from Norway
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 January 2018
Summary: Political science is today taught at all Norwegian universities. It sprang out of international law and history, but has since then left its origins and developed in four different directions; election studies, comparative social-historical research, decision-making processes, and international relations. The days of major expansion is probably over, at least in the four established universities in Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim and Tromso, but recently, four university colleges have been upgraded to universities, and are still expanding. Research institutes also perform quality research. PRIO in Oslo, according to the most recent Scopus SJR index, for instance publishes the number one political science journal in the world. Thus, the field is in good health. It has a high reputation and is a solidly established social science that is punching above its weight internationally. Obviously, there are problems, too. It is theoretically and methodologically shallower than in other countries, and to a greater extent focused on technocratic problem-solving for the public sector. Simultaneously, the focus on bibliometrics has led the field in the direction of international publishing, which has increased enormously. Norwegian political scientists are however not very frequently cited.
Political science in Norway is a creation of the post-war world, but one that has since experienced strong growth. From humble beginnings, political science is today taught at all Norwegian universities and at a number of university colleges and Norwegian political scientists have been, and are, highly active both domestically and internationally. It is now 2014, and since its Norwegian origins in 1947, the field has turned 67 years old, coincidentally the normal retirement age for a Norwegian citizen. But this is not a field that is ready to retire. Instead, the first 67 years has easily been a success – this is a vibrant 67-year old, and for much of the lifespan of Norwegian political science, it has punched solidly above its weight. In 1947, the University of Oslo (UiO) became the first Norwegian institution to grant a degree in political science (although for a full decade taught primarily by legal scholars and historians).
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