

POLITICS IS A SCIENCE

Politics is considered as science on the following grounds:-

1. Politics can be studied in a systematic manner.

2. It is said that experimentation is possible in politics.
3. Political science, like other sciences, has absolute and universal laws.
4. It is possible to make predictions in politics, but in a limited area.
5. There are certain principles and methods on which political thinkers
unanimously agree.
7|Page
 6. Politics is a subject which has scientific nature.
7. At present, politics has attained modernity.

Aristotle called politics as ‘Supreme Science’.

POLITICS IS NOT A SCIENCE

James Bryce maintains that “Politics can never become a science.” Catlin thinks
that there is no such thing as a political science.” Buckle holds that “Politics far
from being a science is one of the most backward of all the arts.” G. Mosca
holds that “Political science in its scientific state.” Maitland writes “When I see
a good set of examination questions headed by the word ‘Political Science’ I
regret not the questions but the title.” Auguste Comte rejected to treat it as a
science on the following three grounds :-

a) There is no consensus of opinion among the political thinkers as to its

methods, principles and conclusions.
b) It is impossible to foretell what is going to happen as Astronomy can tell
us. In other words, it lacks the elements which constitute a basis of
provision.
c) It lacks continuity of development.

Politics is not considered as science on the following grounds:-

1. Politics has no absolute and universal laws like physical sciences or

exact sciences.
2. It does not observe, the theory of cause and effect, which is the basis of
all sciences.
3. The subject of politics has not developed in a steady, regular and
continuous manner.

8|Page
 4. Scientific methods of observation and experimentation cannot be applied
to politics because political conditions are ever changing and difficult to
be experimented upon.

FACTORS OF PRODUCTION

1. Factors of Production : Meaning

Production of goods and services requires the use of factors of

production which are also called agents of production. Volume of production
and therefore national income depends upon the supply of various factors of
production and their productivity. Since economic growth consists in
expansion in total production or national income, the supply and productivity
of the factors are vital to the process of economic growth.

9|Page
 But what do we exactly mean by a factor of production. Fraser defines
“ factor of production as a group or class of original productive resources. ” 1
More explicitly, the term ‘factor’ of production is used for a class of
productive elements, the individual members of which are known as ‘units’
of the factor and all units of a factor are homogeneous and interchangeable.
Technically speaking, all units of a factor are perfect substitutes of one
another. This also implies that two different factors of production cannot be
perfect substitutes of each other.

It may also be noted that modern economists prefer to talk in terms of

productive services or more recently of merely inputs rather than the
conventional factors of production such as land, labour, capital and
entrepreneur. Thus, the goods or services which are used for the production
of goods are called inputs and what they produce is called outputs. This
input-output analysis has become an important tool of modern economic
analysis.2

1. LAND

The term ‘Land’ has been given a special meaning in

Economics. According to Marshall, land means, “the materials and the
forces which nature gives freely for man’s aid, in land and water, in air
and light and heat.”

Thus, by land, we mean not only the land surface but all gifts of
nature, like rivers, waterways, forests, etc. These are all the natural
resources which have exchange value because they are scarce and
useful. The quantity and quality of natural resources play a major role
in the development of a country.

1
L.M. Fraser, Economic Thought and Language, 1947
2
H.L. Ahuja, Modern Economics : An Analytical Study, (New Delhi : S. Chand Publications, 2017)

10 | P a g e
2. LABOUR

Labour is a human factor. Labour supply is given by the

population of the country. According to Marshall, “Any exertion of mind
or body undergone partly or wholly with a view to some good other than
the pleasure derived directly from the work, is called labour.”

Labour is different from other factors of production because it is

a living thing. Labour is not only a means of production but also an end of
production. The labour has to sell his services in person. Labour is
inseparable from the labourer himself.

3. CAPITAL

Capital refers to that part of a person’s wealth, which is used in

producing further wealth or which yields an income. It is a “produced
means of production.” Land and labour are often considered as primary or
original factors of production. But capital is produced by man, therefore,
is a produced factor of production. Capital includes all those physical
goods which are produced for use in future production, for example,
machines, tools and instruments, factories, transport equipment, etc.
According to Prof. Richard T. Gill, “ A country’s capital is its stock of
produced or man-made means of production, consisting of such items as
buildings, factories, machineries, tools, equipment and inventories of
goods in stock.”

4. ENTREPRENEUR / ORGANISATION

Entrepreneur plays the role of coordinating and correlating the

other factors of production. He takes the final responsibility of the
business and his main functions are “organizing”, “risk taking”, and
“innovating.” Entrepreneur is called the organizer, the manager and the
risk taker. As an organizer and manager, his task includes decision making
of routine type but his real task is to initiate the production process. He
may employ managers to manage the routine affairs of the organisation.

11 | P a g e
 Some economists are of the view that entrepreneurship should
not be regarded as a separate factor of production as it is a special type of
labour. Hence they believe it should be included in labour. However, the
view of these economists is not generally accepted, as there is a
fundamental difference between entrepreneur and the other factors of
production.3

3
Surbhi Arora, Economics for Law Students, (Delhi : Central Law Publications,2017)

12 | P a g e
 FEATURES OF FACTORS OF
PRODUCTION

1. LAND

 Land is a free gift of nature

Man has to make efforts in order to acquire other factors of production.
But to acquire land no human efforts are needed. Land is not the outcome of
human labour. Rather, it existed even long before the evolution of man.

 Land is Immovable
It cannot be transported from one place to another. For instance, no
portion of India’s surface can be transported to some other country.

 Fixed Quantity:
The total quantity of land does not undergo any change. It is limited
and cannot be increased or decreased with human efforts. No alteration can be
made in the surface area of land.

