PSIR 2c 'Credo of Relevance' in post-behaviouralism advocates the importance of action science. Analyze. UPSC 2023, 15 marks

David Easton, who had earlier laid down the “intellectual foundation stone of behavioural revolution”, now came out with seven major traits of post-behaviouralism and described as the “credo of relevance” or “a distillation of the maximal image”.

These are summarized as follows:

1.    Substance over technique: In political science research, substance must come before technique. It may be good to have sophisticated tools of investigation, but the more important point was the purpose to which these tools were being applied. Unless the scientific research was relevant and meaningful for contemporary urgent social problems, it was not worth being undertaken.

2.    Emphasis on social change: Contemporary political science should place its main emphasis on social change, not social preservation, as the behaviouralists seemed to be doing. Behaviouralism was charged with being an ‘ideology of social conservatism tempered by modest incremental change’. Post-behaviouralism advocates change orientation and reform over preservation.

3.    Stress on Reality: The Behaviouralists had lost touch with realities and kept away from brute realities of politics. Post Behaviouralists felt that behavioural enquiry is abstractionism and does not help the society in any way. They point out that we are passing through times of crisis and in spite of the fact that heavy expanses on research have been incurred and all the comforts of life are available in western world yet it is full of worries and social conflicts are deeping in that part of the world. If it was not the responsibility of the political scientist to reach out to the real needs of mankind, of what use political science was to society? Therefore, post-behaviouralism emphasizes on the role of relevance.

4.    Stress on value loaded political science: Behaviouralists had emphasized too much on value-free research. In fact, behaviouralism was known as value-free approach. It was their main feature. Behaviouralists stood for value neutrality in research at all aspects. Values for practical purposes were thrown out of their consideration. But according to Post-Behaviouralists, values played an important role in politics and research. They stressed on value-loaded study of political science. In the words of David Easton, “values are an integral part of our personality and so long as we are human beings, these sets of mental preference are always with us”.

5.    Importance of Humans Values: According post-behaviouralism, political scientists must protect human values of civilization. In the words of David Easton, “The intellectual’s historical role has been and must to be protect human values of civilization. This is their unique task and obligation. Without this they become more technicians and mechanics for tinkering with society. They there by abandon the special privileges they come to claim for themselves as academics…….”.

6.    Emphasis on Action oriented research: Post –behaviouralism wanted to emphasis on action to solve social problems. According to Post Behaviouralists knowledge or research should be put to work. Political scientists take action for reshaping the society. Political science should be used as applied science. To know, as Easton points out, “is to bear the responsibility for acting and to act is to engage in reshaping society”. Post-beheviouralism asked for action science in place of contemplative science, and demanded that a sense of commitment and action must permeated and coloured entire research in political science.

7.    Politicisation of the profession: Behaviouralism did not want to make political science into politicize. But post-behaviouralism wanted politicization of all the professional associations as well as universities. According to post behaviouralism, if the role of intellectuals was to try to determine proper goals for society and make society better, the profession should be politicized.