Informational Report

Writing in Political Science

Margit Herrmann

University of Iowa

Abstract

            Writing in political science is often thought of as simply being news articles about day-to-day politics such as presidential elections or other political events.  In reality, writing in the political science field is very prominent, and can be as informal as a blog post or as formal as an academic paper.  My assumptions of what writing in this field encompassed were limited to simple emails, academic articles, and some kind of diplomatic writing.  After research and speaking with a diplomat, I saw that professions in political science take specific writing skills such as different forms of language, format, and references in both academic and non-academic writing.

Writing in Political Science

            Writing in the political science field is often brushed off to just be newspaper articles involving current affairs or the most current scandal involving a politician. What a lot of people don’t realize is that there are many different professions available in the political science field besides being a politician, such as a diplomat, an ambassador, or a professor. These jobs require different kinds and amounts of writing. I assumed that being a diplomat or an ambassador would require copious amounts of writing to explain political affairs involving other countries. Speaking to professionals in the political science field provided insight into the different kinds of writing done, such as diplomatic cables, newspaper articles, blogs, and scholarly articles. Non-academic and academic writing in the political science field use different styles of structure, diction, and references.

Structure

Structure is the way that a text is set up, or the way that it is formatted. All genres of writing have different and commonly known structures, such as poems, novels, and newspaper articles. A lesser known genre is a diplomatic cable, a non-academic text with a very specific and consistent format that has a clear goal of informing policy makers of an analysis of a political situation. Ronald McMullen, a Visiting Associate Professor at the University of Iowa and former diplomat wrote a cable summarizing political problems in Eritrea, arguing that, “Eritrea's resilience as a country is based on 1) a strong sense of nationalism forged over four decades of war, and 2) the capacity of most Eritreans to withstand suffering and deprivation with forbearance and toughness” (2009, p. 1) McMullen came to this conclusion after spending time researching and talking to officials in Eritrea, understanding the problems arising, and then reporting not just what happened, but why, and what he thinks should be done about it. McMullen explains that “In academic writing, you can often be as long as you want, in diplomatic writing, you needed to be short and concise.”  McMullen describes that cables were a new structure of writing for him, not the same as the lengthy writing done in college, but short, to the point, and with an analysis that can be used by policy makers without being a time consuming read. He learned this skill on the job, with bosses explaining what was expected. It was not a skill he learned in college, and is something a diplomats learn early on in their careers.

Cables are a form of writing very specific to diplomats, but other kinds of informal writing, such as blog posts, can also be a part of a profession in political science meant for the general public to read. Blog posts have the structure of a short, informal essay meant to inform the general public of various topics, in this case, the issue of unilateral succession in Kosovo. Ronald McMullen posted to a political science blog to inform readers of the issue of states recognizing unilateral succession, like in Kosovo. He explains why Kosovo’s independence has not been recognized by all countries, including Russia and China: “some argue that Kosovo’s independence would undermine the international community’s consensus about when to recognize break-away countries. The general rule of thumb is: widespread international recognition follows recognition from the “mother country” (McMullen, 2016, p. 1). Since Serbia does not recognize Kosovo’s independence, other countries feel they also cannot recognize it. The information about Kosovo is conveyed with a structure similar to a short essay, with informal language. This structure may not be the usual format of writing for a political scientist, especially one used in academic articles. A political scientist needs to be ready to write in many different genres, depending on the specific profession.

Non-academic writing has differing formats varying with genre, but academic writing has a structure more solidified across the academic community. Academic writing is much more formal, generally longer, and meant for other colleagues after publication. These articles also require extensive research and often include multiple authors. In Immigration Enforcement and the Redistribution of Political Trust, background information is provided on the topic of minorities being affected by politics, and then a hypothesis and research is discussed. One of the hypotheses is “that foreign-born Latinos who live in communities with high levels of Secure Communities enforcement will have less trust in government and less political efficacy” (Rocha, Knoll, Wrinkle, 2015, p. 8). This prediction is made after ample background is provided, with a format that is clearly academic. This format is made for other political scientists to follow, with headings and distinctions between research and predictions clearly defined.

