American political development (often abbreviated as APD) is a subfield of

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

that studies the historical development of politics in the United States. In American political science departments, it is considered a subfield within

American politics In the United States, politics functions within a framework of a constitutional federal republic, federal democratic republic with a presidential system. The three distinct branches Separation of powers, share powers: United States Congress, C ...

and is closely linked to

historical institutionalism Historical institutionalism (HI) is a new institutionalist social science approach that emphasizes how timing, sequences and path dependence affect institutions, and shape social, political, economic behavior and change. Unlike functionalist theo ...

. Scholarship in American political development focuses on "the causes, nature, and consequences of key transformative periods and central patterns in American political history." Karen Orren and

Stephen Skowronek Stephen Skowronek (born 1951) is an American political scientist, noted for his research on American national institutions and the U.S. presidency, and for helping to stimulate the study of American political development. Early life and educat ...

, co-founders of the subfield's flagship journal, define American political development as the study of "durable shifts in governing authority" in the United States. The subfield emerged within American political science in the 1980s, alongside a general renewal of work in

, as an "insurgent movement" that sought to refocus attention on the study of historical American politics and to use such historical study to recast the study of contemporary political phenomena. APD shares overlaps with the research agendas of

comparative politics Comparative politics is a field in political science characterized either by the use of the '' comparative method'' or other empirical methods to explore politics both within and between countries. Substantively, this can include questions relat ...

(particularly comparative historical analysis),

historical sociology Historical sociology is an Interdisciplinarity, interdisciplinary field of research that combines Sociology, sociological and History, historical methods to understand the past, how societies have developed over time, and the impact this has on ...

, and

political history Political history is the narrative and survey of political events, ideas, movements, organs of government, voters, parties and leaders. It is closely related to other fields of history, including diplomatic history, constitutional history, soci ...

. However, scholarship in APD differs from political history in that the former's "primary concerns are analytical, conceptual, and theoretical rather than historical." Methodologically, the subfield tends to use within-case analysis and conduct causes-of-effects research (as opposed to effects-of-causes research). Major journals in the subfield include the flagship journal ''

Studies in American Political Development Studies in American Political Development (SAPD) is a political science academic journal, journal founded in 1986 and presently published by Cambridge University Press. It is the flagship journal of the American political development (APD) subfiel ...

'', founded in 1986, and ''The Journal of Political History'', founded in 1989. As of 2005, the Politics and History section (founded in 1989) of the

American Political Science Association The American Political Science Association (APSA) is a professional association of political scientists in the United States. Founded in 1903 in the Tilton Memorial Library (now Tilton Hall) of Tulane University in New Orleans, it publishes four ...

was the eighth-largest in membership out of 35 total sections.

Major works

Some major works in the subfield, as indicated by reading lists for comprehensive exams in graduate schools, are as follows: * ''Building an American State'' (1982) by

. * ''Alternative Americas: A Reading of Antebellum Political Culture'' by Anne Norton. * ''The Rhetorical Presidency'' (1987) by Jeffrey K. Tulis. * ''Ronald Reagan, The Movie: And Other Episodes in American Political Demonology'' by Michael Rogin. * ''Belated Feudalism : Labor, The Law, And Liberal Development In The United States'' (1991) by Karen Orren. * ''Protecting Soldiers and Mothers'' (1992) by

Theda Skocpol Theda Skocpol (née Barron; May 4, 1947) is an American sociologist and political scientist, who is currently the Victor S. Thomas Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University. She is best known as an advocate of the historical- ...

. * ''The Politics Presidents Make'' (1993) by

. * ''Republic of Signs'' (1993) by Anne Norton * ''Civic Ideals'' (1997) by

Rogers Smith Rogers M. Smith (born September 20, 1953) is an American political scientist and author noted for his research and writing on American constitutional and political development and political thought, with a focus on issues of citizenship and r ...

. * ''Shifting the Color Line'' (1998) by Robert C. Lieberman. * ''The Roots of Reform'' (1999) by Elisabeth Sanders. * ''The Political Economy of American Industrialization'' (2000) by Richard Bensel. * ''The Forging of Bureaucratic Autonomy'' (2000) by Daniel Carpenter. * ''Disjointed Pluralism'' (2001) by Eric Schickler. * ''The Search for American Political Development'' (2002) by Karen Orren and

. * ''The Divided Welfare State'' (2002) by

Jacob Hacker Jacob Stewart Hacker (born 1971) is an American professor and political scientist. He is the director of the Institution for Social and Policy Studies and a professor of political science at Yale University. Hacker has written works on social poli ...

. * ''The Minority Rights Revolution'' (2002) by John Skrentny. * ''Hellfire Nation: The Politics of Sin in American History'' (20030 by James A. Morone * ''A Revolution in Favor of Government'' (2003) by Max M. Edling * ''Politics in Time'' (2004) by Paul Pierson. * ''Nature and History in American Political Development'' (2006) by James Ceaser * ''Black and Blue: African Americans, the Labor Movement, and the Decline of the Democratic Party'' (2007) by Paul Frymer. * ''This Is Not A President; Sense, Nonsense, and the American Political Imaginary'' (2008) by Diane Rubenstein * ''The Political Foundations of Judicial Supremacy'' (2009) by Keith Whittington * ''Civil Rights and the Making of the Modern American State'' (2014) by Megan Ming Francis. * ''Legacies of Losing in American Politics'' (2018) by Jeffrey K. Tulis and Nicole Mellow. * ''Rot and Revival: The History of Constitutional Law in American Political Development'' (2024) by Anthony Michael Kreis.

References

Subfields of political science Historiography of the United States {{US-poli-stub