 Land is Permanent:
All man-made things are perishable and these may even go out of
existence. But land is indestructible. Thus it cannot go out of existence. It is not
destructible.

 Land is a Primary Factor of Production:

In any kind of production process, we have to start with land. For
example, in industries, it helps to provide raw materials, and in agriculture,
crops are produced on land.

 Land is a Passive Factor of Production:

This is because it cannot produce anything by itself. For example,
wheat cannot grow on a piece of land automatically. To grow wheat, man has to
cultivate land. Labour is an active factor but land is a passive factor of
production.

 Land has some Original Indestructible Powers:

13 | P a g e
 There are some original and indestructible powers of land, which a man
cannot destroy. Its fertility may be varied but it cannot be destroyed completely.

 Land Differs in Fertility:

Fertility of land differs on different pieces of land. One piece of land
may produce more and the other less.

 Supply of Land is Inelastic:

The demand for a particular commodity makes way for the supply of
that commodity, but the supply of land cannot be increased or decreased
according to its demand.

2.LABOUR

 Labour is an active factor of production:

Land and capital are considered as the passive factor of production,
because they alone cannot start the production process. Production from land
and capital starts only when a man makes efforts. Production begins with the
active participation of man. Therefore, Labour is an active factor of production.

 Labour is perishable than any other commodity:

Labour is more perishable than other factors of production. It means
Labour cannot be stored. The Labour of an unemployed worker is lost forever
for that day when he does not work. Labour can neither be postponed nor
accumulated for the next day. It will perish. Once time is lost, it is lost forever.

 Labour cannot be separated from the labourer:

Land and capital can be separated from their owner, but Labour cannot
be separated from a labourer. Labour and labourer are indispensable for each
other. For example—It is not possible to bring the ability of a teacher to teach in
the school, leaving the teacher at home. The labour of a teacher can work only if
he himself is present in the class. Therefore, Labour and labourer cannot be
separated from each other.

 Labour is less mobile:

As compared to capital and other goods, Labour is less mobile. Capital
can be easily transferred from one place to other, but Labour cannot be
transported easily from its present place to other places. A labourer is not ready

14 | P a g e
to go to far off places leaving his native place and his kith and kin. Therefore,
Labour has less mobility.

 A labourer sells his labour and not himself:

A labourer sells his Labour for wages and not himself. The worker sells
work but he himself remains his own property. For example—When we
purchase an animal, we become owners of the services as well as the body of
that animal. But we cannot become the owner of a labourer in this sense.

 Efficiency of labour differs:

Labourer differs in efficiency some labourers are more efficient due to
their ability, training and skill, whereas others are less efficient on account of
their illiteracy and ignorance etc.

 Supply of Labour is relatively Inelastic

At any given point in time, the supply of labour in the market is inelastic.
It cannot be increased instantly to keep up with the demand. So say there is a
shortage of skilled labour in India, skilled labourers cannot be generated in a day,
a week or even a year.

We may be able to import some labour for a short period. But generally,

the supply of labour is very inelastic, since we cannot increase or decrease it
instantaneously.

3.CAPITAL

 Man Produces Capital:

Capital is that wealth which is used in the production of goods. Capital
is the result of human labour. Thus, every type of capital such as roads,
machines, buildings and factories etc. are produced by man. It is a produced
factor of production.

 Capital is a Passive Factor of Production:

Capital cannot produce without the help of the active services of
labour. To produce with machines, labour is required. Thus, labour is an active,
whereas capital is a passive factor of production. Capital on its own cannot
produce anything until labour works on it.

 Capital is a Produced Means of Production:

15 | P a g e
 The composition or supply of capital is not automatic, but it is
produced with the joint efforts of labour and land. Therefore, capital is a
produced means of production.

 Capital is more Mobile than other Factors of Production:

Of all the factors of production, capital is the most mobile. Land is
perfectly immobile. Labour and entrepreneur also lack mobility. Capital can be
easily transported from one place to another.

 Capital is Elastic:
Supply of capital is elastic and can be adjusted easily and quickly
according to demand.

4.ENTREPRENEUR / ORGANISATION
 He / She have Leadership qualities
He / She conceives the idea of launching the project.                 
 
 He / She is an Efficient organizer
He / She  mobilizes the resources for smooth running of the project.
 
 He / She is a good Decision maker
The decision of what, where and how to produce goods are taken by the
entrepreneur.
                                          
 He / She can take up risks
He / She  undertakes the risks involved in production.
         
 He / She is Knowledgeable
He / She  is an innovator. He / She  innovates new techniques of
production, new products and brings improvements in the quality of existing
products. He / She  is in fact the captain of the industry.  4

CONCLUSION
4
K.K. Dewett, Modern Economic Theory,(New Delhi : Shyam Lal Charitable Trust,2018)

16 | P a g e
 Land, labour, capital, and entrepreneurship are the major factors of
production.

Factors of production is that term of economics which are described as

inputs are required to produce goods and services with an objective of making
an economic profit. This also includes the optimization of the resources in order
to receive efficiency and efficacy while the production process.  

 Land it can be of commercial land or real estate which are used for
production.

 Labour is that asset which manages other non-living assets.

 Capital means financial assets by which all assets can be purchased.

 Entrepreneurship combines all other factors of production.

17 | P a g e
BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Dewett K.K., ‘ Modern Economic Theory’, Shyam Lal Charitable Trust,

New Delhi, 2017.

 Arora Surbhi, ‘Economics for Law Students’, Central Law Publications,

Delhi, 2017 .

 Ahuja H.L. , ‘Modern Economics : An Analytical Study’, S. Chand

Publications, New Delhi, 2018.

 Myneni S.R., ‘Principles of Economics’, Allahabad Law Agency,

Haryana, 2019.

18 | P a g e