Diction

Diction is the words and style authors use to change the style of their writing. Diction varies between genre, especially between non-academic and academic writing. For example, newspaper articles have different language than published articles in a journal. McMullen wrote an article for the Des Moines Register about heroin from Afghanistan being shipped to Iowa, and what he thought could be done to decrease the amounts being harvested and exported. The article features analytical diction that gives his opinion on what should be done while also providing factual data. McMullen describes what he implemented in Afghanistan and how his plan was not executed to the extent of the program:

I was not satisfied with a policy of poppy eradication by a central police unit, and persuaded Secretary Condoleezza Rice to back a large-scale incentive program to reward Afghan provinces for reducing poppy production. Unfortunately, due to the change of U.S. administrations, this new policy was never fully implemented. (McMullen, 2016, p.1).

McMullen informed the reader of what he did, and what he would have done if the administration had not changed. His diction was chosen specifically for the general public, because he knew it was a newspaper article that was going to be published. Writing for a newspaper may be part of the different tasks of a political scientist, with it coming a different style of language.

Diction can change immensely from a non-academic text like a newspaper article to an academic article. The diction becomes more formal, not meant for the general public, and with specific words chosen. An example of this formal diction is shown in Rocha and Matsubayashi’s Latino Immigration and Representation in Politics: “we rely on insights from the literature on intragroup heterogeneity and political behavior to develop a series of hypotheses regarding the effect of Latino immigration and citizenship status on representation at the local level” (p. 357). This excerpt has words such as “intragroup heterogeneity” and “political behavior” without going into depth about what these words mean. The authors assume that the audience already knows these terms, and that defining them would be redundant for other political scientists. This diction is very specific to this formal article, and may be out of place in an informal email or blog post. Formal language can completely change a text, and when used effectively can change the tone of the writing. The purpose in this article is to inform, so the formal language adds to that purpose instead of being too informal and distracting the reader from the overall point. This kind of formal language is very commonly used by a professor of political science who also does research.

References

References are the sources used in writing, usually in academic text. Sources are used to provide background information, to show other studies over the same topic, or even to refute a writers own thesis. By showing a source with an opposite opinion, the writer has the opportunity to make his or her own argument stronger. In academic papers, sources are used regularly and effectively for all of these reasons, such as in The Politics of Race and Voter ID Laws in the States: The Return of Jim Crow? In this article Rocha and Matsubayashi even cite two different articles in one sentence:

Even if ID requirements are enforced in a nondiscriminatory manner, which studies suggest is not the case (Alvarez, Atkeson, and Hall 2007; Cobb, Greiner, and Quinn 2012), minorities are still less likely to possess required forms of identification (Barreto, Nuño, and Sanchez 2007). (2014, p. 669)

Rocha and Matsubayashi demonstrate a common practice in academic writing. The frequent citing of sources gives important background information to the reader, such as mentioning a case that shows ID requirements are enforced in a way that doesn’t discriminate. This common citing of sources is an effective way of showing the reader all the other studies already done on this topic, while also making the writer seem more credible.

On the other hand, in non-academic writing, it is much less common for references to be used. Very rarely do political scientists cite a source in an informal text such as an email or a newspaper article. Citing a source in informal writing is unnecessary, because the audience is drastically different. The audience doesn’t need to research and read the other sources, because the audience is more likely the general public.

Conclusion

Political scientists may write in two very different styles, non-academic and academic, but the underlying factor is the same: writing in political science is important and can’t be overlooked. From blog posts to academic articles, each piece of writing is different in structure, language, and reference, with different purposes and audiences.

References

McMullen, R. (2009, March 5). Eritrea’s president is ‘unhinged dictator’. US Embassy.

Retrieved from

https://www.theguardian.com/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/195418

McMullen, R. (2016, April 12). Cheap, deadly heroin headed to Iowa. The Des Moines

Register, Retrieved from

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/opinion/columnists/iowa-view/2016/04/12/cheap-deadly-heroin-headed-iowa/82952996/

McMullen, R. (2016, August 30). Kosovo: Battling for recognition (with Iowa’s help).

Retrieved from

https://intreluiowa.wordpress.com

Rocha, R. R., Knoll, B. R., & Wrinkle, R. D. (2015). Immigration enforcement and the

redistribution of trust. Journal of Politics, 1-32.

Rocha, R. R., & Matsubayashi, T. (2013). “Latino representation and immigration in

local politics.” Urban Affairs Review, 49, 353-380.

Rocha, R. R., & Matsubayashi, T. (2014). “The politics of race and voter id laws in the states: The return of Jim Crow?” Political Research Quarterly, 67, 666-679.